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[{"type":"text","text":"The best UPS driver ever....."}]

Smile 26 7

<title>Daily Smile: Thursday, July 23, 2026</title>

The best UPS driver ever.....

Daily Smile: Thursday, July 23, 2026

Katie Helland Headshot

Katie Helland

Food & Dining

Arts & Entertainment

From film premieres at the Hawaiʻi International Film Festival to opportunities to celebrate Halloween, there are lots of activities happening on Oʻahu this Friday, Oct. 23, Saturday, Oct. 24, and Sunday, Oct. 25.

Hawaiʻi Food and Wine Festival is underway

 with the first events held on Hawaiʻi Island last weekend, followed by events on Maui this weekend, from Friday through Sunday. The festival then moves to Oʻahu with events from Thursday, Nov. 5, through Sunday, Nov. 8.

Here are 10 activities happening on Oʻahu this weekend:

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Friday, Oct. 23"}]

Go to the Hawaiʻi International Film Festival. 

HIFF is back for its 46th year of events with film screenings on Oʻahu from Wednesday, Oct. 21, through Thursday, Nov. 5. The festival opens with the 

 at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 21, at Hawaiʻi Theatre Center. There will be a 

 at the Capitol Modern on Friday, Oct. 23. After screenings on Oʻahu, the festival will then move to Neighbor Islands from Friday, Nov. 6, through Sunday, Nov. 15. Buy 

Ready for chilling legends and ghost stories? Catch

 “The Ghost Guy,” who writes a column about supernatural happenings for Aloha State Daily, as he shares stories of the Islands’ folklore on Friday, Oct. 23, at 7 p.m. at the Doris Duke Theatre at the Honolulu Museum of Art. Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for youth. 

Catch Steel Pulse at the Waikīkī Shell. 

Catch Steel Pulse’s Reggae Against Racism Tour at 7 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 23, at the Tom Moffatt Waikīkī Shell. 

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 AIA Honolulu’s annual Architecture Month

 in downtown Honolulu from 8 to 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 24. Tours run every 10 minutes and explore the buildings, public places and design influences that shaped the city over time. 

 encourages participants to unplug and connect in person through screen-free activities. There will also be local food, wellness and creativity vendors. PauseFest takes place from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the oceanside YWCA Kokokahi in Kāneʻohe.

 Tickets are $29 per individual and $49 per family, which includes two adults and kids. 

There will be activities for keiki, local vendors with food, live entertainment and prizes and give aways.

Sponsored by the Moanalua Gardens Missionary Church, this event runs from 4 to 8 p.m. and is expected to draw 

, according to a permit filed with the City and County of Honolulu. Free. 

This conference, which is a program of the Hawaiʻi International Film Festival, brings together filmmakers, storytellers and industry professionals from across Hawaiʻi and the Pacific. There will be 

panel discussions, workshops and networking events

. The event runs Saturday, Oct. 24, and Sunday, Oct. 25. Tickets with access to both days of events are $125. 

 Looking for entertainment in Waikīkī? Go to the 

Octo-Bear-Fest: Boos & Brews at the Honolulu Zoo

 and enjoy costume contests and games for keiki, while adults can sample beers from four local breweries on Saturday, Oct. 24, as part of an event that supports wildlife conservation and the Malayan sun bears. Looking for something in ʻEwa? Head to the 

 which includes a live DJ, games and prizes.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Sunday, Oct. 25"}]

haupia custard cats at Brug Bakery to spooky cocktails at Aloha Mamacita

, there are lots of fun holiday-themed snacks on the menu. Read more about spooky season snacks from Food & Dining Reporter Kelli Shiroma Braiotta. 

Sponsored by the Hawaiʻi Running Lab, the event is expected to have 

, according to a permit filed with the City and County of Honolulu. This fifth annual event is a race down Lunalilo Road that ends in front of Kaiser High School. Registration covers the race fee, finisher medal and post-race snacks. 

Movies

<title>Movies, music and more: your guide to the weekend on Oʻahu</title>

Ready to plan the weekend? From the start of the Hawaiʻi International Film Festival to Spooky Season highlights, here are some of the events happening on Oʻahu on Friday, Oct. 23, Saturday, Oct. 24, and Sunday, Oct. 25.

Movies, music and more: your guide to the weekend on Oʻahu

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta Headshot

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta

Making matcha was not always routine for business owner Kanoe Francisco. However, everything changed after a recent trip to Japan and Francisco had “her first high-quality matcha.”

