Hawaii Rewards Incompetence

[kalakoa]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post...ompetence/

There is a strong assumption in the islands that once you enter the state government system, you are set for life. There are great retirement benefits, union protections and the ability to move up, and laterally, across departments. ... The prevailing assumption is: You do not have to work that hard. And there is no cost for messing up.

[Chunkster]

The Washington Post is not government-hating right wing rag. It actually has a liberal editorial philosophy, so I was somewhat surprised to see them so bluntly call a spade a spade in reference to Hawaii government workers. Nice to see the truth told on a respectable national platform, but it won't change anything.

[Obie]

What's even more surprising is our local paper carried that piece on the Editorial page in the spot usually occupied by a Trump bashing editorial .

http://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/2018...ntability/

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

The prevailing assumption is: You do not have to work that hard.

Except the taxpayers who provide the infinite funding for incompetent government workers. If you make the slightest error on your N-1 filing or Excise, it's a hefty fine and penalty. I was 24 hours late a few years back on a quarterly and they charged a $280 fine/penalty on a $700 payment due.

Recycle Puna. Humans, although probably not you personally, have already left 400,000 pounds of trash on the moon. - YouTube's Half As Interesting

[geochem]

I find even more interesting the dominance of local comments endorsing what was said in the editorial.

[Durian Fiend]

Dunno about rewarding incompetence. More like, it's ignored or just accepted. A sad state of affairs that probably contributes to the common apathy towards education in the state.

[wax]

The following comment is also telling - and true:

"Hawaii desperately wants to diversify its economy beyond tourism and U.S. military spending. Plantation agriculture kept the state afloat for the past century but is now a dead industry. The state wants to “develop foundations for an innovation economy and nurturing emerging industries,” according to a government strategy plan. It is hard to see how this episode inspires any confidence for investors and startup wunderkinds."

Beyond the government issue is the problem of a small group within the state who stridently object to much of what current businesses do and virtually any new businesses that would dare to come into the State. This occurs in a context where current leading industries - despite periodic spikes - are stable or slipping. (Stable businesses are on the verge of slipping). It is one thing to object to what is or may go on. But to do so without an understanding of the bigger picture - and to do so without providing positive corrective suggestions is no longer responsible. If we do not grow our current businesses and if we do not see new ventures come in our under employment, homelessness and family economic problems will inevitably get worse.

And what is the result? Increased crime including abuse, theft, violence towards individuals and property, and much more. This does not even address the lack of a sense of self worth - much less joy that is internal. Good, meaningful jobs are not a one stop cure all - but lack of good jobs is an underlying problem that eats away at our civility as a community. Next time you hear a strident objection to anything new or business growth - without a reasonable suggestion of how that which is new might adjust itself - lay that out against the resulting diminishment of our economy and the jobs it needs to produce if we are to be vibrant.

[kalakoa]

This:

People who want reform, or just to try something new, hear a common refrain in Hawaii’s private and public sectors: "That's not how things have been done before."

As I've pointed out numerous times: the solution isn't more lane-miles of highway for more trips to town ... but that's how things have always been done.

[KeaauRich]

I've heard that in dealing with County and State officials, it's best to "accept, not expect."

[Rob Tucker]

We would all be better off if people complained more.