The flight between Hilo and Honolulu is only 45 minutes long on average, I print out my boarding passes at home, and as a Hawaiian Airlines frequent flyer I get pre-checked through security and thus avoid the wait in line. And once I'm seated on the plane, I can do all my daily reading. But it's still a drag.

That said, we chose to move to the Big Island, and I figured that I could handle my workload remotely. But it would be unfair to leave all of our government relations work this session to my partner (who still lives on Oahu), especially since she's got several upcoming trips to D.C. over the next three months. So, I've got all the state / county stuff this winter, while she works the feds.

Because I've got to be back on Oahu at the Capitol this Friday morning, my wife is going to fly into HNL that evening after she's done at school, and we'll spend the weekend with Elder Daughter, her husband and our two grandchildren.

Republicans said their big tax cut would spur corporations to invest more and give their employees big raises. Everybody else said it was far more likely that corporations would spend most of the money on stock buybacks, which would increase the value of stock owned by CEOs and wealthy investors. It looks like everybody else was right:

    Almost 100 American corporations have trumpeted such plans in the past month. American companies have announced more than $178 billion in planned buybacks -- the largest amount unveiled in a single quarter, according to Birinyi Associates, a market research firm.

Back in October, CEA head Kevin Hassett said "I would expect to see an immediate jump in wage growth." Today he's singing a different tune: "Right now we're going to have an adjustment where you see probably more dividends and share buybacks than wage increases."

But Sessions for the first time is saying TALK TO THE HAND.

And then this evening Sessions dines out with Rosenstein.  With photos.

The Lt. Governor, Casey Cagle (a candidate for governor) sought to kill broader tax legistation that would provide the company a $50 million tax break on jet fuel.  Cagle made the rationale clear in his twitter message--the benefit would not be returned unless Delta "changed its position and fully re-instates its relationship with the NRA." ..adding "corporations cannot attack conservatives and expect us not to fight back."  As with Trump, twitter pronouncements may not be helpful to the government'defense.

My letter in the San Rafael Independent Journal:

Teens are old enough to speak out on guns

    The kids who survived and spoke out about the recent school shooting in Florida immediately came in for attacks from the extreme right, which questioned the legitimacy of the protests.

    Some suggested that the kids on TV were actors playing a role, others implied that it must be their liberal parents pushing an agenda through the kids.

    No matter what the rationale, what they are saying is that these kids may be mature enough to purchase a deadly weapon, but they're not mature enough to hold an opinion about it after they see one being used.

My mother's letter in the 2/28 Pacific Sun (not online)

The Survivors

    In news reports of the frequent massacres in our country, we see repeated lists of the number killed, one report of those shot.

    I would like to see a list of the survivors; I want to know how they are coping. I want to know WHO pays their hospital and medical bills.  Do we just forget about the `also shot?'

The whining that the two leads in CALL ME BY YOUR NAME were straight.  Really?  This might have been a vid criticism a few years ago but come on, the anomaly now is a gay actor who is NOT out and they play straight roles all the time.

Seriously, this is nonsense.  There are real problems in the LGBTQ community.  This is not one of them.

It's good.

IGN

If you're looking to scratch that crime drama itch then you should check out McMafia, AMC's excellent new series. It's The Godfather for a new generation. The show is called McMafia because it's all about franchising crime, just like you would a McDonald's. Now, in The Godfather, most of the crime was relegated to New York and Las Vegas, but these gangsters are dealing in Dubai, Tel Aviv, Mumbai, and Prague. In the digital age, they can control shipments and lock down deals with the press of a button. Imagine what kind of empire Michael Corleone could have amassed if he'd had an iPad

McMafia doesn't rewrite the crime drama playbook, but it does do a great job of giving the genre a fresh coat of paint with its story of how crime works in an era where you can order a pizza and a hit, all from your cell phone. You can watch McMafia when it premieres on AMC on February 26th

The plot:
The film starts by explaining the backstory of vibranium. It is the hardest metal in the universe and it's also an energy source. It can be used to make wondrous things like skyscrapers, light rail, energy weapons, and force fields. It's only found in Wonkaland because an asteroid struck that spot in the long-long ago. Wonkaland is also unique because there is an extract from a purple flower that gives one super-strength but only the dictator-king and his son, the prince, are allowed to drink it.

The dictator-king of Wonkaland is dead. Two female soldiers with spears go to America to retrieve the prince; Eddie Murphy (aka Black Panther). The female soldiers have shaved heads and spears. You later discover that all the female soldiers have shaved heads and spears.

