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Kuu Hiraishi

Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi 

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Corey Idleburg

Hina Keala

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Sterling Higa

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Davianna Pōmaikaʻi McGregor

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Adam Keawe Manalo-Camp

Columnist: Lisa Eller

Lisa Eller

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Michael Brestovansky

Government & Politics

U.S. military contingents in the Pacific are standing by following the U.S. military’s strike against Iran this weekend.

The National Guard in Hawai‘i is not activating or deploying locally following the attack that killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Saturday. The Hawai‘i National Guard issued a brief statement Monday confirming that the Air and Army National Guards are “standing by and are in constant communication with Governor [Josh] Green.”

A spokesperson for the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command could not comment on the situation Monday.

Meanwhile, all four of Hawai‘i’s Congressional delegates have issued statements demanding accountability from President Donald Trump and his administration. All four statements accused Trump of defying the Constitution and attempting to start a war without Congressional authorization.

“In starting this conflict, President Trump neither sought authorization from Congress nor presented the American people with evidence of an imminent threat that would justify bypassing it,” read Rep. Jill Tokuda’s 

 on the matter. “The Constitution is clear: the power to take this nation to war does not rest with one person alone.”

 also questioned Trump’s actions, but also conceded that some form of intervention in Iran may have been in the U.S.’ interest.

“Iran cannot be allowed to have nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them against us, and so there may be circumstances under which war would be our only option,” Case wrote. “But as there has been no demonstration of an imminent threat to our country, this action is not authorized and that cannot be ignored.”

Case’s statement called for Trump to “fully explain to Congress and the American people the imminent threat we face justifying this action and the specific case for war.” It also included a 

 to a survey polling Hawai‘i residents anonymously on their concerns regarding Iran and other political priorities.

 on the Senate floor Monday, calling the U.S.’ Iran intervention a “war of choice” that could have been avoided had Trump not chosen in 2018 to pull the U.S. out of the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement.

“This is the president of the United States asserting that he can do whatever he wants, wherever he wants, with the most powerful military in history at his disposal,” Schatz said, adding that Trump has no coherent military strategy and that his administration has concocted “indecipherable” ad hoc justifications for the strike after the fact.

“[Secretary of State Marco Rubio] said the imminent threat … to the United States was that Israel was going to attack Iran, and we anticipated that in retaliation, Iran was going to attack our interests, therefore imminent threat,” Schatz said.

While Schatz added that Iran is “a malevolent actor in the region and even across the planet”  he said that “the world is full of bad guys in power” and that the U.S. track record for military intervention in the Middle East suggests that Trump’s actions will “metastasize” in the region.

 her colleagues, voicing concerns that American soldiers are being recklessly put at risk.

Hirono and Schatz also both endorsed a forthcoming “War Powers Resolution,” to be introduced by Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine that would block the use of military force in Iran.

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Lawmakers 16x9

<title>CONGRESS WATCH: Hawai‘i delegation condemns Iran strike</title>

Military in Hawai‘i on standby while lawmakers demand accountability from the president.

CONGRESS WATCH: Hawai‘i delegation condemns Iran strike

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Kelli Shiroma Braiotta

Food & Dining

A new bento and musubi shop recently opened in Downtown Honolulu.

, whose original location is in Kalihi, just opened another store in Downtown Honolulu. The store is located at 700 Bishop Street; it’s located next to Komala Curry (in the same building at Bar Leather Apron).

The business is known for its reasonably priced bentos. Popular options include grilled salmon ($8.90), nori bento ($6.99), and butterfish ($11.99).

The Downtown Honolulu store also has several exclusive bento options, like mochiko chicken ($10.50), chicken katsu ($10.50) and hamburg steak ($12). Chicken katsu curry ($12.99) is also a Downtown Honolulu exclusive.

Customers can also enjoy a variety of musubi, which is another Downtown Honolulu exclusive. Musubi options range from salmon ($2.99), spicy tuna ($3.19) and tuna mayo ($2.99) to mentaiko ($3.29), unagi ($4.79), kakuni ($4.39) and Spam egg ($3.39).

This location will eventually have sandwiches — including katsu ($10.95) and veggie ($9.45) options — pastas and more. The shop is currently open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Mondays to Fridays.

