03-01-2011, 07:02 PM
Thank you, Tom for a dose of harsh reality. Here's another one. I have a friend who worked with the honors graduates at Hilo High School a couple of years ago. She helped hold a reception for about 30 of them that year who had earned competitive scholarships from a number of sources. At one point during the party, someone asked for a show of hands from those who expected to be living and working on the Big Island after they had completed their college educations. Only three held up their hands, and one of them sheepishly admitted that although he would like to, it was actually unlikely.
If we let this opportunity pass us by, when will we get another? The message we would be sending is "We don't want your scientific, cutting edge technology projects. Leave us in our post-plantation funk." So then the alternative becomes attracting more tourists or retirees (like me) who made their money somewhere else and brought it with them. And we know that that type of economy only produces low-paying service jobs such as gardeners, cashiers, and cleaners. I respect any honest work, but those jobs are not the foundation of a sound economy. The ultimate irony is that the Native Hawaiian population, a small number of whose "leaders" oppose the telescope on cultural grounds, will likely suffer the most from lack of opportunity.
If we let this opportunity pass us by, when will we get another? The message we would be sending is "We don't want your scientific, cutting edge technology projects. Leave us in our post-plantation funk." So then the alternative becomes attracting more tourists or retirees (like me) who made their money somewhere else and brought it with them. And we know that that type of economy only produces low-paying service jobs such as gardeners, cashiers, and cleaners. I respect any honest work, but those jobs are not the foundation of a sound economy. The ultimate irony is that the Native Hawaiian population, a small number of whose "leaders" oppose the telescope on cultural grounds, will likely suffer the most from lack of opportunity.