Coconut Wireless

POT POW WOWS AND PEER NEWS

HYPER LOCAL

"We need to consider what drug prohibition has done to the vital
profession of law enforcement. It has divided police officers from
the communities we serve, alienated us from young people, sent our
call-loads through the roof, placed huge financial strains on police
budgets and, sometimes, my colleagues have been injured or murdered
while enforcing these drug laws. Every police officer should question
whether the War on Drugs is worth fighting, particularly when there
are other policy options that would result in less crime, addiction,
disease and death." That was David Bratzer, a Canadian police officer
and member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), who I
interviewed in January while he was honeymooning on Maui. Last week,
some out-of-town cops visited the Valley Isle with a different
message. As reported in The Maui News, members of the Los Angeles
Police Department and the California Narcotic Officers' Association
showed up for a "medical marijuana summit" in Kahului, where they
discussed the evils of decriminalization. As previously noted in this
space, SB2213, a bill that would allow "compassion center"
dispensaries, is currently moving through the legislature. Among the
measure testimony is a letter from Jay Fleming, also of LEAP. Here's
an excerpt: "As a former officer, I know the voice of police is
crucial in the dialogue about drug policy.

But in the case of medical marijuana, physicians, caregivers, and
patients are the ones who should be making decisions about medical
care. It is inappropriate for the police to substitute our judgment
for that of physicians and those in need of the care of physicians."
Seriously, can we get some of these cops to move to Hawaii?.. Want
faster Internet? Don't tell me-tell Google. The tech giant plans to
pick one community to test an "experimental high-speed fiber
network," according to a missive from Akaku. To nominate Maui (the
deadline is March 26) go to www.google.com/appserve/fiberrfi ... On
March 19, the County issued two press releases.

The first was about Mayor Tavares declaring March Women's History
Month, and featured a quote from the Mayor touting the "major roles"
women have played "in shaping the future of our community." The
second release was a response by the County to a gender
discrimination lawsuit filed last week by the Hawaii ACLU on behalf
of three Baldwin High softball players and their coach.

The suit names the state Department of Education (DOE) and the
County, and claims the softball team is being forced to play on an
inferior field, a violation of Title IX, also known as the Patsy T.
Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act. "The County does not
discriminate on any basis," says the release, adding that the
County-owned field where the softball team practices "is in excellent
condition and offers a number of amenities." Last week, a judge
disagreed and issued a preliminary injunction against the DOE and the
County. According to the ACLU, a "court-appointed expert will
recommend short term, immediate improvements to alleviate some of the
more egregious disparities between the boys and girls playing
fields." This being Women's History Month and all, that's a good
thing, right?..

LOCAL

Last week I attended a media conference on Oahu with Publisher Tommy
Russo, mostly to hear remarks by John Temple, editor of the
soon-to-launch Peer News. Peer News is the brainchild of eBay
co-founder Pierre Omidyar of Oahu.and that's about all anyone knows.
What will it look like? How will it fit into Hawaii's rapidly
shrinking media landscape?

And, most essentially, how will it make money?

Not by selling ads, said Temple. Instead, he said they'll encourage
users to participate, along with reporter "hosts," in creating and
discussing issues, in a forum that sounds like a heavily moderated,
newsy version of Wikipedia (though Temple said that comparison may be
misleading). As of this writing, the site remains under construction,
but Temple said a launch is imminent. As a journalist, media consumer
and Hawaii resident, I'm rooting for Peer News to succeed, even if
I'm still not certain what, exactly, it is. If the idea is to get
people to pay to read and interact with the news (I'm guessing, but
as Temple said, "there are only so many business models") I must
confess I have my doubts-with few exceptions, news pay walls have
failed wherever they've been erected.

This is one case where I'd love to be proven wrong..

NOT LOCAL

According to a survey conducted by Reader's Digest and reported on
this week in Pacific Business News, Hawaii has the 49th worst roads
in the country, ahead of only Louisiana. Frankly, I'm shocked-who
knew Reader's Digest was still around?