Lee Cataluna

Columnist at Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Staff Writer at Honolulu Civil Beat

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Articles

Lee Cataluna: Flying To LA On Hawaiian? Things Just Got A Lot Easier

1 week ago | civilbeat.org | Lee Cataluna

Column The dreaded trek for travelers from gate to baggage claim at LAX has come to an end. The dreaded trek for travelers from gate to baggage claim at LAX has come to an end. The agent at the Hawaiian Airlines bag check took custody of my overstuffed luggage and wished me well on my journey. She wasn’t referring to the flight home, though I feel confident that was included.
Lee Cataluna: This Teacher Provides College Scholarships. And So Much More

2 weeks ago | civilbeat.org | Lee Cataluna

Column Rod Maghsoudlou says he wants to give scholarships to 50 kids before he retires. He’s about halfway there. Rod Maghsoudlou says he wants to give scholarships to 50 kids before he retires. He’s about halfway there. Teacher Rod Maghsoudlou is taking a walk with a student when I get to Keʻelikōlani Middle School in downtown Honolulu at 7:15 a.m.He does this every morning with a different student.
Lee Cataluna: Saving Potlucks One JPEG At A Time

1 month ago | civilbeat.org | Lee Cataluna

Column A new website seeks to collect and preserve vintage cookbooks from generations of Hawaiʻi cooks. The women behind it would love your help. A new website seeks to collect and preserve vintage cookbooks from generations of Hawaiʻi cooks. The women behind it would love your help. These days, you may find yourself looking back and longing for simpler times.
Lee Cataluna: 'Aloha Isn't Always Being Nice. Aloha Is Being Real'

1 month ago | civilbeat.org | Lee Cataluna

Kamaka Pili says the first step toward avoiding culture clashes is education. Kamaka Pili is on a journey. His lessons on Hawaiian culture are becoming ubiquitous, and his mix of academic research, gracious interviews and unguarded personal stories set him apart from most of the negativity and self-promotion of traditional and social media. His videos don’t come off as pedantic or hectoring or staged.
Lee Cataluna: A Long Day On The Job With Hawaiʻi's Head Of Schools

2 months ago | civilbeat.org | Lee Cataluna

Column Superintendent Keith Hayashi really gets around the district in one 12-hour day. We tagged along. Superintendent Keith Hayashi really gets around the district in one 12-hour day. We tagged along. It’s a little after 8 a.m. and Hawaiʻi schools superintendent Keith Hayashi is walking around a ballroom at the Ala Moana Hotel holding a cup of coffee in his left hand so he can shake hands with his right.
Lee Cataluna: Make Spot The Robot Dog Earn Its Keep

2 months ago | civilbeat.org | Lee Cataluna

Honolulu police once said Spot would be helpful in fireworks enforcement. Let’s give that a try. Christina Jedra’s story about the useless robot dog that the Honolulu Police Department bought for $150k was particularly satisfying, right? Everybody knew it was a dumb idea from the start, like when your neighbor hauls a new Peloton into their garage and you just smile knowing that its quick destiny is to become a pedestal for packages of Costco paper towels.
Lee Cataluna: The Resistance Is Aloha

2 months ago | civilbeat.org | Lee Cataluna

Decide to be a warrior in your own way, sharing what you have, being reliable and reliably kind. Twenty something years ago, I was in Longs Kahului in the Maui Mall and I saw something that I have been thinking about ever since. An elderly gentleman shuffled in carrying a bag. His cane was hanging off the crook of his elbow so he could use both hands to carefully hold the package.
Lee Cataluna: Why Are We Sacrificing Sustainability For More Housing?

2 months ago | civilbeat.org | Lee Cataluna

Column We’re paying a steep price for trying to jam too many people into a limited space that once allowed us to flourish. We’re paying a steep price for trying to jam too many people into a limited space that once allowed us to flourish. There, in the produce section of the grocery store, was a sight that serves as an emblem for Hawaii 2025. They’re selling guavas. In the store. Common guavas.
Lee Cataluna: So Much For The Honolulu Rail Tax Being Temporary

2 months ago | civilbeat.org | Lee Cataluna

We’ve been paying the extra GET for nearly 20 years already. Now there’s a bill to keep it going another 20. I’m not saying anybody lied. I’m not saying this is surprising. But dang it, we all saw it coming, covered our eyes and crossed our fingers like maybe it wouldn’t happen. And of course it’s happening. In January 2007, Hawaiʻi started paying an extra 0.5% excise tax on all business activities to help pay for the rail.
Lee Cataluna: Hawaiʻi Is Sticking Its Neck Out In Resisting Trump

Feb 9, 2025 | civilbeat.org | Lee Cataluna

Hawaiʻi political leaders haven’t wasted any time fighting back against the aggressive first acts of the new president. For a moment there, it looked like we were the resistance. Not all of us, obviously. Thirty-seven percent of Hawaiʻi voters cast their ballots for Donald Trump and JD Vance in the 2024 election, and it sometimes seems like all 193,661 of them are flying huge Trump flags off their vehicles while blasting down the H-1.