Short Term Sustainability

Hawaii has a tourist-based economy. Yet tourism continues to drop. With this in mind, how will the tourist-based industries survive? This December since last year December tourism is way down; Maui tourism is down 20.5%, Hawai’i is down 19.7%, Kaua’i is down 26% and O’ahu is down 13.3% according to the Department of Business and Economic Growth. Also people who came spent on average $2 less per person per day. – Maui News- Hawaii had a total of 511518 visitors this past year. They spent a total of $844.7 million, which is $124.6 million less then the pervious year. People need to realize that a tourist base economy cannot be sustainable long term. It would make more sense for Hawaii as a whole to make a shift in economy away from a tourist base economy. Hawaii’s tourist base economy is short term and that term is almost up. It makes sense to me to take the path of sustainability through less imported products. Before haole contact there were around 500,000 Hawaiians living within the islands of Hawaii. With virtually no imports or exports these 500,000 Hawaiian lives were fully sustainable long term through agriculture and horticulture. Mainly water taro patches and fishponds supported the life of these old peoples. Back then everybody always had food. The people took care of the land and in turn the land took care of the people. Now life in Hawai’i isn’t sustainable because of the improper and irresponsible usage of the resources and our reliance on imported goods. If imports to Hawai’i were cut off we would run out of food within 3-4 days. This is not sustainability. Short-term sustainability is not sustainability at all. Economic change is the thing that will make Hawai'i more sustainable.

References

-Maui News

-www.mauinews.com

- Department of Business and Economic Growth

Makena 670

I am a native Hawaiian born and raised in Makawao and I am against the development of Makena 670. Currently Iao aquifer is being drained of 18 millions of gallons of water each day. The Iao aquifers water level is at 12’ and this aquifer has 24’ water level capacity. Once at full capacity this aquifer is now half empty. We are using the aquifer water supply two times faster than it is naturally being replenished. It can take years for ground water to peculate into underground aquifer. Maui is becoming the brown island. Namely; Kihei has turned into a dustbowl with frequent dust storms. Between the greedy water company, hotets and worthless sugar cane our resources cannot keep up. With continued increases in water usage and less rainfall over the years our aquifers have suffered. Also irresponsible placing of septic and pollutions from fertilizers and pesticides have effected the under ground water supply. Not to long ago our Kula and Makawao water was contaminated with ekolai. This is from septic leaks finding their way into the aquifer. Also until today there hasn’t been any solid information acquired on how much water Maui aquifers contain. Presently we only have inaccurate highball estimates of the water supply. With this in mind the development of Makena or any further development on Maui would be irresponsible. We can no longer allow irresponsible usage of our resources. If we allow continued increases in resource consumption, we will eventually run out of resources. Maybe we wont suffer much from this in our lifetimes, but think of how much our children and their children will suffer having to deal with drought and famine.

References
-Lecture by Lucienne de Naie
-Geology 101 lecture by Mr. Foley
-Wailea 670 public testimony by Corey Leong

Invasive

An invasive species is an alien species whose introduction does or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm to Human health. An introduced species, plant or animal that out competes native species for space and resources. The first definition caught me off guard since I have never thought of it that way. The second definition is the one I am more familiar with. With this in mind I’ve always thought Humans are the most successful invasive species ever. We colonize new areas pushing out native species and we have spread throughout the world. We destroy natural ecosystems wherever we spread our cancerous roots and have devastated Earths Geo systems.
After the most recent ice age Humans were almost wiped. The drop in world temperature caused drought and food supplies to diminish; in turn Humans suffered famine and drought. At about 10,000 BC Human population was in the range of 1,000- 2,000 and now our population is at about 6.75 billion. In just around 12,000 years this is a huge population growth. At the peak of population growth the human population was growing at a rate of 2.2% a year. Currently human population growth is at 1.2% a year. The human population is now so emence our actions are having a huge impact on the world, natural habitats and geo systems. Because of the pollution we produce the earth is changing at an alarming rate. The polar ice caps that took thousands of years to make will be completely gone within the next hundred years.
Many scientists believe that human population has grown beyond Earths limit to support life. This is true and at this point humans are using earths natural resources two times as fast as these resources are being naturally replenished. We have destroyed natural habitats and have been decimating earths natural resources for thousands of years but this will end. Human life is dependant on certain global conditions and without the right conditions human life can easily be snuffed out. Humans are one of the most effective invasive species to roam the earth but human life will not last but the earth and simple organisms will.

