PUMPED UP

Buy me now and believe me later

For anyone who already owns a home in Hawaii, it's a tantalizing prospect. For those struggling to scrape up the monthly rent, a nightmare scenario.

Trusted economist Paul Brewbaker foresees a day in the not so distant future (by 2020, say) when the median price of an Oahu home will top $1 million1. Not all real estate analysts agree with him, of course, but Brewbaker has a good track record on such predictions. For ambivalent house-hunters, his advice boils down to this: Buy now.

NEW OUTLOOK

A GOP resignation resets the numbers

Neil Abercrombie is off the hook. Vote counters had said that his resignation this week could cost supporters of health care reform a majority in the U.S. House. But Rep. Nathan Deal, R-Ga., has announced that he—like Abercrombie—is resigning to run for governor of his state. Democrats now need just 216 votes—not 217—to win passage of the Senate version of health care reform, the first step in the reconciliation strategy. Deal was considered a definite vote against the plan.

MAKIN' IT EASY

Don't you just love dumb criminals?

Three people were arrested in the Ala Moana area this week after they got out of a stolen car and walked into a nearby hotel. What led the police to arrest them? The driver had parked the car illegally, and an alert officer noticed and checked on the vehicle's status. The arresting officers also found drugs and drug paraphernalia in the vehicle, as well as personal information that did not belong to the suspects.

At this point, the suspects are just that, but in the event they are proven to be the ones who actually did steal that car, don't you just love dumb criminals? They make life a lot easier for those tasked with enforcing the law.