Author: Ryan Kawailani Ozawa

Filed for future reference (because I’m frequently asked to explain it), a fairly comprehensive history of the “all your base are belong to us” geek meme (link courtesy MJW), a once quaint example of “Engrish” (badly translated Japanese) that has become the annoying “Wazzuuuup!” catch-phrase of the web. Oh, and...

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s 40 tons of space debris! Yep, they’re bringing the Mir down this week, a historic, fiery descent that’ll land it – “hopefully,” say the scientists with a wink – in a remote, unpopulated swath of Pacific Ocean. Of course, the Russians just took...

Now that’s a lot of doughnuts. I always wondered why we never had one here… or rather, why we had so few that did so poorly. I know the Catch of the Day guy has a good head on his shoulders, though, so the franchise should thrive. I love that...

Free speech and U.C. Berkeley would seem to be best friends. Except that the once activist-rich campus is also having an affair with Political Correctness. Though I’d been following the Horowitz story for a while on college lists, I was glad to see this U.S. News article summarizing the debacle....

The “Yum!” heard ’round the world. Although I didn’t get this particular piece of overforwarded e-mail, the story is fascinating, even making the Washington Post. Poor Brad and Claire! There’s even a fan page of sorts, collecting the scoop from all over. In following this story, I also found a...

Someone’s getting a pink slip for Christmas, but I don’t feel too bad… A TV crew caught Northwest Airlines crewmembers tossing holiday mail while unloading a plane in Minneapolis. Reverse two-handed overhead throws, missed shots and all.

As sure as I am that private industry will eventually take the lead in space exploration, I’m equally sure that religious cults (or any other group with both resources and a warped value system) will be the first to clone a human being. Because, you see, it’s no longer a...

I’ve been watching this article propagate around the world over the AP wire with some dismay. The flowers you get in leis bought in Hawaii might not come from the islands! Well… so? Heck, most anything you buy in Hawaii comes from somewhere else. That’s what it’s like on an...

So Papa John’s can say that it makes a better pizza after all. I can’t believe it took the justice system to decide this. Of all the ridiculous claims and outright attacks on competitor’s products out there, the fact that this made it into a court just baffles me.

If Amazon.Com wants to lead the online retailing world in the charge to compete with brick-and-mortar outfits, changing the prices of products at random probably isn’t going to help their cause. They’re saying it’s just a test, but really, what stops them from doing it as a regular practice. If...

George Bush rightfully fears those debates with Al Gore. He has a problem thinking before he speaks. I’ve been eating up the story about Bush’s potty mouth — calling a reporter an “asshole” while on a crowded stage with running mate Dick Cheney and a podium covered with microphones. This...

I haven’t been able to get this news out of my head all week. A computerized robot that can design robots? Specifically mimicking the process of evolution? Although it’s just a fringe geek story today, I really wonder if it’ll be a turning point in history some day. Thrilling and...

I really should be working on our in-class assignment, but I’m enjoying websurfing on this iMac too much. Bagel-shaped mouse and all. Here’s a tip, though — don’t laugh out loud in the middle of a journalism class… particularly when the matter under discussion is a story about a little...

The wave of the future, I guess. Instant and electronic media are becoming the sole targeted conduits of information providers, such as the organizers of the Deomocratic National Convention. “print reporters don’t count — literally,” notes this depressing piece illustrating the marginalization of newspapers in the Digital Age. The reference...

The Honolulu Flap of the Week is Governor Cayetano’s pardon of Honolulu attorney Tom Foley for a fatal DUI crash in 1995. (Tom Foley is not related to Dan Foley of same-sex marriage fame, but Dan has had a lot to say on Tom’s pardon, confusing locals to no end.)...

So Al Gore comes out at the Democratic National Convention tonight. I’m pulling for him, but only because a return to a pro-censorship, anti-abortion Republican presidency scares the crap out of me. I must be too easily impressed, because for all the jokes and punditry, I’ve never found his personality...

A fun quote from Khava’s great journal, on her otherwise traumatic family vacation in Seattle: “So I’ll just tell you how to get your film developed for free. Take all your pictures except for one. Then go to the Microsoft parking garage, and take a picture of Bill Gates’ car....

Through the famous Megan’s Law, and the wonders of technology, Hawaii’s Criminal Justice Data Center presents its searchable online Sex Offender Registration Information database. Very eerie. Photos, residence and employer locations, even makes and models of registered cars. Hell, there are two registered sex offenders living on my street —...

Poor Reform Party. In the wake of Perot, the party that busted its ass getting on the ballot in all 50 states is now being hijacked by creepy ex-Republican Pat Buchanan. It’s convention bust in half with Perot-loyalists running off to nominate a new-age scientist, but odds are Buchanan’s camp...

Movie trailers are coming out earlier and earlier these days. Disney’s put one out for Pearl Harbor, even though it’s not due out until next Memorial Day. I’ve always thought there should be more movies (and books and general awareness) about Pearl Harbor, so I’m excited… but I’m also nervous,...