http://www.CountryTalkStory.com
Choon James is a real estate broker in Hawaii and has a B.A. in English and TESL as a minor from Brigham Young University - Hawaii. She's the proud mother of four Eagle Scouts and one daughter.
Choon is originally from Singapore. She comes from a family of ten children. Her mother was the second of her father's three wives. In the Chua household, they have Methodists, Catholics, Buddhists, Mormons, atheist and Taoist believers.
"We're fortunate to grow up with diversity. My father’s best friend, Chandra, was a Hindu Indian who spoke Hokkien. My best childhood friends at school were Malay Muslims. We learned to focus on the merits and content very quickly and forget about the superficial exteriors.
Like many in Hawaii, our immediate household is quite chop-suey as well. My husband is a Caucasian born in North Dakota and grew up in Massachusetts. In our immediate household, English, Mandarin, Fijian, Japanese, Hawaiian, Tahitian, French, and Spanish can be spoken.
We love Hawaii. Its diversity and aloha represent the best in all of us!"
Choon's past and present civic involvement includes the following:
Defend Oahu Coalition - Founding member for Grassroots for smart planning
Save Oahu Farmlands - Founding member
Ko'olauloa Sustainable Communities Planning Advisory Committee
Kahuku Hospital Board of Director
Laie Point Community Association President & Board Member
Laie Community Association Board
BYU-Hawaii/CCH Alumni Association President
Sierra Club Member
Refugees Language Tutor Volunteer
Amnesty International Freedom Writer
Friends of "South Pass City", Wyoming, USA
Boy Scouts of America
Host - Country Talk Story - Olelo Public Television
North Shore News columnist
Huffington Post Hawaii Blogger
You can see the beautiful lean Patsy Takemoto Mink monument outside the Hawaiʻi State Library. This ceremony marked the 50th anniversary of the landmark Title IX legislation (1972) that Mink championed.
Patsy T. Mink monument outside of the Hawaii State Library
Although Title IX is often referred to in sports, it also opened the doors to all student in other areas. It forces fairness of gender in recruitment, financial aid, admissions, housing, and athletics. Mink co-authored Title IX using the big stick to ban U.S. schools and universities from receiving federal funds if they were involved in discrimination.
Hawaiʻi Supreme Court Associate Justice Sabrina McKennasharing her gratitude to benefiting from Title IX.
First term 2018-2022 City Councilwoman Heidi Tsuneyoshi has chosen to run for Governor instead of running for a second term at Honolulu Hale.
City Council Candidates for Elections 2022
It’s interesting to note that Chad Tsuneyoshi, the husband of present City Councilmember Heidi Tsuneyoshi, filed to run for the same office at the very last minute. The couple recently underwent a divorce. However, political cynics question if this was a convenience for the gubernatorial candidate to not have to address any further background questions relating to Chad Tsuneyoshi’s past criminal record.
A question of his filing is whether Chad Tsuneyoshi thinks he could capitalize on the name recognition in Council District 2. Incumbent politicians always have a huge advantage in re-elections due to name recognition unless there is a huge monumental scandal or corruption. (However, incumbent CM Heidi Tsuneyoshi, has made some very troublesome decisions as the District 2 council member.)
Here is some information about Chad Tsuneyoshi from public records.
Apparently, Chad Tsuneyoshi has been working very hard with political campaigns, including Ernie Martin, Charles Djou, Trevor Ozawa, his wife’s city council campaign in 2018 and perhaps other candidates.’
Editor Andrew Walden from Hawaii Free Press described Chad Tsuneyoshi as such:
“Convicted cocaine dealer Chad Tsuneyoshi is taking over as Honolulu Council Chair Ernie Martin’s Campaign Treasurer. “
My own personal experiences with the Chad and Heidi Tsuneyoshi were from my city council campaign in 2018. Chad Tsuneyoshi was managing his wife’s campaign.
We had one of the more nasty campaigns that included anonymous negative attacks through USPO mailings and email, stolen and vandalized political banners, mass facebook messaging behind our backs, social media trolls injecting fabricated rumours and smears in conversations, and so on.
This was a period that had one of those “in your face” tactics that everybody could logically guess which campaign camp the perpetrators were from. But nobody had the time or resources to get to the bottom of it.
