07-09-2015, 04:02 AM
Wondering if anyone has thought about what happens after the TMT debate is "settled".
If the protestors manage to permanently shut down the TMT, they will probably leverage their new-found political power to correct other "injustice" and reclaim more "occupied" lands.
If some settlement is reached with the protestors such that they graciously "allow" construction of the TMT, then these groups will expect similar "consideration" on other new projects going forward.
If the TMT is built over the objections of the protestors, it's probably not unreasonable to expect greater animosity towards anyone who isn't "native" (enough).
In any case, the island becomes more hostile towards any outside development -- whether expressed as a monetary cost (all new projects require "reparations fee") or as a human cost (permanent stinkeye, at a minimum, for all "non-natives"). This is before even considering the "soft losses" from political pandering by the likes of Ige and Roth.
I'm often surprised that the economy on this island works at all, so my instincts suggest that there isn't really much "headroom" for any additional cost.
Nor can I reconcile the apparent disconnect between "aloha" and "GTF off MY mountain!"
If the protestors manage to permanently shut down the TMT, they will probably leverage their new-found political power to correct other "injustice" and reclaim more "occupied" lands.
If some settlement is reached with the protestors such that they graciously "allow" construction of the TMT, then these groups will expect similar "consideration" on other new projects going forward.
If the TMT is built over the objections of the protestors, it's probably not unreasonable to expect greater animosity towards anyone who isn't "native" (enough).
In any case, the island becomes more hostile towards any outside development -- whether expressed as a monetary cost (all new projects require "reparations fee") or as a human cost (permanent stinkeye, at a minimum, for all "non-natives"). This is before even considering the "soft losses" from political pandering by the likes of Ige and Roth.
I'm often surprised that the economy on this island works at all, so my instincts suggest that there isn't really much "headroom" for any additional cost.
Nor can I reconcile the apparent disconnect between "aloha" and "GTF off MY mountain!"