“It was smooth, calming and gave me a clean, sustained energy without the jitters,” she says. “It was a life-changing moment. We (my husband Jesse and I) came back from that experience, wanting to share it with Hawai

After that trip to Japan, Francisco wanted to learn everything about matcha.

“Once I experienced first harvest, high-quality matcha made the right way, I became obsessed,” she says. “That trip to Japan opened my eyes to what matcha could truly be; I wanted to bring that same quality experience back home to O

 officially launched in July as Hawaii’s first luxury mobile matcha bar. Its goal is to bring an elevated matcha experience directly to private events, according to Francisco. 

“The inspiration (for Matcha Pop) came from two personal places,” she explains. “For me, I’ve always struggled with anxiety, which made caffeine something I had to avoid. Finding energy throughout the day was always a challenge. Jesse was looking for a healthier alternative to coffee — something he could enjoy later in the day without it disrupting his sleep. Matcha checked every box.”

The couple decided on “Matcha Pop” as the business name because they wanted something memorable, fun and catchy, while remaining on-brand.

“We wanted a name that had a ring to it,” Francisco says. “Matcha Pop reflects who we are — a luxury matcha experience with a fun, vibrant energy. We specialize in private events and pop-ups, bringing our full set-up directly to our clients.”

The business is known for its to-go, 8.4-ounce nitro matcha latte cans (three for $24). Customers can pour them over ice, and they’re best consumed within three days.

“The quality of our matcha matters deeply to us; that’s something we’re really intentional about,” Francisco says. “Using first harvest Uji matcha isn’t just about taste, it’s about ensuring that our guests enjoy a clean, smooth energy without the anxiety or jitters that come from lower-quality matcha or caffeine. That’s what sets our business apart.”

At events, Matcha Pop often serves its nitro matcha lattes ($9), which can be enjoyed straight from the can or in a cup with a cold foam cream top.

“The latte is a first harvest Uji matcha Okumidori blend, sourced directly from Uji, Kyoto (in Japan),” Francisco says. “It’s nitrogen-infused for the smoothest, most velvety texture possible. The cold foam has been a huge hit — guests love that elevated touch.”

While the business focuses on private events — including weddings, corporate gatherings and more — it does participate in public pop-ups as well. In the past few months, Matcha Pop has participated in Yelp Hawai

i and Corepower Yoga events, along with other wellness events around O

ahu. The biz was recently at the Malama Hawai

i Market at Ala Moana Center earlier this month; at that event, customers could opt for cold foams in flavors like ube, haupia, and strawberry guri guri (additional $1.50).

“We love connecting with the community through public pop-ups,” Francisco says. “We love showing up where people are.”

For updates and more info, follow the business on 

Matcha Pop owners 101126

<title>Matcha Pop is Hawaiʻi’s first luxury mobile matcha bar</title>

The business, which started in July, is known for its to-go, nitro matcha latte cans. The business features a first harvest Uji matcha Okumidori blend, sourced directly from Kyoto, Japan. Matcha Pop focuses on private events, ranging from weddings to corporate gatherings, but also participates in wellness pop-ups around Oʻahu.

Matcha Pop is Hawaiʻi’s first luxury mobile matcha bar

WEB square crop Hayley Lehman Headshot RGZ1636

Haley Lehman

Government & Politics

Have you wanted to represent your community and share your voice on a county board or commission? If you're a resident of Maui, Lānaʻi or Molokai, now might be your chance.

The County of Maui is looking to fill 77 seats on more than 30 boards and commissions. Board members and commissioners are selected by the Independent Nomination Board, appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the county council to 

 listening to public testimony, reviewing policies and standards, and making recommendations to the mayor and county council.

Mayor Richard Bissen stated in a news release that Maui County residents shape the community’s future.

“Our volunteer boards and commissions members help guide the decisions that affect lives, strengthen government, and support vital County services,” Bissen said. “As a member, your voice matters — your experience matters. We have a critical need for boards and commissions volunteers whose insights and experiences will shape the County of Maui for generations to come.”

 on the Affirmative Action Advisory Council, Board of Variances and Appeals, Board of Water Supply, Conservation Planning Committee, Dangerous Dog Adjudication and Appeals Board, Fire and Public Safety Commission, Hāna Advisory Committee, Housing Advisory Board, Independent Nomination Board, Kula Ag Park Committee, Liquor Control Adjudication Board, Liquor Control Commission, Commission on Persons with Disabilities, Maui County Cultural Resources Commission, Molokai Planning Commission, Public Works Commission, Urban Design Review Board and Commission on Healing Solutions for Homelessness.