UGLY TACTICS
CIVIL BEAT: ” Envelopes sent with no return address arrived at homes across north Oahu this summer. Inside were flyers criticizing the political record of Robert “Bobby” Bunda, one of four candidates in the Honolulu City Council District 2 race.
Dave Burlew, a Kahuku farmer also running for the seat, was shocked to receive one of these letters and even more surprised to find “VOTE DAVE BURLEW FOR CITY COUNCIL!!” at the bottom of the flyer along with his P.O. box number.
“That’s when it got ugly,” Burlew said.
Burlew said he does not know who is responsible for the flyers. Heidi Tsuneyoshi and Choon James, the two other candidates in the race, also say they have no knowledge of where the letters come from. “
Logic told us that Robert Bunda could not be the person to smear himself. Dave Burlew and I (Choon James) were friends with similar values. Both of us knew 100% we did not do that. So, who was left?
Unite Local 5 which endorsed Robert Bunda in 2018 had this to say:
“July 2018 – Some may disagree with our support of Bobby Bunda, and that’s ok. But we’re confident Bobby is the best candidate for Council District 2.
Bobby has never shied away from criticism, but he has also been subject to a series of unfair, illegal and anonymous mailers that do not reflect the values of our hard working families in District 2. The sender of these mailers want you to believe they came from Dave Burlew, another candidate in the race, but he sent a statement to the State Campaign Spending Commission saying he had nothing to do with the mailers.
Before you vote, or even if you have already voted, you should know the whole truth behind each candidate. Google search Heidi Tsuneyoshi, Dave Burlew, Choon James and Bobby Bunda and start learning the facts. Also, ask yourself which candidate has enough money to pay for an expensive mass mailing campaign and stands to gain the most from attacking Bobby Bunda? “
Tsuneyoshi’s Donations for her City Council race included these:
Heidi Tsuneyoshi was one of the very few selected candidates who received donations from indicted organized crime boss Michael Miske. Tsuneyoshi did not respond to Civil Beat’s request for comment.
Tsuneyoshi also received $31,950 from Mitsunaga & Associates whose principals have recently been indicted along with City Prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro for charges of conspiracy and bribery practices.
Today is the Deadline for Filling to run for office. The Office of Elections currently has a list of candidates who have taken out nominations issued to them. But not every one has filed to complete the papers by today June 7, 2022 4:30 pm.
We have not heard any last-minute controversies of having signatures rejected that would disqualify a candidate.
It’s said that generally when there are a large amounts of candidates, the citizenry are unhappy and unsatisfied with the state of affairs.
The US Congressional Senate position has 19 citizens obtained nomination papers to run for the position currently held by Senator Brian Schatz. Ten candidates have filed their papers.
The US Congressional House Representative position has 10 citizens obtained nomination papers, currently held by Representative Kai Kahele. Seven candidates have filed their nomination papers.
Governor David Ige defeated then 1-term Governor Neil Abercrombie in 2014 and was reelected on 2018. His is term-out this election year.
The Gubernatorial race has 38 obtained nomination papers! There are 19 candidates who have filed by today. They include Duke Aiona, Vicky Cayetano, Josh Green, Kai Kahele and 15 other candidates.
Our District 2 in the Honolulu City Council position has 5 candidates. I will elaborate on this District in my next post.
Here is McKenzie Norman Fuchigami – a very young and strong widow’s post – on Facebook:
“McKenzie Norman Fuchigami is with Takeshi Fuchigami at Memorial Day.
Another Memorial Day in the books, and another day without him. Of course I want to take this opportunity to remember his beautiful soul.
Takeshi proudly served his country and I know he would not hesitate to do it again even given the outcome.
But I also cannot help on this day to remember what was lost.
It’s daunting and frankly SOUL CRUSHING thinking about living the rest of my life without him. Never hearing his voice again or seeing his face light up, making my heart whole. What’s worse? Knowing I missed my short chance of making him a Dad, sharing a family with him. I’ll never be able to get that chance back, something my brain knows, but my heart just won’t accept.
Memorial Day is a painful one, thinking about all of the thousands of lives that are forever altered.
The high price of freedom I’m reminded by daily. And even though it’s painful, I will take this day and every day to remember his irreplaceable presence, and the life we could have had.
To those who will always have a permanent hole in their heart, I hope this Memorial Day reminds you of the love that we got to have even if it was short lived.”
