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  • More pilikia on Moloka'i

    Moloka'i, the most "Hawaiian" of the Hawaiian islands, is facing another dilemma: should one part of the land be sacrificed so that other parts of the island are spared the effects of development?

    What's in dispute is Molokai Ranch's plans to develop 200 house lots on La'au Point. In return, Molokai Ranch will not develop its properties elsewhere and will in fact give up some of that land to be protected from development.

    The OHA representative from Moloka'i is in favor of the proposal because she believes sacrificing that land will save the rest of the land for the kanaka maoli, while long time kanaka maoli activists like Walter Ritte are dead set against allowing any development which would bring more wealthy outsiders to their island. Another sticking point in the eyes of the protesters (who have set up a base camp near La'au to stage their protest) is that that particular area has been used by the kanaka maoli and other local residents as a place to gather fish and seaweed, and they fear that La'au Pt. will turn into another gated community which will keep locals away from the area.

    Personally, I LOVE Moloka'i the way it is right now, as do most of its residents. I also know that citizens of Moloka'i are more vocal and politically active than just about any other group of people in Hawai'i (they stopped NCL from making Moloka'i a port of call). Maybe there can be a compromise between what Molokai Ranch wants and what the citizens of Molokai want, but in the end, I think the citizens will lose what they have because the dollar speaks louder than any protests ever will.

    Miulang
    "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

  • #2
    Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

    Commerce is just so evil. ooooooooohhhhhhhhh.....bad old dollar. bad dog.

    Lefties. Sheesh !
    FutureNewsNetwork.com
    Energy answers are already here.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

      Originally posted by timkona
      Commerce is just so evil. ooooooooohhhhhhhhh.....bad old dollar. bad dog.

      Lefties. Sheesh !
      Tim, have you ever been to Molokai? You really should visit while it's still a backwater island. No sewer system, little water, only one main road, one stoplight in town, really friendly people who try to help you out but make it clear that they like things just the way they are. Why shouldn't the citizens of Molokai decide what happens on their island, to places that they consider sacred? You have to go there and stay awhile to understand what the local people are fighting for.

      Miulang
      "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

        Originally posted by Miulang
        Moloka'i, the most "Hawaiian" of the Hawaiian islands...
        Stop right there, Miulang. Do you know what a polarizing statement you just made? Kaua‘i would strongly disagree with you. Scholars would argue Ni‘ihau is the most pure, both in blood and in language. Treehugger Activists would stake a claim for Maui. And historians would surely pick the Big Island.

        As far as timkona, I think he was only addressing your money vs. people analogy, but I could be wrong. He might just see no value in the Moloka‘i way (not surprising based on his past posts) ... and yes Miulang, I have been to the island.

        We can’t be so fixated on our desire to preserve the rights of ordinary Americans.

        — U.S. President Bill Clinton
        USA TODAY, page 2A
        11 March 1993

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

          Originally posted by TuNnL
          Stop right there, Miulang. Do you know what a polarizing statement you just made? Kaua‘i would strongly disagree with you. Scholars would argue Ni‘ihau is the most pure, both in blood and in language. Treehugger Activists would stake a claim for Maui. And historians would surely pick the Big Island.

          As far as timkona, I think he was only addressing your money vs. people analogy, but I could be wrong. He might just see no value in the Moloka‘i way (not surprising based on his past posts) ... and yes Miulang, I have been to the island.
          TuNnL...by most "Hawaiian" island, I meant ones that tourists and non kanaka maoli can visit (you need permission to visit Niihau and Kahoolawe) and the one that's closest to what Hawaii was in the 1950s and 1960s. Maui and Kauai are already overdeveloped, the Big Island is being "discovered" and more people are moving there daily, and Lanai doesn't have the population anymore since Dole stopped farming pineapples to stop development on that island. Lanai has now become more of an island for rich tourists because there really is no economy per se except for tourism. Molokai is the one island that has the least dependence on tourism. Many of their residents are cash poor but land rich.