Applications for boards and commissions are due Nov. 11. Interested applicants can fill out the application 

, submit an application by mail or pick up a paper copy from the Maui County Business Resource Center in Kahului and the Kalana O Maui Building in Wailuku. Applicants are required to fill out their contact information and length of residence in Maui County, and can share their education and employment record, interest in serving, previous service on boards, commission or committees and qualifications.

Not living in Maui County but still interested in serving on a board or commission? Seats are also available at The 

, which has three vacancies on boards and commissions; 

Maui County

<title>Maui County seeks volunteers for boards and commissions</title>

The County of Maui is looking for applicants to fill vacancies on 30 boards and commissions.

Maui County seeks volunteers for boards and commissions

Higa headshot white shirt square

Sterling Higa

Columnists

Elementary school teachers rarely go viral, but this weekend Jasmynn Nakasone of Lāʻie Elementary did.

The rubber-slipper-clad teacher had been sharing videos of her lessons on social media.

 together by the X account Libs of TikTok and have since racked up more than 200,000 views.

Since then, Nakasone has removed the original clips. And BYU–Hawaiʻi appears to have taken down a faculty profile that listed Nakasone under its Faculty of Education and Social Work.

In one clip, Nakasone suggests that a boy with three moms is “special,” not “different.”

In another, she tells her class that Indigenous navigators were superior to European ones, who were “lost in the ocean.” Newcomers, she says, hurt the land and push out the Indigenous people to get rich.

“I think I can take all their trees,” she says. “Maybe I can go live on all this space. They might have some treasure in their land.”

Public school teachers should not be filming content in their classrooms. They are not influencers and shouldn’t try to be. That is a column of its own, and it will be my next one.

Here, I’m interested in something more common: The view of history Nakasone was teaching.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Her captions capture it well:"}]

Her framing is standard in Hawaiʻi today, and especially among University of Hawaiʻi graduates: History is a contest between oppressors and the oppressed.

She is remarkable only for explaining it at a five-year-old level: Indigenous people are good; newcomers are bad.

Nakasone is at least as much a victim of this misreading as she is a teacher of it.

This did not happen by accident. For decades Marxists have worked, patiently, to win the institutions that shape how people think — what the Italian communist Antonio Gramsci called a “war of position.” You do not need to storm the palace if you can staff the kindergarten.

Teachers like Nakasone sat in those classrooms as students first. She almost certainly believes what she’s saying. She was taught to.

One group is sinful and the other is pure. Capitalists exploit workers. Men oppress women. Newcomers take; Indigenous people keep the water and the trees safe. The whole of history reduces to one question for the student. Which group is which?

The problem with this framing is first that it’s wrong, and second that it causes blindness.

First, it’s wrong because all humans are sinful. No ethnic group has a monopoly on sin, and none is pure. Arriving early does not make a people innocent, and arriving late does not make them guilty.

A lens like this doesn’t just blur the view. It decides in advance what can be seen.

For example, Nakasone argues that Indigenous people live in harmony with the land, while newcomers hurt it. “When newcomers came, then a lot of the trees and the mountains got hurt a lot.”

That is true, though not in the way she means. Everyone reshapes the land. The Polynesians were newcomers once, and the islands still bear witness.

Oʻahu’s loulu palm forests were burned, and their decline lines up with the Polynesians’ arrival.

Evidence of fires becomes frequent around A.D. 1000. Patrick Vinton Kirch concludes from the archaeological research that “Polynesians, farmers who used fire to clear the land for their gardens, had arrived on the island.”

This didn’t happen all at once. It probably took two or three centuries of clearing lowland forest for farms, while upland the Polynesians terraced the valleys, diverted the streams, and reshaped the mountains.

The call to cultivate the land is a call that involves planting and watering. But it also means subduing and clearing.

A worldview in which Indigenous people “take care” of the trees has nowhere to put the loulu forests, so it leaves them out. Procrustes used the same method. Whatever didn’t fit in the bed was cut off.

Leave enough out, and you start putting things in, as Nakasone does.

“Our kūpuna, they knew how to sail the ocean when no one else in the world knew how,” she says. “The newcomers were lost in the ocean, they bumped into the land.”

It’s one thing to say that Polynesians were skilled navigators. It’s quite another to say that they were the only skilled navigators.

Here, Nakasone has flipped around Thor Heyerdahl’s incorrect theory that Polynesians drifted to their islands from South America. Heyerdahl framed the Polynesians as inept while Europeans were skilled navigators. Nakasone does the opposite.

