Aloha kakou,

There are many news venues, many styles of reporting, and a broad diversity of both content and intent to be found in printed public communication today. I for one was quite interested in and pleased to see this recapitualation of the core values 'The Dispatch' is dedicated to, since context is often just as important as the information being relayed. If the keiki are the hope for the future (as they are and ever have been), then The Dispatch’s goals and objectives reflect much wisdom and mana.

I cannot help but share your regret that 'activism' as an important community activity is a dynamic that has recently received much bad press and many disparagements, for without vigilant activism and 'protectors' (of the greater kauhale that is Molokai, to keep an eye open and ever watchful), beautiful Molokai nui a Hina would have long since been paved over and overrun with outrageously priced tourist havens inhabited by uncaring malihini and owned by disconnected speculators. As someone recently pointed out, today’s despised and criticized ‘activists’ are often hailed as tomorrow’s cultural heroes, once time and distance from the immediate emotional volatility of pressing issues have allowed for objectively cooler and more enduring comprehensive assessments to be made.

One of the most difficult problems I see Molokai being impacted by is the fact that there is no longer a true sense of ‘community’ on the island, hence no easy prospect of a coherent consensus in terms of how the future shall develop. Instead there are now several distinct ‘camps’ of individuals, each with different backgrounds that reflect their origins and their varying aspirations. When one of those ‘camps’ (comprising as much as a third of the island) is owned by vested interests located in and operating from somewhere else (i.e. off island and far away), the effect is considerably compounded.

On the mainland, one of the worst developments in American culture over the past 40 years has been the continually increasing polarization of political sentiment into two distinctly antagonistic political parties (Republican and Democratic). This schism has become so pronounced (on the mainland) that pressing domestic concerns are often totally engulfed by strident party doctrines, never mind how much a domestic matter affecting many cries out for balanced and immediate socio-economic redress. The result has been that broader-minded wisdom and fair regard for the national good is now typically subordinated to highly partisan and powerfully influential special interest groups. It is sad beyond belief to see people consistently take ‘party-line’ stands on issues, rather than consider things on the inherent, basic merits implicit in an issue. Yet this politically reactive approach to domestic problem solving is now almost a standard national predilection.

Mindful of that developing disaster on the mainland, what Molokai appears most to need is a reestablishment of the old sense of community that once existed on the island. Some of the island’s wise kupunas have pointed this out, in urging people on the island to put their severe disagreements aside and come together in unity for the common good, but the traditional sense of Hawaiian collectivity that was the great strength of the ancient culture runs contrary (in a great number of ways) to the spirit of individualism that America was founded on, and which exerts so much unhealthy influence on Hawaii today. America is a nation of unconnected individuals who occasionally may come together on issues. Molokai needs to become the opposite of that: an extended ‘kauhale’ of ‘ohana members who may occasionally voice individual concerns, but who never fail to acknowledge that greater need of achieving the best possible result for everyone.

I see signs of this here and there on the island, but the effect must be magnified and people need to know that activism is not an intrinsically bad word. It is merely a descriptive term for knowledge that what is best for some, who have disproportionate power and money, is usually not the best for those who have little or none. It is an expression of strong belief that that untenably narrow-minded dichotomy shall not continue to obtain at the expense of the many.

Obviously, despite that understanding, there must be a serious attempt to bring all together in an ongoing colloquy in which everyone may participate, in which everyone’s voice is respected—-no matter how far off the mainstream thought it may be—-but one in which the broader beneficial outcome must always take precedence. This was the original Hawaiian expression of ‘democracy’ on a local basis, as practiced by the ancients. How sad that it has been replaced by the philistine mainland concept wherein ‘democracy’ has become simply another term for an oligarchy of wealth and powerfully vested economic interests.

Mahalo for reminding us that today, ‘ohana means more than simply immediate family. If you will excuse a reference to that Disney animated film that came out a few years ago, as the central character (a little Hawaiian girl named Lilo) so perfectly put it: “’Ohana means NO ONE left behind.” That applies to all of Molokai, as much as to individual groups of directly related individuals. Mahalo for listening.