This is part of Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi’s legislative package for 2022 – the power to use NON-JUDICIAL Foreclosures of private properties based on civil fines. This affects all Counties in Hawaii, if approved.
Conference Committee scheduled to be heard on April 29, 2022 at 4:00 pm
2022 has been a whirlwind of legislation. The entire State of Hawaii is just beginning to get adjusted to the last two years of COVID19 upheaval and adjustment in all different levels of society.
HB 1434 is premature and too dangerous to pass this legislative year. There are many unanswered questions. Fundamentally, it egregiously lacks public engagement, and in providing an open and transparent government. It’s one of the best-kept secrets this session. The supporting testimonials come from the DPP Director and five Honolulu City Council members.
To adopt such a groundbreaking and severe legislative decision WITHOUT each legislator warning or educating or engaging with his/her affected residents is malfeasance and sorely lacking in representation.
Hb1434 is not just some customary budget or public work or social support issue, this is about the quick taking of private property by the government who already has immense powers.
The two case-in-point used in written testimonies to the State Legislature are not entirely accurate. Even if they are accurate, such public policy cannot be taken lightly or without significant research on the facts and findings from various and different sources, especially the most affected parties.
Regarding the cited Hauula case of which we’re very familiar with. We’re not saying that the family does not have violations to correct. They have submitted building applications to DPP which takes time, even before COVID 19. The long process compounded their daily fines. Some violations were incorrect because there is a difference between Agriculture-zone and residential-zone properties.
City Council District 2 Heidi Tsuneyoshi pushed through Resolution 22-11 to enforce “Eminent Domain” and then “Judicial Foreclosure” in 25 working days! This family was used as a scapegoat.
Overly ambitious Council member Heidi Tsuneyoshi accused the family of violations for the past 5 years when the family had only acquired their farm 2.5 years ago in November 2019. The family was also issued inaccurate violations but the fines tripled and compounded. DPP was also told not to give permits. How is a resident supposed to correct violations without obtaining a permit?
She did not even reach out to her constituent who is an immigrant family from the Kingdom of Tonga. There are many extenuating circumstances. The young wife was suffering from cancer relapses during the past few years and under hospice care recently. She died on April 2, 2022.
When a constituent is in trouble, we expect our city council members to reach out and lend a helping hand, not rush to quickly slam them and seize their private property.
On the State level, adopting HB 1434 would be akin to simply throwing the baby out with the bath water with no thought of the unintended consequences or property rights. Why give immense blanket powers to address a few “problematic” properties?
The Hawaii State Legislature cannot eliminate Due Process, Private Property Rights, and Equity and Fairness from our residents with this HB1434.
The handwriting is on the wall that HB 1434 will inevitably punish the unsophisticated residents and those without powers and connections to fight or fend for themself. Legal fees are expensive.
Those who are affluent and connected will always find a way out.
There must be robust discussions on all fundamental facts, accuracy of information, and especially the unintended consequences that will inevitably occur should this bill is adopted.
It’s a known fact that most of our property owners work and sacrifice much to own a private property. Not many are born with a silver spoon in their mouths.
The OAHU Honolulu County (although NOTHING is heard from the other affected Hawaii counties of Maui, Kauai, Hawaii Island, Lanai, Moloka’i) apparently wants to bypass and circumvent constitutional due process of “eminent domain”.
It even wants to skip “Judicial Foreclosure” and hurry on to fast track the takings of private property through “NON-Judicial Foreclosure.
This is alarming! This agenda cannot be taken lightly. How many States are adopting this kind of powers?
The only fair and democratic and pono way is for all legislators to warn, educate, and engage with their constituents first prior to adoption of this HB 1343/SB 2110.
The public at large remains in the dark and are unaware of this severe and transformational legislation. This will come back and haunt the decision-makers in the near future.
There are also many unanswered questions as to the unconstitutional infringement on DUE PROCESS, PRIVATE PROPERTY RIGHTS and FAIRNESS.
It also violates the Honolulu City Charter Purpose, principles, and intent to serve the people in the best way possible and in fair and equitable ways.
The State Legislature must REJECT HB 1434/SB2110 this session. Engage, educate, and warn the people in ALL COUNTIES first. That’s the only democratic route to take on this one. Restore Trust in Government.
Just you know, your comments cannot be deleted or blocked on a public official’s page. It’s probably Facebook that is used most frequently by politicians and bureaucrats.