Many Native Hawaiian history classes trot out Heyerdahl as proof that Western scholars were racist against Polynesians. But Heyerdahl’s theory was widely discredited even before he set out on a raft called Kon-Tiki to prove it.

A teacher can and should discredit Heyerdahl and praise the skill of Polynesian navigators. That might even belong in a lesson on European ones.

But you can only get from “Polynesians were skilled navigators” to “nobody else was” by ignoring what the European voyagers did.

The Magellan-Elcano voyage was incredible, as were Christopher Columbus’s journeys. And so too were Captain James Cook’s voyages.

These captains led men, read instruments, provisioned ships for months at sea, and braved the elements. They were also proud and sinful, like all men.

A teacher doesn’t need to deny their seamanship to ask what the voyages brought with them in terms of disease, and later, colonization.

Teachers like Nakasone cannot get the facts of a simple lesson right, yet they presume to stand in judgment of history’s great explorers. In this, they ignore their own sin to fixate on the sin of others.

The log must come out of our own eye first. Until it does, teachers like Nakasone will fill the classrooms of Hawaiʻi.

They teach poorly because they were poorly taught.

Laie ES BANNER 16x9

<title>Jasmynn Nakasone, Lāʻie Elementary viral video: What Hawaiʻi classrooms get wrong about…</title>

A Lāʻie Elementary teacher told her class that European sailors were “lost in the ocean” and that newcomers take while Indigenous people keep. ASD opinion columnist Sterling Higa on the oppressor-and-oppressed history that Hawaiʻi’s classrooms now teach by default — and the facts cut off to fit it

Jasmynn Nakasone, Lāʻie Elementary viral video: What Hawaiʻi classrooms get wrong about history

AKINA portrait 2

Keliʻi Akina

Viewpoints

I had the privilege earlier this week of witnessing in a courtroom setting an eloquent legal defense of the First Amendment. It was a great reminder that the future of liberty depends on protecting our freedom of speech.

You might recall that the Grassroot Institute of Hawaiʻi filed a federal 

 in June challenging the constitutionality of the state’s newly enacted 

 — a law that, if it is allowed to take effect next July, will prevent nonprofit organizations such as ours from speaking out on ballot initiatives and other election-related topics.

As Grassroot’s president, watching the arguments unfold in court during the preliminary injunction hearing for our case filled me with pride and felt like a powerful, firsthand lesson in constitutional rights.

Presiding U.S. District Court Judge Leslie Kobayashi did not indicate when she will issue a decision regarding the future of the lawsuit, but she did point out that Grassroot “has this history of community involvement, exercising its First Amendment rights, being involved in political questions.”

Outside the courtroom, there is plenty of confusion about what Act 11 does. The law’s defenders seem to be under the impression that it will address election or campaign financing in some way. But it actually has nothing to do with either.

What it will do is redefine corporations — such as nonprofits, associations, partnerships and so on — under state law as not having the right to speak on electoral issues.

The problem with that, of course, is that the U.S. Constitution prohibits the government from deciding who can and cannot speak. And Americans don’t lose their First Amendment rights when they join together to speak.

If the state of Hawaiʻi is allowed to decide that nonprofits and other organizations don’t have the right to speak on election issues, what other rights could be taken away from us? The right to speak about any political issues at all? The right to distribute materials about unionization or some other controversy?

As Judge Kobayashi acknowledged, political speech and education are central to what we do. We carry out that work regardless of whether an election is coming, and many of our supporters look to us to guide their decisions on key issues.

Fortunately, we aren’t the only ones raising the alarm. The national American Civil Liberties Union, headquartered in New York City, pointed out in an 

 supporting our lawsuit that constitutional protections for free speech cannot be undone by simply redefining corporate power.

The ACLU wrote in its brief: “The Act directly prohibits and indirectly chills a great deal of political advocacy engaged in every day by nonprofit and charitable organizations across the ideological spectrum.”

So there you have it. Act 11 threatens the right of all Hawaiʻi residents to participate in the political process, whether as an active member of an organization or a supporter who wants their interests represented. Allowing it to take effect would cripple free speech and free association and could mean the end of Grassroot and similar community groups.

That is why we had to file this lawsuit — to protect free speech for all. And I hope liberty prevails.