They return to CGI Wonkaland in a spaceship. Wonkaland is hidden by an invisibility cloak powered by vibranium. Wonkaland has tall gleaming modern skyscrapers with thatched roofs and there is considerable street graffiti. The Black Panther's younger sister flips him the F-U middle finger and teases him for having a girlfriend.

Several people discuss with Black Panther whether Wonkaland should remain hidden or use its wealth and wondrous technology for good.

Black Panther must have a spear fight with an African tribal ruler who is a challenger to the throne. But first they have Black Panther drink a potion to counteract the purple flower and remove his super-strength so it's a fair fight. Black Panther wins the fight and he is declared king.

Black Panther drinks the purple flower again, speaks to his dead dad in the afterlife, gets his super-strength back, and is given a new catsuit made of vibranium. Several people discuss with Black Panther whether Wonkaland should remain hidden or use its wealth and wondrous technology for good.

In London, an African American named Killmonger teams up with a South African arms dealer named Klaw to steal an African artifact made of vibranium from a museum. They are planning to sell it in South Korea. Klaw is kinda fun in the museum and kinda fun in South Korea but he's really just a minor character. I won't add details to avoid spoilers.

Later, Killmonger shows up in Wonkaland and discusses with Black Panther whether Wonkaland should remain hidden or use its wealth and wondrous technology for good. Because Black Panther is a dictator, he threatens to have Killmonger executed for disrespecting him. But Killmonger shows his inside lower lip tattoo proving that he is a Wonkalandian and challenges Black Panther to a fight for the throne. Wonkalandians have inside lower lip tattoos.

Black Panther again drinks the potion to counteract the purple flower in preparation for a second ritual spear fight. But this time, Black Panther loses the fair fight with Killmonger and is tossed over a waterfall - apparently, it is the Iguazu Waterfalls in Argentina. Killmonger is now the new dictator-king so he drinks the extract from the purple flower and gets a catsuit made of vibranium.

The Black Panther's girlfriend and younger sister find Black Panther buried in the snow and they have him drink the purple flower again, he talks to his dad in the afterlife again, then he goes to fight Killmomger with his vibranium catsuit and super-strength restored. Killmonger says, `Wazzup?' There is a CGI battle scene of opposing armies with spears, blankets that can generate force fields, and at least three CGI rhinoceros with metal armor.

I WONT TELL YOU WHO WINS - you need to see the film yourself.

The film ends with a discussion of whether Wonkaland should remain hidden or use its wealth and wondrous technology for good. I won't tell you how that is ultimately resolved.

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Title VII, which covers discrimination in employment, covers sexual orientation discrimination (i.e., gay/lesbian) and discrimination based on sex stereotypes (i.e., effeminate/unfeminine).

Previously, courts have ruled that the several failed attempts to add sexual orientation to Title VII demonstrates that Congress did not intent sex to be defined this broadly. The same is true for gender expression.

From my reading of the decision, I believe this is a correct interpretation of caveats in the ruling:

• This court decision `uses the terms "sex" and "gender" interchangeably' to refer to sex stereotyping.
  
• This court decision affirms `that "sex" in Title VII "means biologically male or female." `
  
• This case did not involve discrimination against a transgender individual which is `a distinct question not at issue here.'
  
• This ruling does not address a possible religious exception (see below).
  

We express no view on whether some exception, either under a different provision of Title VII or under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, might immunize from liability discriminatory conduct rooted in religious beliefs.

Temperatures may have soared as high as 35 degrees Fahrenheit (2 degrees Celsius) at the pole, according to the U.S. Global Forecast System model. While there are no direct measurements of temperature there, Zack Labe, a climate scientist working on his PhD at the University of California at Irvine, confirmed that several independent analyses showed "it was very close to freezing," which is more than 50 degrees (30 degrees Celsius) above normal.

It would be ironic if we were saved from global warming by an ice age.  Which is what some fear if enough ice melts to mess with the polar current.

I'm still not sure what level of conman and/or what level of crazy David Koresh was.  He might have actually believed he was the reincarnation of Jesus Christ. Some of his followers definitely believed that.

One thing I learned about the ATF Raid was that it was supposed to be a showcase maneuver to justify increased funding.  They brought along a camera crew to show how a successful raid was supposed to go down.

Special Counsel Robert Mueller and his legal team has moved to drop charges that were brought last week in an expansive superseding indictment against Rick Gates. The 32-count indictment issued in the Eastern District of Virginia accused Gates of tax and bank fraud.

Why it matters: Mueller's decision to drop the more expansive charges against Gates suggests that he may have provided good information for Mueller's probe. Gates still faces an advisory sentence of 57 to 71 months under his guilty plea, per Bloomberg, but it's worth noting that the "prosecution can request a shorter sentence but isn't required to do so." Gates pled guilty last week to charges filed in the District of Columbia on counts of conspiracy against the United States and lying to the FBI and the Special Counsel.