Open 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Mondays to Fridays

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<title>New bento and musubi shop opens in Downtown Honolulu</title>

U-Kitchen Hawaiʻi — whose original location is in Kalihi — is known for its affordable bentos, but the Downtown Honolulu store has several exclusive items, including assorted musubi, chicken katsu bentos and chicken katsu curry.

New bento and musubi shop opens in Downtown Honolulu

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Stephanie Salmons

Business & Tourism

Jonathan Wong, owner of O‘ahu Ace Handyman Services, wanted to make sure the franchise, which opened in mid-October, “was not a cookie-cutter, Mainland operation.”

Originally from the Islands, Wong says he knew that Hawai’i is “very different” in regard to the culture around starting and operating a business.

“I knew that it took a little bit more effort,” he told Aloha State Daily Friday. “And I know a lot of times, Mainland operations don’t understand that. It took a lot of working back-and-forth with the team, collaborating [to] understand how we can make this work specifically for the local communities. That’s really what I wanted to do. I wanted to not just make this, again, a cookie-cutter operation, but something that enabled people to get high-quality, trustworthy handyman services and also make good jobs. That’s really what I wanted.”

A part of the Ace Hardware family, this is Ace Handyman Services’ first franchise in the Hawai‘i. It offers just what you’d expect — handyman services across O‘ahu. Wong says they can do almost anything except jobs that requires a license or permitting, like full electrical, plumbing or HVAC work.

Some of the most common repairs and services the company provides include drywall repairs, flooring, painting, fixing fence posts and the installation of “grab” bars in showers, he notes.

Wong says he loved that Ace was “really open to the idea of creating something that was local,” and in understanding that in Hawai‘i, “we just kind of do things a little bit differently,” were willing to work with him on service offering and marketing perspectives.

Although Ace is a nationwide brand, Wong says it’s nice that there are “trusted Ace Hardware stores here,” which lends to the franchise’s credibility. A store locator identifies nearly two dozen Ace Hardware locations across the Islands.

The company’s O‘ahu Ace Handyman Services name also gives it a local feel. Wong says they hire people who live here and it’s run by a leadership team from Hawai‘i.

 kind of make us the best of both worlds."

Wong says the company is insured and bonded; background checks and drug tests are conducted on its craftspeople; a one-year warranty is offered on the work performed; is supported by the Ace brand name; and “we try to always respect people’s time.”

This isn’t Wong’s first entrepreneurial endeavor.

Wong, a Punahou School grad who majored in accounting and IT at Santa Clara University and received an MBA from the University of California, Berkeley, worked on the Mainland for a number of years, including nearly a decade at First Republic Bank.

He returned to the Islands nearly two years ago and started Hele Logistics, which he says was the first locally owned Amazon delivery service partner to operate in Hawai‘i. That company now employs about 130 people.

When asked how he got involved with Ace Handyman Services, Wong says the “entrepreneur bug definitely kicked in.”

“I knew that I wanted to do more and be a part of another company, so that’s when the search really started.”

There were discussions with family trying to find people to do a variety of handy work.

“We just couldn’t find people to do simple-ish tasks.”

But a business school classmate — who does this in Oregon — tipped the scales.

Wong says he didn’t want to pursue just any opportunity, “because every place could use a lot of things. But it’s picking the right type of business, offering the right type of product [and] service that really makes the most sense, provides the most value and supports two ways — providing really good jobs and then as well as providing a needed service.”

Since opening, Wong says response has been good and they’ve been getting a number of repeat customers already.

His long-term vision is to expand to the Neighbor Islands, although there’s no timeline in place for such an expansion.

. You can also reach the office at 808-460-8338.

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<title>Ace Handyman Services opens first franchise in Hawai‘i</title>

O‘ahu Ace Handyman Services is owned by local entrepreneur Jonathan Wong.

Ace Handyman Services opens first franchise in Hawai‘i

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Abbey Seitz is Hawaiʻi Appleseed Director of Transportation Equity

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Abbey Seitz

Residents in these Leeward neighborhoods are about to make their bus stops and crosswalks safer in a project led by the Hawaiʻi Appleseed Center for Law & Economic Justice, aided with federal grant money.

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Community Voices: Lighting the way to safer streets in Waipahu and ‘Ewa

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