Reprinted with permission from the Oct. 17, 2026 "Presidentʻs Corner" of 

Shutterstock 2143932591

Michael Brestovansky

Crime & Courts

A verdict is pending on whether Grassroot Institute of Hawai‘i has standing to challenge Hawai‘i's corporate election spending ban.

AG Anne Lopez scaled 16x9

Act 11 challenge goes to court

Hawaiʻi’s new ban on corporate election money assumes the voters are ready to govern themselves. ASD opinion columnist Sterling Higa on why self-government can’t be legislated.

I Stock 1222208781

Hawaiʻi Act 11: Why the corporate campaign spending ban can’t fix our politics

<title>Community Voices: ACLU supports Grassroot in court</title>

The Grassroot Institute of Hawaiʻi filed a federal lawsuit in June challenging the constitutionality of the state’s newly enacted Act 11 — a law that will "redefine corporations — such as nonprofits, associations, partnerships and so on — under state law as not having the right to speak on electoral issues," according to the organization's president. Now ACLU is in its corner.

Community Voices: ACLU supports Grassroot in court

Aloha Spirit

The 34th Annual Hula O Nā Keiki competition named Makalapua Kahula as Miss Hula O Nā Keiki 2026 and Isaac Kazuyuki Kauahikaua Woodward as Master Hula O Nā Keiki 2026. 

Kahula represented Hālau Nā Lei Kaumaka O Uka under the guidance of Kumu Hula Nāpua Silva. Woodward represented Ka Pā Hula ʻO Kawaihoʻomalu under Kumu Hula Kū Koanui-Souza.

The two-day cultural celebration took place Friday, Oct. 9, and Saturday, Oct. 10, at Keōpūolani Hale, which is located on the Kamehameha Schools Maui campus, and showcased soloists between six and 17 years old as they demonstrated proficiency in oli, hula kahiko and hula ʻauana. Contestants also had private interviews with judges where they reflected on the meanings of their oli, mele and hula, and how they dance.

"Established in 1990, Hula O Nā Keiki is a long-standing pillar of Hawaiian culture on Maui," said Kahulu De Santos, Outrigger Kāʻanapali Beach Resort director of ʻImipoʻokela and executive director of Hula O Nā Keiki, in a statement. "The weekend is more than a competition; it represents the transmission of ʻike from kumu to keiki, and it’s our privilege to continue upholding this proud tradition.”

The competition was presented by Outrigger Kāʻanapali Beach Resort. Kumu Hula Cody Pueo Pata was the master of ceremonies.

The judges for the event included Kumu Hula Māpuana Kekahuna Aarona, Moses Kaho‘okele Crabbe, Māpuana de Silva, Leimomi Ho and Hōkūlani Holt.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Other winners include:"}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Kumu Hula"}]

Akoni Akana & Kanoeau Delatori Kumu Hula Award:

i Reichel and Henohea Kāne (Hālau Ke ʻalaokamaile)

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Kaikamahine"}]

Keiki Overall Oli and ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi Award: 

i Hall (Hālau Hula Kauluokalā, Nā Kumu Hula Uluwehi Guerrero & Kaui Krueger)

 Paisley Keira Cabico (Pukalani Hula Hale, Kumu Hula Hiʻilei Maxwell-Juan)

 Callie Kozuki (Hālau Hula O Keola Aliʻiokekai, Kumu Hula Iola Balubar):

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"ʻŌpio Wahine"}]

Overall Oli and ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi Award: 

Makalapua Kahula (Hālau Nā Lei Kaumaka O Uka, Kumu Hula Nāpua Silva)

Keolaokalani Ah Wong (Ka Lā ʻŌnohi Mai O Haʻehaʻe, Nā Kumu Hula Tracie & Keawe Lopes)

Ihikolonahe Sheilo Maxwell (Hālau Keʻalaokamaile, Nā Kumu Hula Kealiʻi Reichel & Henohea)

Keolaokalani Ah Wong (Ka Lā ʻŌnohi Mai O Haʻehaʻe, Nā Kumu Hula Tracie & Keawe

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"ʻŌpio Kāne"}]

 Isaac Kazuyuki Kauahikaua Woodward (Ka Pā Hula ʻO Kawaiho ʻomalu, Kumu Hula Kū Koanui-Souza)

Hula O Nā Keiki

<title>Winners named for Hula O Nā Keiki Competition</title>

The Hula O Nā Keiki Competition was held on Maui and has named its winners for Miss Hula O Nā Keiki 2026 and Master Hula O Nā Keiki 2026. Read the full list of honorees.

Daily Smile: Thursday, July 23, 2026

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Authors

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