Would you a) visit a tropical jungle preserve and/or botanical gardens, or b) go to a soccer game?

Day 1.5+.5 is already hypothetically filled with beaches, visits to mountain tops, and general hanging out/putzing around.

What does it mean to be American? What holds us together in turbulent times? In the documentary film AMERICAN CREED, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Pulitzer Prize-winning historian David M. KENNEDY come together from different backgrounds and points of view to investigate the idea of a unifying American creed. How, ask Rice and Kennedy, have American ideals of freedom, fairness, equality, and opportunity been shaped? How are they interpreted tod

That'll work out.

Who are we kidding, he doesn't actually plan to do $hit about investing in infrastructure.

I'm rooting for SHAPE OF WATER but I will laugh out loud if it's the one in 3rd place, GET OUT.

Also driving odds calculations are the results from guild awards that provide clues to how the academy members will vote. "The Shape of Water'' won the prizes for directing from the Directors Guild and the British Film Academy, whose members overlap in part with the film academy. Their choices often point to the ultimate best picture winner.

But "Three Billboards'' took home the top prize at the Screen Actors Guild, and with actors being the largest voting bloc for Oscars, that film was suddenly looking like a sure thing. "Get Out'' got a boost for taking the top prize from the Writers Guild. It's nominated for best screenplay, which also correlates highly with best picture.

BTW Jeralyn was correct about the great shopping on Avenida Atlantica one block inland from Copabana beach.   I stumbled into a string bikini factory outlet and bought five to bring home to some girls in Aspen.  Well that went viral and a few months later, back in Rio, I bought 100.  They come in amazing floral and tropical designs and roll up into a tiny ball slightly larger than a golf ball.  They also have beautiful one piece suits.  Rio is the place to buy your tropical clothing.  They also have agate ash trays and super thin agate plates with little stand up stands.  They are beautiful when lit from behind.

Donald from Hawaii is correct about the Brazilian visa.  Boston may have a Brazilian consulate where you can do it yourself.  If not go the route he included.  It's a stupid situation that the U S started with requiring Brazilian citizens to have visas to come here.  A week later Brazil started the same thing for us.

One time coming home from Brazil our airplane wouldn't start, so they bussed us all to the Hotel Gloria, near where you are staying.  They also stamped our passports iwith the huge black two page word  saying INULADO.  That gets you pulled into customs secondary all over the world every time.

When Lamonte McIntyre was exonerated for a double murder in October, he walked out of a Kansas prison with a clean record - but not a dime to his name, reports CBS News' Dean Reynolds. After losing 23 years of his life behind bars, the state is offering him nothing.

Tricia Bushnell of the Innocence Project worked to win McIntyre's release. She said McIntyre has other reasons to be angry. She called this case the "perfect storm."

For example, at his trial in 1994 when he was 17, there was no physical evidence or motive presented. Worse, according to McIntyre's current lawyers, lead police detective Roger Golubski built the case by threatening witnesses.

To be clear, I never watch the "interviews".  Interviewees are always porfessional dissemblers.  They are trained to first, say nothing.  Democrat AND Republican.  
I watch the discussions.  The one on FOX was interesting.  Hard after Trump.  On many fronts but especially on Russia.  I really think the right has remembered Russia is not our friend.  Lots of talk about the recent Putin campaign ad that featured "new weapons" and many open threats to America, including making jokes about the "misile shield", and the lack of not even response but even to acknowledge it.

It really had the feel of prepping their audience.

Plus, my opinion might be skewed because their "power player of the week" was the fabulous, the goddess, the queen Dolly Parton and her long support and promotion of early reading.  She has an org that provides free books to poor kids under 5.

One of Netflix's priciest upcoming projects is The Irishman, which is estimated to have a budget over $100 million. However, the film seems like its definitely worth the price--it reunites Martin Scorsese with Robert De Niro, along with a rumored supporting cast of heavy hitters like Al Pacino, Joe Pesci, Bobby Cannavale, and Harvey Keitel. 

Starring De Niro as Frank "The Irishman" Sheeran, a mob hitman allegedly responsible for the death of Jimmy Hoffa, the movie--based on the Charles Brandt book I Heard You Paint Houses--also boasts a screenplay written by Moneyball's Steve Zaillian. Its impressive pedigree could score The Irishman a short theatrical release to qualify it for the Academy Awards, so get ready--with a huge amount of talent on both sides of the camera, this movie will surely be on your radar (and in your queue) soon.