References
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_population
-http://math.berkeley.edu/~galen/popclk.html
-Geology 101 lecture by Mike Folley

Bad moon on the rise

Global temperature is rising, and is changing the world’s geosystems for the worse. Temperature rise is directly connected to the increased severity of natural disasters. What can be done to help deter increasing global temperature?
Global temperature increase will affect everyone and is being caused by everyone. Global temperature increases are directly connected to pollution. Much of this pollution is carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide holds in radiation energy that usually is allowed to escape out through the atmosphere. The more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere the more radiation is held in the atmosphere, in turn, increasing global temperature. America is the biggest producer of pollution in the whole world, producing 31% of Earths total pollution. Pollution also damages crops, forests and wildlife habitats. Weather related disasters have increased 500% in the last 25 years. Also since the seventies 45% of the Arctic ice has melted. Scientists predict, at this rate all of earths ice will be totally melted within 70 – 100 years from now. Polar ice links all earths geosystems, and when all the ice is gone we will be in deep water. When all the ice melts, ocean levels will rise around 50 feet. This will displace billions of humans and animals alike. Much of the sea life will not be able to cope with dwindling ocean salinity levels. There will be widespread drought and famine.
Our future is grim. We have set ourselves up for failure. The only thing I can see us doing is things that will postpone the inevitable. We can cut back on energy and fuel usage but at the rate the population is growing that will do little good. Human beings are the most destructive invasive species the Earth has ever seen. Its time for nature to provide much needed population control.


References
-Geology 101 lecture by Mr. Foley
-An Inconvienient Truth, by Al Gore(movie)
-Elemental Geosystems by Robert W. Christoferson

wai 'ole

The water issues of Hawaii are becoming more serious. Hawaii is the only state in America that does not enforce a minimum stream flow and 25% of America’s native species reside here in Hawaii. This doesn’t make any sense?

In the old days there were waterways made of rock that were diverted from streams and rivers. Only water that was needed was taken; in other words, no waste. The water was diverted into wetland taro patches that were ingeniously integrated into the land. The water flowed diagonally through the patch; water would next reach fish ponds where algae eating fish would be cultivated. Fresh water and sediment from the taro patches would mix with the salt water creating prime conditions for seaweed and algae growth. Moi was often used in fishponds because it is a algae eater. Hawaiian fishponds produced 100 times more fish than natural fish production. Before white man came there were around four hundred thousand Hawaiians living in Hawaii. With virtually no exports and imports they were self-sufficient. The streams were healthy and thriving. Hihiwai and opai were in high numbers. The land was made fat. The land was protected and cared for.

Now days no more stream flow. No respect, donkey peoples think they own the rights to the water through ownership of piping. Local taro farmers are few and hurting for water. Water from Maui streams is rarely allowed to reach the ocean; in turn, the coral is dying off, seaweed is not able to grow near shores, and sea life is disappearing. Now days the land is not protected and is being prostituted.

The responsibility the water and the lands of Hawaii should be given back to Hawaiians. Hawaii should be governed by a Hawaiian Government




references

- field biology lecture
- Hawaiian Antiquities
- Modern Issues of Hawaii 190v lecture

Fourty Thieves

"A Makawao scrub was taken into custody Tuesday to serve six months in jail for his part in the break in of a tourists rental car in Paia town. Ryan Shitbata, 18 also was placed on five years of probation. He pleaded no contest to first degree breaking and entering a motor vehicle and second degree theft. He and two other males were involved in this theft." (Maui News paper, 09/21/08) I know who this person is, he used to live down the street from me. He is part of an up country wanna be gang. My friends and myself know them as the Forty Thieves. These young pups are organized drug dealers and thieves. This groups members are responsible for many up country house break-ins. Their house thefts were mostly in Makawao and Kula. This group is involved with the purchase and selling of marijuana, cocaine, crack cocaine, and meth. Also they are known to be big users of these drugs. They are known to steal Toyota and Nissan model vehicles (mostly the older models) in the up country area. I was told that these cars are stolen, stripped for parts, and the parts are used on cars of their own vehicles. It is unfortunate to say that allot of these Forty Thief punks are locals (Hawaiian). Like my grandfather says, "Dumb locals Making A for all us good local peoples. Not A for ass but A for ashame." "Hawaiians in 2000 made up 46 percent of the population at the Hawaii Youth Correctional Facility. According to the state Department of Public Safety that in 2000, Hawaiians made up 39 percent of Hawaii's adult male inmate population and 44 percent of the adult female inmate population. OHA officials believe the percentages are higher. " (http://starbulletin.com/2002/06/28/news/story4.html)

I notice more Hawaiians enrolling in college since I started my college education. When I started there was about 20 Hawaiian students in the Mu'o A'e Hawaiian cohort program. This semester there was about 50 Hawaiians to join the third cohort. This is a great improvement. I can only hope the Hawaiian youths keep this up and can make the right decisions in life to stay out of trouble and stay out of jail.

