Thirty Meter Telescope and Island Politics

[Mitzi M]

I think it would be very interesting to look into the current employment stats of the existing telescopes here. I have a friend who moved to the Big Island for a job at one of them. He is an electronics engineer, who applied and was hired while living on the mainland. He was offered a very handsome sum for moving expenses and decided to buy a house here rather than rent. His salary was just north of 50K. Every day he reported to work in Hilo and then took the shuttle up. About a year later he was laid off along with 13 other co-workers because the grant which paid his salary was not renewed. He put his house up for sale and moved back to the mainland. I asked him why he didn't look for another job at another observatory and he told me nobody else was hiring, and besides, he wasn't really happy at the job anyhow.

Often I hear about how we should support a new resort or development because of all the glorious jobs it will create. Often those jobs are low paying, uncertain and lead nowhere. I think its important to really look at the jobs that would be created and decide if they are truly beneficial and to whom.

Nor should the cultural impact of development at the summit of Mauna Kea be overlooked or understated. Building our local economy is of primary importance, but there are many creative ways we can accomplish this.

Aloha,
Mitzi