If you feel that you’re likely to be censored by a public official or page, contribute your comments and take a screenshot. This way, if your comments disappear, there is proof.
First Amendment: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
I’m sharing the entire report from the ACLU for easy reading.
By Vera Eidelman, Staff Attorney, ACLU Speech, Privacy, and Technology ProjectJANUARY 9, 2019 | 12:00 PM
” One of the core purposes of the First Amendment is to allow people, regardless of their views, to hold the government accountable through expression. So, if your elected representative has an official Facebook page where she invites comments, can she block you from commenting because you criticize her work?
According to a federal appeals court, the answer is a resounding no.
On Monday, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the interactive portion of a public official’s Facebook page is a “public forum,” so an official cannot block people from it because of the opinions they hold.
The case arose after the chair of a local board of supervisors in Virginia, Phyllis Randall, briefly blocked a critic from her official Facebook page and deleted a comment he made about her colleagues’ management of public funds.
The critic, Brian Davison, represented by the Knight First Amendment Institute, filed a lawsuit arguing that Randall had violated his First Amendment rights by removing him from a public forum — space the government makes available for people’s expressive activity — because she disagreed with his views. Randall countered that she has the authority to control the page’s content — including the comments. (President Trump has used some of the same arguments in a lawsuit against him for blocking people on Twitter.)
We filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of Davison, arguing that officials cannot prevent people from joining in a public conversation because of their viewpoints, and the three-judge appeals court panel agreed.
It is important to remember that people who hold public office can wear two hats: Sometimes, they act as private individuals, and other times they are government actors. While they maintain their First Amendment rights when acting as private individuals, they are subject to the limits the First Amendment places on the government whenever they’re doing government work.
As the court rightly held, that includes any time that they’re controlling a Facebook page they maintain in their official roles. Specifically, the court recognized that when a public official uses a Facebook page as a tool of governance — that is, when she uses it to inform the public about her government work, solicits input on policy issues through the page, and swathes it “in the trappings of her office” — she is controlling the page as a government actor.
And if she opens that page to public comment, the interactive space of the Facebook page constitutes a public forum. The fact that the page exists on a website owned by a private company doesn’t change that.
That means that, when a public official blocks critics from the page because of their viewpoints, she violates the Constitution. Indeed, the right to criticize the government is at the heart of the First Amendment. The court specifically recognized blocking as infringing on that right, noting that blocking someone in order to silence criticism of government work is itself evidence of government action.
The Fourth Circuit is the first appellate court to opine on this issue, and its order controls public officials and agencies in Virginia and nearby states. Elsewhere aroundthe country, public officials have also stopped censoring critics on their social media pages thanks to the work of the ACLU.
These cases help to ensure that our First Amendment rights remain protected as our democracy increasingly moves online. The fact that a public official disagrees with you on an issue doesn’t mean she can silence you. Indeed, it means the opposite — and that holds true whether you’re speaking out in a public park, at a town hall meeting, or on a Facebook page. “
Needless to say, you have the responsibility not to use threats or violence on their page. That’s not covered under Free Speech.
LOCAL CONTACT for ACLU
General Inquiries
Send us an email to office@acluhawaii.org or call (808) 522-5900 (voice messages only, this line does NOT accept inquiries for our legal program.)
There appears to be too many “love triangle” murders in Hawaii recently. The people involved appear to be contributing citizens with good training and good jobs. But anger management or jealousy control seems to lacking in these cases.
Life has its own challenges, twists and turns. Learning how to cope is part of growing up. These words from the famed actor Sir Anthony Hopkins are worth reading, contemplating, and sharing with family and friends.
′′Let go the people who are not prepared to love you. This is the hardest thing you will have to do in your life and it will also be the most important thing.
Stop having hard conversations with people who don’t want change.
Stop showing up for people who have no interest in your presence.
I know your instinct is to do everything to earn the appreciation of those around you, but it’s a boost that steals your time, energy, mental and physical health.
When you begin to fight for a life with joy, interest and commitment, not everyone will be ready to follow you in this place. This doesn’t mean you need to change what you are, it means you should let go of the people who aren’t ready to accompany you.
If you are excluded, insulted, forgotten or ignored by the people you give your time to, you don’t do yourself a favor by continuing to offer your energy and your life.