References
http://starbulletin.com/2002/06/28/news/story4.html

Maui News paper, 09/21/08

Hawaiinews.com

Interview with a Forty Thief

Interview with victem of Forty Thieves

Smoking Ban in Hawaii

Smoking in airports, restaurants, offices,parking structures and other public areas has been banned. This is great for the non-smoking peoples of Hawaii as long as the rules are being enforced. At Maui Community College the rules are not being enforced. Every time I walk out of the Kalama building there are always some inconsiderate idiots sitting next to the building smoking. Not to mention the ground in the area is littered with cigarette butts. This is truly a disgusting habit for self centered people. Also frequently there are people smoking in the little picnic table building next to the Hale 219. This is not appreciated. This is very annoying for me being a non-smoker with asthma. I shouldn't have to deal with people smoking in non designated areas. What the hell do we have security paid for by our tax dollars if they cant even protect our right to breathe air not poisoned by cigarette smoke. Not to mention these smokers are breaking the law. If people were smoking dope on campus they would be busted. Smoking cigarettes less than 20' from any public entrance or open air entrance is illegal and should be treated that way. In my opinion, smoking should be banned to personal areas only. In America about 50,000 people die every year from second hand smoke related diseases. Does anyone care? I do, I don't want enfacima and I don't want to die of cancer. If i did i would smoke cigarettes like a stupid! Tobacco company products also kill around 36,000 people every month. Cigarettes are proven to cause cancer and other illness. Cigarettes are proven to cause disease and death and proven to kill smokers and non-smokers alike. Why are they still legal. The first reason is the capitol the big tobacco companies bring in. They make ridiculous amounts of money and the government receives a good chunk of that money. Secondly, in a resource based world cigarettes are a type of population control subsidized and supported by the United States Government. It angers me that the smoking rules are not being enforced in our school. School should be a safe learning friendly environment for all. Second hand smoke is proven harmful and very unsafe. I hope school authorities take action as soon as possible to protect myself and the other non-smoking students of Maui Community College. It is not my job to tell people to move or to not smoke next to me. Rules are put in place for a reason. With out rules there would be anarchy. I hope soon I wont have to deal with breathing cigarette contaminated air around Maui Community College.


references
-www.hawaiinews.com
-www.thetruth.com
-www.tobaccofacts.org

Unite For The Benifit Of Our People

As a child growing up on Maui I learned little about Hawaiian culture, history. School for me as a child seemed very standardized and rigid. Leaving little room for young students to use their imaginations and open up their minds. Western schools(Haole schools) are set up this way to assimilate young Hawaiian students into the Western culture. I learned Hawaiian values at home living in a Hawaiian family. Then I would go to school to have my brain overloaded with ideals that were deemed important by the Western culture. This was very confusing for me because Hawaiian and Western values are so much different. For example: In Hawaiian culture the people belong to the land and they are there to make the land shine and prosper. With out the land there would be no Hawaiians so they respected and nurtured the land. In Western culture the land and its resources were given by “God” to benefit Western people. You can see how much the Hawaiian way of thinking differs from the Western way of thinking. Western culture is very self-centered, materialistic, and greedy. Hawaiian culture is very generous culture that sees its lands people as a whole instead of singular entities and shows utmost respect for their responsibilities to the land.
I have learned much in college and have come to realize the wool was pulled over my eyes for most my life. I was only taught lies in my Western minded school. They only want you to hear their glorified and self justified story of history that is just too good to be true. History is a length of time interpreted by any one person or people. He has his story, she has her story, and our people have a story too. Western history is founded on lies, theft, and cruelty. Its funny they don’t teach that in your history schoolbooks. Yes I said theft and cruelty. Every square inch of the United Stated lands were stolen through means of lies cruelty and theft. When the first Westerners first landed from York in North America the first thing they did is loot the native Indian burial grounds. Then they proceeded to kill off nearby Indian tribes stealing their lands, raping their woman and enslaving the native survivors. I don’t think the natives were very thankful of these monstrosities and yet Westerners choose to celebrate their self justified wrong doings with the Thanksgiving holiday. Westerners came to Hawaii with the same plan in mind. Westerners came to Hawaii with the racist assimilation of the vulnerable and trusting Hawaiian culture in mind. Hawaiians were wrongfully discriminated against because of their way of life and religious beliefs. This is in fact a form of racism. Western education, religion, brute force and cultural oppression were used like a lever for Westerners to gain power in Hawaii, with the goal of total domination of the Western peoples. If Westerners could convert Hawaiians to their culture then they would gain power over Hawaiians giving Westerners certain privileges. Assimilation of any peoples or culture is racism through prejudice towards that certain groups culture. This is how Westerners gained power over the Hawaiian peoples stole from their greatest asset. Stolen was Hawaii and the responsibility of the Hawaiians to make the land and its resources prosper. Hawaii was wrongfully and internationally illegal because of Westerners prejudice and greed. President Cleveland in fact deemed the overthrow of the Hawaiian Monarchy unconstitutional. It is also a fact that there has been no internationally legal treaty for the annexation of Hawaii. This is possible because of America’s military brute force and their willingness to use force. The right thing to do is to give the responsibility of these lands back to the Hawaiian peoples to form a sovereign nation.