Nine new COVID-19 cases reported Saturday
The Big Island’s COVID-19 case count increased to 2,510 with nine new cases reported on Saturday.
Laughter Therapy: April 3, 2021
Yes, this weekend is Easter and of course I am going to start with an appropriate joke! Sadly, a man was driving down the road when a bunny hopped across the road. The man couldn’t stop so hit the bunny head on. He jumped out of his car, goes over to look at the bunny , only to realize it was the Easter Bunny. He started sobbing when a woman in a red convertible pulled up. She asked what the problem was. Sobbing, the man said, I have run over the Easter Bunny and now there will be no one to deliver eggs on Easter. The woman ran back to her car and quickly returned carrying a spray bottle. She ran over to the motionless bunny and sprayed it. The bunny immediately sprang up, ran into the woods and waved goodbye to the man and woman. It ran around and around, returned to the man and woman until finally it went into the woods. The man then asked: “What is that stuff in that bottle?” The woman replied: It’s harespray!! It revitalizes hare and adds permanent wave!!”
Editorial: Speak up for Alexei Navalny
The government of Canada has imposed sanctions on nine high-ranking Russian officials for “gross and systematic human rights abuses.”
Few in GOP defend Florida Rep. Gaetz in sex trafficking probe
WASHINGTON (AP) — The political peril for conservative Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz deepened Friday as the often outlandish, Trump-styled provocateur appeared politically isolated amid a federal sex-trafficking investigation.
Quirky 4/3/21 date draws lines for Vegas wedding licenses
LAS VEGAS — Soon-to-be newlyweds lined up out the door of the marriage license office in Las Vegas on Friday, ahead of a unique date to tie the knot: 4/3/21.
Christians mark Good Friday, Holy Week under virus woes
JERUSALEM — Christians in the Holy Land marked Good Friday without the mass pilgrimages usually seen in the days leading up to Easter because of the coronavirus, and worshippers in many other predominantly Christian countries where the virus is still raging observed their second annual Holy Week with tight restrictions on gatherings.
In Brief: April 3, 2021
‘First step:’ US, Iran to begin indirect nuclear-limit talks
Fully vaccinated people can travel safely again, CDC says
NEW YORK — Add travel to the activities vaccinated Americans can safely enjoy again, according to new U.S. guidance issued Friday.
Island Life: Down in colors
A vivid Kona sunset on Tuesday. (Bob Viggers/Community contributor)
NOT REAL NEWS: A look at what didn’t happen this week
A roundup of some of the most popular but completely untrue stories and visuals of the week. None of these are legit, even though they were shared widely on social media. The Associated Press checked them out. Here are the facts:
Accused embezzler to be extradited to California
A 60-year-old Mountain View man accused of embezzling $300,000 from his former employer in Southern California is in custody at Hawaii Community Correctional Center, awaiting extradition back to Los Angeles County.
Scientific breakthrough: First images of freshwater plumes at sea taken off West Hawaii
The first imaging of substantial freshwater plumes off West Hawaii may help water planners to optimize sustainable yields and aquifer storage calculations.
Ige among governors calling on Biden to lift $10K cap on tax deductions
Seven Democratic governors on Friday called on President Joe Biden to lift the $10,000 cap on state and local tax deductions that was a part of former President Donald Trump’s massive 2017 tax law, arguing the “assault” disproportionately targeted Democratic-run states and ultimately increased taxes on families.
UCLA gets chance to stop undefeated Gonzaga in Final Four
INDIANAPOLIS — Next up on the long list of wannabes eager to stop, or even slow, the undefeated Gonzaga Bulldogs is a team basketball fans might have heard of: UCLA.
Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament canceled again
For the second year in a row, the Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament (HIBT) has been canceled.
Arizona reaches NCAA title game with 69-59 win over UConn
SAN ANTONIO — Aari McDonald and Adia Barnes have marched Arizona out of the basketball desert to the doorstep of a national championship.
NBA capsules: Raptors rout short-handed Warriors by 53 points, 130-77
TAMPA, Fla. — Pascal Siakam scored 36 points in three quarters and the Toronto Raptors routed the Golden State Warriors 130-77 Friday night, with the largest margin of victory in the NBA this season.
MLB All-Star Game pulled from Georgia over voting law
NEW YORK — Atlanta lost Major League Baseball’s summer All-Star Game on Friday over the league’s objections to sweeping changes to Georgia voting laws that critics — including the CEOs of Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines and Coca-Cola — have condemned as being too restrictive.
Hilo veterans home to get $600K in federal funding
Hilo’s Yukio Okutsu Veterans Home is slated to receive $600,000 in federal funding to go toward facility upgrades and support operations.
Commentary: What should the US do with its surplus vaccines? Follow the playbook it used during WWII
The United States is making and distributing COVID-19 vaccines so fast that production will soon outstrip demand, leading officials to ask: What should we do with the extra doses? Most answers have focused on the home front: Dozens of states, including California, are rapidly opening vaccination eligibility to all adults, and President Joe Biden has doubled the speed of his initial rollout calendar, now calling for 200 million Americans to be vaccinated by the end of April.
