After decades of colonial resource extraction, Dole Plantation is sticking the public with the cost of fixing its aging Wahiawā dam and ditch system. With big Ag Park dreams, a powerful Hawaiʻi Senator wonders, “how we gon’ pay for dat?”

When we have money to fund tax credits for powerful film studios, but no money to invest in tax credits for our keiki, the lines between fictional exploitation and the dismal reality of life start to feel blurred. Are we not, in fact, living The White Lotus?

There are always winners and losers in every proposed budget, but some of the guests at this year’s budget banquet might be consuming more than makes sense, while others could use more than breadcrumbs.