… Well, there I go again — jumping the gun and calling the troops to join forces with LAHAINATOWN ACTION COMMITTEE to circle the wagons to wage war with the CRC on behalf of Halloween. But even if they won, LAC is not yet in a financial position to produce Halloween in the way they want — which is to try and please everyone and still have a successful event…

… LAC has done a sterling job in whittling down the debt the present board inherited, but it would be unwise to take on more debt until they are free and clear and able to apply for grants. So next year it IS. Hopefully, police this year will at least close Front Street, as they did for the Fourth of July. LAC will still be a presence on Halloween, but not as they had originally planned. Financial wisdom is the better part of valor here…

… and while we’re on LAC, they — along with LAHAINA ARTS SOCIETY— are back in the OLD LAHAINA COURTHOUSE. The courthouse pews haven’t arrived back yet, and the only seats are the two benches out front. Also all those oldies practically fight for a square inch to park their bottoms and read the local news…

… apparently, the upgrade to the old building isn’t complete yet, and they still plan to board off the open space (the old post office) across from the Lahaina Visitor Center. I and many others think this is a terrible idea — it will block the fresh sea breeze that comes through there, not to mention the view of the harbor and the Pioneer Inn and cut out all the light. Bad move! Open space and view space is the old Lahaina — as the bumper stickers say, “We ain’t the Mainland!”…

… I was surprised not to see any comments yea or nay on the SIR PAUL McCARTNEY show at the White House. I thought it was terrific — dignified, funny and absolutely first-class, even down to the President and First Lady up on stage dancing with the cast. A short interlude of relief from the worry in the Gulf and Middle East…

… speaking of which, let’s hope the well is finally capped, though the news that part of the worry was that the sea bed might explode sent shivers down multitudes of spines…

… and the old smokestack is whole again thanks to LAHAINA RESTORATION FOUNDATION, and it looks great celebrating its 150th year. The landmark is Lahaina’s memorial to the Plantation Era…

… and the recent Best of Maui competition brought big winners for the WHARF CINEMA CENTER. AMIGO’S won Best Mexican Food and was runner-up for Best Burrito, COOL CAT CAFE was honored for Best Burger for the seventh year in a row, and DA KITCHEN won first prize in the Best Local Food category and Best Plate Lunch. Congratulations to you all…

… see where HAWAIIAN AIRLINES made a profit of $9 million for the second quarter, which they say benefitted from lower fuel costs and a lower effective tax rate. Well, those $175 fares to Honolulu had to help. How about giving us locals a break? I say bring back the ferry!…

… does it seem to you that we have more disasters worldwide, or is it only that we learn about them more quickly and in more detail? Seems there’s hardly a week goes by when we don’t have a monumental happening. This week, it’s the Pakistan floods — and it’s not even 1912 yet…

… and back on the home front, this Saturday is the annual “FIRE UP DA IMU” event at Lahainaluna High School — always a great day. The event starts at 10 a.m., and the JV game starts at 2 p.m. The flags are up in the town to celebrate the oldest public school west of the Rockies and introduce the new football field…

Up Front Lahaina is a twice monthly feature. To protect his innocence, the writer chooses to remain anonymous. The views expressed in this column belong to the author, and do not necessarily represent the views of the Lahaina News staff and owners.