Ny times/theroux on hawaii

"...And since people’s faults are often their virtues when looked at a different way, the aversion to self-promotion is often a welcome humility; the lack of confrontation or hustle is a rare thing in a hyperactive world..."

Yep.
 
Some of the comments on that article are absolutely scathing - well worth reading for an alternative opinion.
 
Like his opinion or not - Paul sure can write.

Although many of its birds and flora have been wiped out by humans or alien species, Hawaii’s other Edenic attributes are just about indestructible. I keep telling myself that no one can taint the orchidaceous air, or flatten the gigantic sea cliffs, or still the great waves, or obliterate the rainbows.

Even if it was harsh at times, it's clear he loves Hawaii deeply.
 
Great article . . .
 
That was a good read. Mahalo for the link.
 
i'm not buying it.

i've typed and erased and typed and erased, trying to find a way to express my mana`o (thoughts) on this opinion piece. on the anniversary of this date, which feels like a knife in my `opu (stomach), i'm stuck trying to find that balance to which i can properly express myself without offending too many people along the way.

while certainly poetic, paul may live in hawai`i but he doesn't "get" hawai`i. his twenty or so years of residency may afford him the opportunity to know and learn the "code" words, but in order for him to grasp the full meaning behind them, he may need to live there another twenty years. Maybe, this time he should walk out of his neighborhood (and his coffee table discussions with the likes of the conklins and burgesses) and talk story with the real Local people instead of observe them from afar. even then, i'm not so positive he'll ever get it. This reeks of utopianism -- the surfer searching for his paradise, the hippy finding his hanalei. it is shallow reporting that doesn't breath life, provides no depth, contains no mana (spirit).
 
With statehood came more financing, better schools, better hospitals, improved harbors, a jump in population, urbanization, military spending and many more tourists — lately as many as seven million annually.

That's one thing I agree with. Happy statehood day.
 
iThis reeks of utopianism

Without trying to turn is into a big identity politics debate or something...

I don't really see how hes hows hes being utopian, he clearly mentions positivies and negatives to statehood/development.

Anyway thansk for the article. Paul Theroux is a great writer.
 
Without trying to turn is into a big identity politics debate or something...

I don't really see how hes hows hes being utopian, he clearly mentions positivies and negatives to statehood/development.

Anyway thansk for the article. Paul Theroux is a great writer.

this is not the forum for me to scream out loud, hence i try to express my mana`o in as non-aggressive way as i can. sometimes, it doesn't come out that way tho. but i agree i don't want to turn this into a political debate. i just don't agree that though the article is artisticly written, it does not depicts hawai`i through the eyes of a Local citizen but rather someone who simply resides there. there's a big difference and the impression i get is empty.

simply put, his negatives are only surface scratches ie traffic, high cost of living. and his positives sugar coat the reality that is hawai`i. he makes generalized statements (which he does admit to) which is more born out of reading wikipedia than actually meeting people. Calling the primarily Japanese Americans of the 442nd/100th Battalion "Hawaiians" is an error no true Local or kama`aina (a word I hate) would make.
 
Theroux's article was very interesting. Especially since I read an article earlier in the day that was basically blasting Statehood Day. The native Hawaiians don't seem to share Theroux's view of the greatness of being a state. There are always at least 2 different opinions on most subjects.
 
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