Why?

[frankiestapleton]

Re: the influx of Micronesians. Kona and Kohala districts have had a very large influx of Micronesians moving in in the past decade. Their children now make up the MAJORITY of ESL students everywhere from Waimea to Honaunau.

The reason we're getting so many here is that the U.S. nuclear test bombing has made much of their homeland uninhabitable! From Wikipedia: "Between 1946 and 1958 the United States tested 67 nuclear weapons in the Marshall Islands, (part of Micronesia) including the largest nuclear test the United States ever conducted, Castle Bravo. Nuclear claims between the United States and the Marshall Islands are ongoing, and health effects still linger from these tests. "

So the U.S. gov't has been instrumental in quietly funneling these people who I found to be as loving and outgoing as the rest of most Polynesians (which they are) to Hawaii as it is more like their home. Parts of Micronesia are also already suffering the effects of global warming as some of the populated areas on some islands are now underwater.

Re: the repercussions of the nuke activity. After initially evacuating many of those islanders from their homes due to the radioactivity, the Navy declared the areas safe in the 60s or 70s and sent the people back to their islands only to discover that the islands were too "hot" and they set about quietly relocating them once again. Many of the Micronesian children in the public schools here have hearing problems, according to the Speech therapist at the school where I worked, because of the many untreated chronic ear infections (from the water they spent so much of their time in) they had as toddlers. There was one middleschool student who had so many handicapping conditions that I heard one adult refer to him as "glowing in the dark" from the effects of radiation.

Not only are many of these students having difficulties adjusting to their new lives in America, but their language problems are also a big reason so many Big Island public schools' standardized test scores continue to decline, despite all the effort of students and educators. No Child Left Behind rules make ESL scores count as part of the schools' overall grade and a school fails if it falls below the benchmark on any part of its student testing, including Special Ed and ESL.

So, yes, we do have a lot more Micronesians here than we used to but many of them would rather be in their own islands. So, Beachboy, there are many reasons people end up on Hawaii's shores. I just wish everyone would hold our federal govt accountable for this. Neither our state nor island gets any compensation from the federal govt for this under-the-radar campaign.

[Momi]

Thanks Frankie,

That is very true. About 8 years ago. I was a resource at Honaunau School. I do remember them coming in and the struggles they were dealing with, due to "no child left behind" which by the way, seems to leave alot of children behind. Concerns from the community about their skin ailments etc... the extra stress on ESL and the funding the State was left to deal with. Then the Mexicans started to come in and their children were put into ESL addding to the tax dollar funding. I was going to mention that. I think someone mentioned that the influx of immigtrants coming here was not having an effect on the tax funding somewhere on this thread. I'm glad you brought this up and although I have no ill will towards Micronesians, and Mexicans, I can see that major tax dollars are involved. Also, since these people don't own anything (land and much assets), they qualify for quest, and wellfare. It "does" really take from the working class people. It's also a huge struggle for teachers to try to teach students whom don't know a word you are saying. I tried to find similarities in the cultures and found that I especially could find lots of similarities in the Hawaiian Culture with the Micronesians. Some of the students I continued to work with until they were teens. Thanks for directing us to the organization we should blame for this.

Kay, I found the quote from Beachboy which highly contradicts what I've seen for myself. Beachboy, "why are you so angry?" :
Beachboy's quote:
I understand that both the Big Island and Maui has a gret influx of Mexicans coming in. But for the most part they are workers, and they aren't bleeding the state of it's resources.



Edited by - momi on 02/28/2007 20:01:30

Edited by - momi on 02/28/2007 20:22:32

[Green]

Now that Iraq has been totally devastated, i read in the news that the US will be increasing the numbers of refugee iraqi immigrants by quite a bit!

[loffelkopffl]

"Now that Iraq has been totally devastated, i read in the news that the US will be increasing the numbers of refugee iraqi immigrants by quite a bit!"

yeah over a million iraqis have fled their homes thanks to bush's failed oil war, yet listening to the warmoger in chief or his sidekick, mr. torture, things are going well, well not for the 300,000 dead iraqis, or the 3100 u.s. soldiers, or the 23000 wounded and maimed u.s. soldiers, but well enough(if you mean haliburton and k&r that is). coming soon to a town near you........

[haoleboy]

Thread Hi-Jacking 101: From Mexicans and Micronesians to America bashing. Well done, gentleman!

Aloha
Richwhiteboy

"The man who reads nothing at all is better educated than the man who reads nothing but newspapers." ~Thomas Jefferson

[Momi]

Oh no... is haole boy angry at the world again? Well, it's true. Their "is" a senseless war going on at the hands of who?

[haoleboy]

Congradulations! You just used the "other" word for caucasion that you claimed not to use because it's derogatory. If it was too painful for you, you can call me "Caucasion Boy" in the future.
Mad at the world, again??? I don't recall the last time I was mad at the world. And I'm cerainly not mad at the world now. The sun is shining (it will be in an hour), I've got a healthy, happy family, live in a nice home surrounded by good neighbors and friends, in the best country in this wonderful world. What's to be mad about?

Now the malcontents and C.A.V.E. people ARE irritating as hell, but they are destroying themselves from the inside out.

And the "senseless" war is at the hands of Muslim terrorists. Anything else I can help you with?

Aloha
Richwhiteboy

"The man who reads nothing at all is better educated than the man who reads nothing but newspapers." ~Thomas Jefferson

[Green]

Thanks Caucausianboy, Believe it was Hijacking 101A, at least. Honestly, the general consensus even among the majority of conservatives is that we're in a quarmire/disaster and that Iraq is in shambles and that it's getting worse. Blame whom you want. We're getting alot of Iraqi refugee immigrants and imagine they are primarily moslem, hope their not too pissed off!

[Green]

So here I was on my lot in Hawaii, my Mexican neighbor on the left complaining that we forcibly took a large portion of their land illegally, like California, Texas,etc. Then the micronesian neighbor on the right says we nuked his land destroying the environment,their economy,bla,bla,bla.Then here comes my Hawaiian neighbor saying we stole the land from them! So what did I do? Well what any Redblooded American would do, told them "Quit yer complaining, this is America The richest and best country in the universe, love it or leave it, get a job"

[Green]

ps: When the new Iraqi neighbor moves in complaining his countrie's bombed into the stone age,I'll tell him the same thing!