          Miulang
          Last edited by Miulang; September 22, 2006, 07:13 PM.
          "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

            The trade-off would last how long? How long til it was cockaroached by 'just one more subdivision, one more trade-off'...?

            But still...if it was a subdivision just for the people of Molokai...after all, where do their kids go to live?
            http://thissmallfrenchtown.blogspot.com/
            http://thefrenchneighbor.blogspot.com/

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

              Tim, have you ever been to Molokai?

              Yup, about 4 times this year alone. I'm one of few appraisers who will make the trek to do work over there. South shore, with all the fishponds, and the huge protective reef 1/2 mile out is just awesome for swimming. Halawa Valley is great. Like Waipio in miniature.

              They got a real nice, abandoned hotel out in Kaluakoi. I've talked with lots of residents who USED to work there. Times are hard since it shut down. But hey, who needs the money anyway? Right?

              I hear a renovation is taking place. Lots of folks excited to get back to work. And the usual suspects trying to keep everybody miserable with the Politics of NO.

              I even tried to get a couple of the bigger athletes in the High School to come play football on Big Island cuz they got family in Kona. The AD at Molokai High School was SUPERPISSEDOFF that I could be so arrogant as to actually tell their children they could be successful. Whooops....Sorry.

              Funny how old folks will brag about their 14 grandkids while lamenting the changes taking place due to population pressures. Cognitive Dissonance.

              Don't worry. If there are no dwellings for the children when they grow up, maybe they can just live at home, with Mom&Dad, their whole lives, while tending a garden.

              Good thinking.
              FutureNewsNetwork.com
              Energy answers are already here.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

                Wait a minute! Tending a garden isn't somthing to look down your nose at.

                Other than that, good post.
                http://thissmallfrenchtown.blogspot.com/
                http://thefrenchneighbor.blogspot.com/

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

                  Originally posted by Miulang
                  Molokai is the one island that has the least dependence on tourism. Many of their residents are cash poor but land rich.
                  Though I agree with you nearly 90% of the time, this is where I agree with timkona and disagree with you, Miulang. For starters, the statistics tell a different story. Hawai‘i tourism had a banner year in 2005, setting several records. Interestingly while visitors to some islands actually spent less money both per person and as a whole, Moloka‘i had a double-digit increase in both categories at a whopping 25.8% and 27.1%, respectively.

                  But beyond the numbers, land rich is an oxymoron, Miulang. If you have no money, you’re only rich if you can live off the land, or own a high rise on your property. I doubt most of the residents own farms. You can’t always eat fish. Kaluakoi the only high rise on the island? At $33.1 million in visitor dollars, you tell me what makes more money for Moloka‘i’s tiny economy? No Moloka‘i residents are just poor. Period.

                  Just ask Hawai‘i Governor Lingle’s former boyfriend, Sam Peters, jr. who ran the Moloka‘i Free Press with Linda back in the day.

                  We can’t be so fixated on our desire to preserve the rights of ordinary Americans.

                  — U.S. President Bill Clinton
                  USA TODAY, page 2A
                  11 March 1993

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

                    Originally posted by TuNnL
                    Though I agree with you nearly 90% of the time, this is where I agree with timkona and disagree with you, Miulang. For starters, the statistics tell a different story. Hawai‘i tourism had a banner year in 2005, setting several records. Interestingly while visitors to some islands actually spent less money both per person and as a whole, Moloka‘i had a double-digit increase in both categories at a whopping 25.8% and 27.1%, respectively.

                    But beyond the numbers, land rich is an oxymoron, Miulang. If you have no money, you’re only rich if you can live off the land, or own a high rise on your property. I doubt most of the residents own farms. You can’t always eat fish. Kaluakoi the only high rise on the island? At $33.1 million in visitor dollars, you tell me what makes more money for Moloka‘i’s tiny economy? No Moloka‘i residents are just poor. Period.