The truth is that you are not for everyone and not everyone is for you.
That’s what makes it so special when you meet people who reciprocate love. You will know how precious you are.
The more time you spend trying to make yourself loved by someone who is unable to, the more time you waste depriving yourself of the possibility of this connection to someone else.
There are billions of people on this planet and many of them will meet with you at your level of interest and commitment.
The more you stay involved with people who use you as a pillow, a background option or a therapist for emotional healing, the longer you stay away from the community you want.
Maybe if you stop showing up, you won’t be wanted.
Maybe if you stop trying, the relationship will end.
Maybe if you stop texting, your phone will stay dark for weeks.
That doesn’t mean you ruined the relationship, it means the only thing holding it back was the energy that only you gave to keep it. This is not love, it’s attachment. It’s wanting to give a chance to those who don’t deserve it. You deserve so much, there are people who should not be in your life.
The most valuable thing you have in your life is your time and energy, and both are limited.
When you give your time and energy, it will define your existence.
When you realize this, you begin to understand why you are so anxious when you spend time with people, in activities, places or situations that don’t suit you and shouldn’t be around you, your energy is stolen.
You will begin to realize that the most important thing you can do for yourself and for everyone around you is to protect your energy more fiercely than anything else.
Make your life a safe haven, in which only ′′compatible′′ people are allowed.
You are not responsible for saving anyone.
You are not responsible for convincing them to improve.
It’s not your work to exist for people and give your life to them! If you feel bad, if you feel compelled, you will be the root of all your problems, fearing that they will not return the favours you have granted.
It’s your only obligation to realize that you are the love of your destiny and accept the love you deserve.
Decide that you deserve true friendship, commitment, true and complete love with healthy and prosperous people. Then wait and see how much everything begins to change.
Don’t waste time with people who are not worth it.
Change will give you the love, the esteem, happiness and the protection you deserve.”
I’ve been helping with residential real estate in Hawaii for 30 years. People continue to say that the real estate market will bottom out. I have not seen it happened and I don’t think it will. It not like we can split the stocks into half. But I have seen highs and lows in a cyclical fashion. It has not “bottom-out” in my experience but bounced back.
During the Great Depression, many bought real estate knowing that the market would rebound.
Here’s an example of real estate values in my country of birth. We are familiar with these roads and locations. As secondary school students, we were always admiring the big homes. Lee Kuan Yew‘s home is also in this area. Here is a new listing in Singapore. It’s asking for S$300 million.
” SINGAPORE – A sprawling mansion at 5 Oxley Rise, where Jewish businessman Manasseh Meyer and real estate tycoon Cheong Eak Chong once resided, has been put up for sale.
The hilltop two-storey bungalow, which sits on a 151,205 sq ft freehold site in prime District 9, is expected to attract offers in excess of $300 million, marketing agent CBRE said on Monday (April 18).
The property is owned by seven members of the same family, all sons of the late Mr Cheong, founder of listed developer Hong Fok Corporation and Tian Teck group, according to The Business Times.”
Here is another angle to this property and the people who used to live in it. It’s so fantastic that there are so many people who are willing to share their interests and knowledge in history.
“Sir Manasseh Meyer, a Baghdadi Jew who was said to have “owned three-quarters of Singapore” as well as being the “richest Jew in the Far East” being richer than the Sassoons (who were described as the “Rothschilds of the East”).
The opium trade, enriched many in the Baghdadi Jewish community including the Sassoons. Like the Sassoons, who operated in Shanghai and Hong Kong, those in the community who found themselves in Singapore, came through Bombay (Mumbai).
Many saw the trade, as community historian Eze Nathan would describe it “The History of Jews in Singapore, 1830-1945”, as a “legitimate short cut to wealth” and the members of the community in Singapore, such as Meyer, made a fortune from it.Having acquired wealth initially from the trade, Meyer branched out into other businesses and into property. He would come to live in Belle Vue, which was originally built by Thomas Oxley as Killiney House and among the properties associated with Meyer were the Adelphi Hotel, Sea View Hotel, Meyer Mansions, Meyer Chambers and the Crescent Flats.
Belle Vue was demolished in the 1980s to make way for a condo development of the same name. A reminder of Meyer’s estate off Oxley Rise does however exist in the form of the Chesed-El synagogue, one of two synagogues in Singapore that Meyer erected. “
