Read the  Sunday  Star-Advertiser  about the Lahaina Apocalypse.  Mentioned are Oprah Winfrey, cadaver-sniffing dogs, Googledoc, 93 deaths, estimated damages now up to $6 billion and other wildfires still continuing on Maui.  This is now a period of transition and mourning. Today, I will look back into my past, then project a hopeful future for Lahaina.   Four and a half years ago  I had lunch at one of my favorite restaurants in the world, the Paris La Tour D'Argent ( I've also dined at their Tokyo steeple ), and from my table could view the Seine and the  Notre-Dame .  A month later, this church burned down.   At a cost exceeding a billion dollars, this cathedral might re-open at the end of the year, but could take up to 40 years to completely restore. In May of last year,  we took the Pride of America for a cruise around the Hawaiian Islands.  The first stop was Maui, and from our cabin in Kahului Harbor, took a photo of a wildfire. The ship was on the other side of the isla

Read the local  Star-Advertiser  for the Maui Apocalypse details. Deaths up to 80 and are expected to yet increase. How you can assist.   The safest would be: The Hawaii Emergency Management Agency: Donations and volunteer support information at ready.hawaii.gov or 808-733-4300. or Maui County:   Donate or volunteer by calling 808-270-7285 or The Maui Strong Fund  at 808 566-5560 . Jeff Bezos and fiancee Lauren Sanchez donated $100 million.  Of course, he is worth $163 billion.  Thus, looking at this on a percentage of richness basis, a millionaire should give around $600, and, if you are worth $100,000, then your share should be $60.  Let's see now, Hawaii-born Steve Case said he would contribute $1 million.  That's about right, for he is worth $1.5 billion.  Jeff and Lauren own a  $78 million home  at La Perouse Bay on Maui. Lahaina will return.  There will be a significant boost to the island economy over the next decade, as $10 billion will be spent to restore the place.  T

The WiFi in my building was down all day.  The recovery was unusually grueling, as an info tech specialist had to come to my apartment to personally adjust every device to re-connect. So, anyway, late, but I'm back, and will just  send you to the  Star Advertiser  to read what happened in Lahaina .  Two extraordinary statistics: The fatalities are now up to 67 and could get higher, for perhaps a thousand are still missing, although most are probably alive but unaccounted for so far.  This was the  second most wildfire deaths in the USA in the past century.   The 2018 Camp Fire in California, which destroyed the towns of Paradise and Concow, was the worst, with 85 deaths.  Interestingly enough, the highest death toll of 1152 came from the  Wisconsin Peshtigo fire  of 1871. Lahaina became the #1 deadliest state natural disaster.  #2 was the 1960 tsunami that killed 61 people in Hilo.  Actually, there was a deadlier tsunami in 1946 when 150 on the Big Island was killed by another tsun

 Donald Trump again, but first, a few newsworthy developments: Mega Millions  selected a winner last night for $1.55 billion, from Florida.  Until last night, there were 31 straight Tues-Fri failed drawings.  Victor can get $783.3 million if the lump sum option is selected. Now, the jackpot   resets to a lousy $20 million .  Abortion-rights advocates in Ohio prevailed , the #2 reason why Democrats will win in a landslide on 5November2024.  From the  New York Times  this morning: More and more of these will begin to appear, but just revealed was a  secret memo  from a Trump lawyer providing details of faking key state electoral votes  to overturn his 2020 election loss. That headline look familiar?  On to The Donald, for these indictments remind me of  Watergate half a century ago , which was  televised and became a huge hit .   Three out of four homes in the USA watched .  I did.   Nixon became the first president in U.S. history to resign.  I was working that summer at the Lawrence Li