After waking several times in the night to the patter of welcome rain, Koko and I spent a glorious morning swimming in the Solstice sun shimmer. Well, I did, anyway. She doesn’t like to go in much above her knees.
On the way over to the beach, I was behind a car that had a sticker on the back bumper that read COUNTRY, and the “O” was the shape of Kauai. Made me think of the little boy visiting from Sacramento who struck up a conversation with me at the beach late yesterday afternoon. He was struck by the absence of emergency sirens and “robbers. It’s very peaceful here,” he said.
Tis true. At least, on the surface. Beneath it, there’s a sort of roiling energy whose source isn’t easy to define.
I’ve got to focus on putting the house in order, so I’m going to direct you to work done by writers other than me.
For starters, Ian Lind had an interesting post yesterday on Lingle’s hard line approach to the state worker furloughs that explores the deeper political motivations.
Dick Mayer sent a link to two articles about Austal writing off the bad Superferry loan. The Star Bulletin touched on it briefly, while The Western Australian offered a bit more depth.
When you think about it, $20+ million is a small price to pay for Austal establishing itself in America, where it was able to win a lucrative JHSV contract potentially worth billions in large part because it proved itself with the Superferry construction.
And finally, the New York Times has a piece today that portrays so well the very skewed idea that mainlanders have about Hawaii, right down to its well-intentioned, but totally misguided, call to action:
“Maybe by telling your representatives in Congress to support the Akaka bill, to give Native Hawaiians a measure of lost sovereignty, and right some old injustices.
Righting old injustices is the right idea. Unfortunately, the Akaka Bill just perpetuates more injustice by forever eliminating the opportunity for kanaka maoli to achieve true justice
Happy Solstice!
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10 comments:
dunno much about that akaka bill. but i bet if we asked the filipinos, chinese, japanese and other ethnic groups in hawaii if they are glad (1) their relatives came to hawaii whenever, and (2) that hawaii is a US state, they would say "yes"
dwps
I agree that the Akaka bill is probably a bad idea. I do not support the 'solutions' of sovereignty based on ethnicity, just another form of racism. Which may seem odd, as the legal advantages of a reservation has certainly benefited my relatives, casino and all.
The Solstice is tomorrow, at least in Hawai'i thanks to time zones. Specifically it occurs at 11:28UT (01:28HST), early in the morning.
"but i bet if we asked the filipinos, chinese, japanese and other ethnic groups in hawaii if they are glad (1) their relatives came to hawaii whenever, and (2) that hawaii is a US state, they would say "yes" "
just like if you asked the white South Africans if they supported apartheid they would likely have said yes.
"I do not support the 'solutions' of sovereignty based on ethnicity, just another form of racism."
So Mexico, as a nation composed of Mexicans, France, as a nation of French people, etc, etc., are just forms of racism?
The Solstice is tomorrow, at least in Hawai'i thanks to time zones. Specifically it occurs at 11:28UT (01:28HST), early in the morning.
I beg to differ, Andrew. The table I found showed the Solstice at 5:45 am Sunday UT. If you subtract 10 hours for HST, that made it 7:45 pm on Saturday.
"just like if you asked the white South Africans if they supported apartheid they would likely have said yes."
sure, if you view the "filipinos, chinese, japanese and other ethnic groups in hawaii" as equivalent to the afrikaners and the US and state gov as engaged in violent racial segregation in hawaii..
ya so actually no real analogy there after all
dwps
"So Mexico, as a nation composed of Mexicans, France, as a nation of French people, etc, etc., are just forms of racism?"
Stupid example, the question is whether these nations provide full rights to all citizens regardless of race. Indian reservations do not, you must be a descendant with some "blood quantum" to enjoy full rights, thus they are, by definition, racist.
Thus I may vote in a reservation election, even though I live 3,000 miles away and have never lived there. But someone else, not a tribal member related by blood, who lived on the rez could not vote on tribal leadership that has power over their daily lives.
Generally I do not vote, tribal politics are pretty ridiculous most of the time. Besides, why should I, a non-resident, have a say on these things. I shredded the last ballot.
Looks like you are right Joan, I checked the table against the USNO data, 5:45UT it was. I got a bad time somewhere.
"Stupid example, the question is whether these nations provide full rights to all citizens regardless of race. Indian reservations do not, you must be a descendant with some "blood quantum" to enjoy full rights, thus they are, by definition, racist."
The Reinstated Hawaiian Nation gives full rights to all races. I do not think the Akaka bill does.
So does the Unites States of America.
...of which Hawaii is and ever shall be a part.
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