Off the Hawaii Air National Guard Facebook page
Left photograph. Proud to have transported Hawai‘i National Guard Soldiers and Airmen on our 203rd Air Refueling Squadron and 204th Airlift Squadron jets to D.C. duty over the weekend. Stay safe men and women of the HING and continue to make us proud.
Right photograph. U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Maurice L. Williams, command chief master sergeant, Air National Guard, speaks to Hawai‘i National Guardsmen upon their arrival to Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, January 16, 2021. National Guard Soldiers and Airmen traveled to Washington, D.C., to provide support to federal and district authorities leading up to the 59th Presidential Inauguration.
Almost all the deaths, diseases, and disabilities caused by high blood pressure are preventable. Here are three simple tips to keep in mind, according to a cardiologist.
Made in 1950, Highway to Hawai‘i is a terrific travelogue presented by United Airlines. After a detailed countdown and focusing leader, this film explores United Airlines’ new main line airway to the Hawaiian Islands, with DC-6 Mainliners making regular trips. This film offers gorgeous vintage views of antiquated airliners flying over the Golden Gate Bridge on their way across the Pacific, and the high quality of service that now seems extinct. We also see the old communications tools manned by operators and navigators. No computers, everything was done by radar, and at 18,000 feet.
Watch the video – Hawai‘i was still a Territory.
From the Medical News Today website
Medicare for All is a proposed national health program toprovide healthcare for all people in the United States. Former Representative John Conyers Jr first suggested the idea in 2003, through bill H.R. 676 – Expanded and Improved Medicare for All Act.
The plan proposes that the federal government pay for a person’s medical care, including primary care and prevention, emergency care, mental health services, and prescription drugs. Private insurance companies would offer only supplemental coverage for non-essential healthcare.
Medicare for All will received increased attention in the upcoming Congressional session. Senator Bernie Sanders is now the chair of the Budget Committee and he work for Medicare for All to become law.
The Defense Department has dropped a plan to expand military exchange shopping privileges to its civilian employees.
An official with the DoD’s Office of Morale, Welfare and Recreation and Non-appropriated Fund Policy said in October that the Pentagon planned to expand shopping eligibility to 575,000 employees who don’t already have access to the stores.
But a Pentagon official confirmed Wednesday that the plan has been scuttled.
This was part of the Department of Defense’s plan to increase income that funds MWR programs.
Thanks to Gordon Lau for forwarding this article to Retiree News
The Department of Taxation (DOTAX) is ready for the current tax season. All returns due in 2021, including Individual Income Tax, are now being accepted by DOTAX.
Returns and payments can be made electronically via:
+ Hawaii Tax Online (hitax.hawaii.gov) (HTO).
+ Modernized e-File through the Internal Revenue Service (expected to begin receiving returns on February 12, 2021). MeF is accessed through software vendors (e.g. TurboTax, H&R Block, TaxAct, etc).
All updated (Rev. 2020) forms are available on or at the following locations:
+ DOTAX’s website (tax.hawaii.gov/forms)
+ District Tax Offices. Please see tax.hawaii.gov/contact for office locations and hours. Please note, due to COVID-19, DOTAX operating details vary. Please contact your district office for more information on building closures and operating hours.
+ Hawaii State Public Libraries (availability is different for each library, please contact your local Public Library for more information)
From the Wired Magazine website
Faux burgers and chicken nuggets are having a moment. In 2018, Impossible Foods, the Silicon Valley–based alternative meat company known for its plant-based burger that “bleeds” like the real thing, made its nationwide fast food debut at all White Castle locations in the US.
A year later, KFC partnered with Los Angeles–based alt-protein producer Beyond Meat to create a plant-based fried chicken that is “finger lickin’ good.” And since the onset of the pandemic, sales of plant-based meats from supermarkets have more than doubled. Once reserved only for hippies and PETA employees, protein alternatives have finally entered the mainstream.
But that doesn’t mean industrial animal agriculture is on its way out. Far from it. Continue reading
Raising a healthy, stable family sometimes requires moving to a new state. And the reasons for moving are often similar: career transitions, better schools, financial challenges or a general desire to change settings. Wants and needs don’t always align in a particular state, though. For instance, a state might offer a low income-tax rate but have a subpar education system. However, families do not need to make these kinds of tradeoffs. They can avoid such problems by knowing which states offer the best combination of qualities that matter most to parents and their kids.
While the COVID-19 pandemic has made moving difficult at the moment, a vaccine is on the horizon. Hopefully by late 2021, families can start considering moving to a state that will better fit their needs and desires.
To help with the evaluation process, WalletHub compared the 50 states across 52 key indicators of family-friendliness. Our data set ranges from the median annual family income to housing affordability to the unemployment rate.Where does Hawai‘i stand?
The 2021 Medicare & You eHandbook has been updated on Medicare.gov! Since the 2021 version was released in September 2020, we updated premiums and other costs for Medicare Parts A and B for 2021. We’ve also added some new information about the Competitive Bidding Program for off-the-shelf back and neck braces, an enhanced tool to find providers who opt out of Medicare, and the new Medicare Direct Contracting Model, along with some other enhancements.
From the Military Times website
Veterans Affairs officials will have to provide basic legal advice to veterans who file medical malpractice claims and provide information on local staffing issues as part of new legislation signed into law this week.
The provisions, dubbed the Brian Tally VA Employment Transparency Act, were included in a massive veterans policy omnibus which passed without objection in both the House and Senate last month. President Donald Trump gave his final approval of the measure on Tuesday.
Tally, a veteran injured in a medical malpractice case five years ago, has pushed for the reforms in response to his own legal battles with VA officials. On Tuesday, he said he was exhausted by the years-long lobbying effort but satisfied that the work may help other veterans.
In January 1958, @HawaiianAir acquired a DC-6 to help with the high inter-island summer demand as well as charter flights throughout the Pacific. It also provided crews the experience for potential scheduled passenger service to the mainland and Pacific destinations.
From the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs website
On the evening of Jan. 16, 1991, Jacky Frawner was in a weight room when he heard his skipper come across the shipboard public address circuits, also known as the 1MC. The alert let the sailors aboard USS Paul F. Foster know that they were about to transition from Operation Desert Shield to Operation Desert Storm.
USS Wisconsin was supposed to fire the first Tomahawk missile. However, the mission shifted to the USS Paul F. Foster.
Within hours, Frawner and his shipmates would be part of the opening shots of Desert Storm.
The Kūkā‘ilimoku is the official e-newsletter of the 154th Wing, Hawai’i Air National Guard. The first issue came in September 1957 and continues as an e-newsletter today.
Today we feature the January 1959 Kūkā‘ilimoku issue. This issue includes the following stories:
* New Air Force Senior Advisor, Col Jack Blanchard on board
* Capt George Harris leaves for FAA liaison tour
* 1Lt John Beaumont in Japan to augument the Pacific Air Forces IG Team
Guard members in-process at the D.C. Armory on January. 7, 2021. National Guard Soldiers and Airmen from several states have traveled to the National Capital Region to provide mission support to federal and district authorities. Air National Guard photo by Senior Airman Amanda Bodony.
From the Air Force Magazine website
National Guard Bureau Chief Army Gen. Daniel R. Hokanson on January 14 told government leaders to expect 21,000 Guard troops to be on the ground within the National Capital Region by Inauguration Day—an approximately threefold increase over the number of troops mobilized in Washington, D.C., as of January 14.
This Air Force Magazine article was posted before the announcement of 200 Hawaii National Guard member deploying to Washington, D.C.
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