Hawaii Housing Authority

MIKE MORAN: Fall River's pessimism can become a self-fulfilling prophecy

Massachusetts was given a strange backhanded compliment recently by the gossip website known as Gawker . In its humorous listing of “the worst 50 states in America,” the Bay State came in 49th, surpassed only by New York. If the concept of being the 49th worst is a bit hard to wrap your head around, just consider it Gawker’s oddball way of paying a compliment. This web posting won’t be mistaken for a serious study of the quality of life in America. It’s just Gawker having some fun rating each state’s good and bad qualities, giving readers their smart-alecky analysis. Regarding Massachusetts, the site praises our vacation havens, our professional sports teams and the trailblazing decision on same-sex marriage. The bad qualities include Boston’s well-documented history of racial strife.  Next they toss this bomb. “And then have you ever driven 45 minutes outside of the city? Or been to Fall River or New Bedford or any of the mill towns out west that time has forgotten? Yikes.”  Frankly, a verbal spanking from a satirical online piece won’t get my nose out of joint. Gawker also complains, for example, that Hawaii in overpopulated by chickens. Yeah, they even criticized Hawaii.  showcased Fall River in a story about the impact of the recession on small cities. It featured Ines De Costa and the legendary kale soup she lovingly prepares and serves at the city’s St. John’s Club. The story was sprinkled with references to Fall River as “ailing” with “run-down housing projects” and “ghostly mills.”  published an article that called Fall River “a decrepit mill town.” This knock on the Spindle City caused a small uproar, at least for a few weeks. Resentment and outrage are common reactions when such characterizations are made, not because the details aren’t true, but because we don’t want to hear about our shortcomings from outsiders. Like most families, we reserve the right to criticize what goes on in our own backyard. But when a stranger chimes in, we don’t like it at all.  Here’s what concerns me. The flipside of our elected officials’ cheerleading is the persistent negativism that courses through the veins of too many of our own people. We hear all the time from those who never miss an opportunity to point out that Fall River’s glass is permanently half-empty. I’m not calling on all city residents to get a prescription for rose-colored glasses. We need to confront the city’s problems directly. There’s too much crime, too few jobs, enormous infrastructure needs, a school system demanding major improvements and numerous complex social problems. There are also too many people here who fail to make an investment in the future of their own city. And I’m not referring to finance, but a behavioral and emotional investment that says I respect myself, my community and its people. If more of us felt that way, and acted on those feelings, we would never see another balled-up bag of litter or a broken window. We also need to remember that Fall River is a place where a lot of people still work hard, keep their properties immaculate and treat others as they expect to be treated. We have countless local residents and business people who struggle to survive, but continue, at the same time, to be charitable to the community’s less fortunate.

Reform the U.S. Congress |

: Support the Congressional Reform Act – An email circulating the Internet is asking ordinary citizens to pressure their House and Senate members to pass the Congressional Reform Act of 2011. It proposes 7 sensible changes including term limits, health care & retirement benefit reforms that would place members of Congress on an equal footing with the rest of us.   More > Duke Paoa Kahanamoku is born in Honolulu, Hawaii. Growing up on the outskirts of Waikiki, he spent his youth as a bronzed beach boy. It was at Waikiki Beach where he developed his surfing and swimming skills. As a member of the U.S. Olympic swimming team, he won the gold medal in the 100 meter freestyle in the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm, and a silver with the relay team. During the 1920 Olympics in Antwerp, he won gold medals both in the 100 meters, and in the relay. He finished the 100 meters with a silver medal during the 1924 Olympics in Paris, the gold going to Johnny Weissmuller. He also played for the U.S. Water Polo team at the 1932 Summer Olympics. 1959 : The new State of Hawaii’s congressional delegation formally takes their seats in Congress. By a flip of a coin, Sen. Hiram Fong got the title of “senior” senator and a term of almost six years. Sen. Oren Long became the “junior” senator and got a four-year term. Daniel K. Inouye was the state’s only representative and was sworn in by House Speaker Sam Rayburn.

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