Peacock death: cruel or justified?

By • January 24, 2011 • Musings, The Daily Dish

Oh, I’m sure this has happened to you.

You’re annoyed with the feral cats in your neighborhood that keep overturning your trash bins or pooping on your geraniums. Or you can’t stand the constant croaking of the invasive coqui frogs outside your window. Or you’ve just about lost it on your neighbor whose dogs bark for hours while she’s not at home.

But would you actually take matters in your own hands, grab a baseball bat and bludgeon the animal to death?

That’s what Susan Maloney did in May 2009, when she took a bat and whacked a peacock outside her condominium. She was tired of its constant squawking and considered cooking the peafowl for dinner.

Her outrageous actions didn’t warrant a conviction, though, as a jury on Friday found her not guilty on charges of second-degree cruelty to animals.

Afterward, the 70-year-old Maloney told reporters she felt vindicated by the verdict. She says her other reaction was that “it’s going to be open season on peacocks and it’s probably past time.”

Don’t get me wrong: anything that makes a noise constantly — a peacock, dogs, even an abandoned iPhone with an alarm that wasn’t turned off — can be annoying. But I don’t think I’d go so far as to beat the creature to death.

But what was Maloney supposed to do? Complain to her condo board? (All you condo dwellers know how unproductive that can be.) Call the Hawaiian Humane Society?

It’s a tough call. But the real question is: Is what Maloney did considered animal cruelty? And should we be worried so much about people who kill pests versus those who kill, oh, say, humans? Is life still life? Or has our society become warped in what we deem is wrong?

You tell me.

***

To read all of Cat’s blogs, visit www.nonstophonolulu.com/thedailydish. Follow Cat on Twitter @thedailydish or send her an e-mail at [email protected].

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'Tiger Mom' to kids: hear me roar

By • January 20, 2011 • Musings, The Daily Dish

Imagine growing up without being allowed ride your bikes around the neighborhood, cheer on your high school football team, go on sleepovers or — heaven forbid — get a B in chemistry.

Doesn’t sound like a lot of fun.

But according to Amy Chua — she’s a Yale law professor and mother of two — this Chinese-style approach to parenting results in higher-achieving kids. This theory was the basis for her bestselling (and, let’s face it, controversial) memoir-manifesto, “Battle Hymn of the Chinese Mother.” (Listen to an interview with Chua on National Public Radio.)

Oh, it’s an interesting read.

In addition to forcing her daughters — Lulu, now 15, and Sophia, now 18 — to practice the violin or piano (no other instrument) at least two hours a day, she would toss back unimpressive birthday cards, ordering them to do better. They weren’t allowed sleepovers or play dates. Chua even threatened to burn Sophia’s stuffed animals if she didn’t improve her piano playing.

“What Chinese parents understand,” Chua writes, “is that nothing is fun until you’re good at it.”

I don’t think I’d last past preschool in her house.

It’s no surprise that this book has spawned all sorts of criticism — even death threats — about everything from Chua’s racist views on parenting to her overly harsh methods for pushing her children to succeed. But her oldest daughter, told the New York Post that her mom’s “strict parenting forced me to be more independent.”

So what do you think about Chua’s severe methods of parenting? Too much? Or do you think children these days need this kind of strict guidance to keep them on track?

***

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_GdZFyIE_Q
Amy Chua responds to uproar on PBS

***

To read all of Cat’s blogs, visit www.nonstophonolulu.com/thedailydish. Follow Cat on Twitter @thedailydish or send her an e-mail at [email protected].

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Cat Chat episode 11: Wine-y gadgets

By • January 19, 2011 • Musings, The Daily Dish, Videos

Quick! Check your gift list!

Got someone on there who loves wine?

Or, at very least, pretend he does?

Then check out the coolest gadgets for wine aficionados as suggested by Shannon Ball of Wine The Experience. From contraptions that keep your champagnes chilled to widgets to keep them bubbly hours later, Shannon can suggest something for every wine-drinking person on your gift list in 2011.

And hey, a bottle of wine isn’t a bad gift idea, either.

So don’t worry, we got you covered!

Got another cool wine-related gadget I need to know about? Post ’em here. We love hearing from you!

***

To read all of Cat’s blogs, visit www.nonstophonolulu.com/thedailydish. Follow Cat on Twitter @thedailydish or send her an e-mail at [email protected].

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ASK DR. DISH: Choosing jobs

By • January 18, 2011 • Musings, The Daily Dish

Question: I know I should not be complaining or even asking this at this time in today’s job market, but I got two job offers from good companies and I cannot decide between the two. The first job is at (Company A), which is in San Francisco where I already have family and friends. The pay is not as good as the job at (Company B), but the job is interesting and lets me be creative. (Plus, I really love SF.) The other job is here and the pay is better, but it sounds a little boring though there’s room for growth. I also like the idea of staying here because I wouldn’t have to move and I’m like you, I hate moving. But my dad told me that I’m young (I’m 26) and I should try living somewhere else. I don’t know what to do.

Answer: I don’t envy your position. Then again, it’s a nice place to be, choosing between what sounds like two great jobs.

I was recently in the same position, actually. I had a job offer to jump back into writing full time, but that would mean giving up my job as a teacher. I did what everyone should do when making a decision like this: I wrote a list of pros and cons. Then I thought about what matters most to me. And here’s what I discovered:

• I like being creative
• I enjoy helping and working with others
• I like to be in control of my schedule
• I don’t like supervising others
• Time off is more important than the paycheck

That being said, the job that I decided to take was an obvious choice.

It sounds like, to me, you want the first job at Company A. But you’re worried about relocating and, to some extent, the pay. But as my brother told me, you may as well take a job that you actually like. You’ll be doing this for at least 40 hours a week — you may as well enjoy what you’re doing.

Anyone else got advice?

***

To read all of Cat’s blogs, visit www.nonstophonolulu.com/thedailydish. Follow Cat on Twitter @thedailydish or send her an e-mail at [email protected].

Subscribe to Nonstop Honolulu on YouTube »

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FUUD: Downtown eats

By • January 14, 2011 • Food, Musings, The Daily Dish

For the past five weeks, I’ve been working downtown for HAWAI’I Magazine.

It was a nice break from my full-time job at Kapi’olani Community College, where most of us who work there eat at the cafeteria (run by our award-winning culinary arts program) or Subway. Unless you don’t mind walking to Pioneer Saloon or Fort Ruger Market, there isn’t much variety in and around campus.

So when I took this temporary gig in downtown — I’m talking in the Cades Schutte building at 1000 Bishop St., right in the middle of all the action — I was looking forward to my lunch options.

You can get just about anything you crave — and I did — in downtown, from gourmet sandwiches to lamb gyros to plate lunches.

Here are some of my favorite spots to eat in downtown:

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Got a favorite downtown spot to share? Dish here!

***

To read all of Cat’s blogs, visit www.nonstophonolulu.com/thedailydish. Follow Cat on Twitter @thedailydish or send her an e-mail at [email protected].

Subscribe to Nonstop Honolulu on YouTube »

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