09-09-2015, 08:28 PM
"Are the protesters thinning at all yet Tom?"
AK - sorry for the delay in replying. I don't know for certain, as I haven't traveled to the summit in the last few months until last week.
The camp site was there when I drove up, but no one in the road or questioning drivers. On the way down a few days later, there were a couple of very young kids sat on chairs by the road (opposite the VIS) next to a "We are Mauna Kea" sign.
My comment to the passenger in my vehicle was "I'm sure those kids would rather be doing something else on Labor Day".
When the protest first started, observatory staff used to open all the windows on their vehicles and converse with the protesters. This doesn't happen anymore. 1) when they blocked everyone going to the summit that pissed everyone off, and 2) there are now too few protesters to make that necessary.
And with the latest arrests, well, I just don't know what will happen next. The TMT seems to be quite happy waiting things out.
AK - sorry for the delay in replying. I don't know for certain, as I haven't traveled to the summit in the last few months until last week.
The camp site was there when I drove up, but no one in the road or questioning drivers. On the way down a few days later, there were a couple of very young kids sat on chairs by the road (opposite the VIS) next to a "We are Mauna Kea" sign.
My comment to the passenger in my vehicle was "I'm sure those kids would rather be doing something else on Labor Day".
When the protest first started, observatory staff used to open all the windows on their vehicles and converse with the protesters. This doesn't happen anymore. 1) when they blocked everyone going to the summit that pissed everyone off, and 2) there are now too few protesters to make that necessary.
And with the latest arrests, well, I just don't know what will happen next. The TMT seems to be quite happy waiting things out.