AS the SS Bishop Estate steams into its favorite safe harbor -- the state courts -- it is finding a strange and terrible place. Ahoy there Henry!
Strike your colorsHistorically, the imposing ironclad vessel has been able to easily deflect the slings and arrows of dissent, not to mention the occasional legal cannonball. Such projectiles would simply bounce off its reinforced hull of pent-up patriotism and loyalty.
When the threats became too pointed, the good ship would return fire with such fury that the challengers would simply wilt under the barrage. Its battery of PR flacks and lawyers would rip through just about any organized attempt to cap the trustees' excessive salaries or question the Estate's curious business practices or the shaky state of academics up at its ocean-view educational fortress.
Ah, but when the challenges to its majesty became really serious, the massive vessel would simply churn into its safe harbor, the Hawaii courts. There, guarding one side of the entrance, was the Supreme Court, whose members appoint the officers who man the great ship, and on the other side, the probate court, which would lay down a deafening defense of the Estate by way of yearly "master's reports."
Few dared to challenge the vessel in the safety of its own harbor. And when the antagonists sought the aid of a well-armed public champion -- the Attorney General's office -- well, those guns lay silent.
When the challenge died down, the SS Bishop Estate would sail grandly back out into the public eye stronger, having once again vanquished its foes.
Things have changed. The ship has been wounded by recent legal challenges coming from all sides. It has spun 'round and fired, but the antagonists are too great. The people whom the great ship is supposed to protect -- the Estate beneficiaries -- are rising up against it. Attorney General Margery Bronster, urged on by Admiral Ben "Horatio Hornblower" Cayetano -- has released her formidable arsenal against the vessel.
AND, so the SS Bishop Estate fled to its safe harbor and found turbulent water. The Supreme Court justices were confused and deranged. Could they provide protection? The law seemed clear. They could not. Their legal hands seemed tied. They feebly fished for a legal loophole that would allow them to unleash their awesome firepower against the Estate's challengers. The court pathetically sent an SOS to the under-gunned advisory trawler, SS Commission on Judicial Conduct, but even that leaky vessel refused to join the fray.
So, the Attorney General and the rabble have followed the once mighty vessel into the harbor. Huge legal holes continue to be ripped into the Estate's superstructure.
"We have not yet begun to fight!" shouted the Estate's hired gun, William "Popeye" McCorriston.
But even he must feel the water lapping at his legal heels. The situation is this: two trustees have already jumped ship; the attorney general continues to press her attack; the batteries guarding the safe harbor have been breached.
What will happen now? Common sense would dictate that the remaining trustees strike their colors so that the SS Bishop Estate is not further humiliated and damaged. The ship has a wonderful legacy. It is in such shoddy shape now simply because of the personal greed and incompetence of its officers.
Just as the Supreme Court justices have taken themselves out of the battle, so should the trustees remove themselves from the fray and allow a temporary crew to see if they can salvage what's left of this grand institution.
It would be a sad day to see this ship sunk simply because three of its captains want to be on the deck when it goes under.
Bishop Estate Archive