                    Just ask Hawai‘i Governor Lingle’s former boyfriend, Sam Peters, jr. who ran the Moloka‘i Free Press with Linda back in the day.
                    Sure they had double digit visitor increases. You know why? Because the touristas like visiting someplace that looks like what they expect Hawaii to look like. And that's part of the problem: the more rich people who visit there, the more who want to move there. The more people who move there from the Mainland, the more they demand the kind of services they are used to. There have been numerous dustups with the locals in the supermarket when some malihini have thrown hissy fits at not being able to find the same items they were used to buying on the mainland.

                    Same things happened to Maui. Now lots of tourists are saying they're fed up with the congestion, the condoization of Maui and won't return. A bumpersticker that I bought from Purdy Macnut Farm kinda sums up the sentiment of most of the people there on the island: "Come visit Molokai, spend your money and leave."

                    There are some agricultural businesses there which seem to be doing just fine (like Purdy's). There is one particular enterprise that I really really like: it's a salt farming operation called Hawaii Kai (Soul of the Sea). The story about what the company President's vision is and how it's helping some "land rich" Molokaians is really rather inspiring. Nancy Gove has taken the kanaka maoli knowledge of salt farming and turned it into a sustainable business which is helping some residents earn a living. The salt the company produces (white, alaea and black) has graced the tables of many high mucka mucka restaurants all over the world. The coffee plantation has been bought and recently started producing coffee for sale again and one of the dryland taro farms offers tours. I think where Molokai shines particularly is in nurturing the agritourism business. It has to remain rural in flavor in order for the tourists to want to continue to visit in increasing numbers. For people like the Purdys, the income from tourists who buy their products in the little "store" on the premises helps augment their income, but most of their income derives from the mac nuts themselves. And the owner is the one who gives the tours, and it looks like he enjoys every minute of being a farmer. He takes pride in working the land.

                    Kaluakoi is being renovated and I think sold off as timeshares. Papohaku Beach just down the road is absolutely amazing. The day we visited there was NO ONE on the beach (and it's a huge beach). Maunaloa has gussied itself up (thanks to Molokai Ranch) and is looking more like an upscale Makawao.

                    When tourism dollars start waning again (and economists predict a slowdown soon), will the people of Molokai be kicking themselves because they have not bought into the kind of development that the other neighbor islands have encouraged? I doubt it. Life will just go on for them. Molokai runs on a different timetable than the other islands. They may be economically poor, according to everyone else's standards, but come Friday night at the Hotel Molokai when they have their weekly kanikapila, locals and tourists alike join in on the fun.

                    Miulang

                    P.S. I thought the Gov. was married to Sam?
                    "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

                      Molokai will be one of those islands that will always be in some turmoil. On the West end is the Homestead lands that remain mostly undeveloped and some plantation homes that dot area near Molokai Ranch. It's also the home to several time share townhomes, but for the most part West Molokai represents a lifestyle that has stayed pretty much frozen for a long time.

                      East Molokai on the otherhand is where the "rich" live and development has gone on for a while with homes and small businesses dotting the highway to Halawa Valley on the eastern tip. Kaunakakai represents the dividing line between east and west. Some have called that imaginary line the Mason-Dixon line of Molokai and for good reason. There is a rift between the two sides but it seems it's a Haole vs Hawaiian thing. The difference between the two sides is almost like night and day. East is lush and developed, West is dry and mostly undeveloped until you hit the western tip.

                      As for Molokai Ranch they need to do something to prop up their existance or else they will fail and so will another source of employment (I presume) for the island of Molokai.

                      One thing is for certain is that the homesteaders there are very proud of their island heritage that has gone mainly unchanged over the decades while the rest of the state has seen major changes including the island of Lanai. Baseball is one of the more favorite sports played there while the Muflon and Axis deer hunting is coveted by hunters from all islands.

                      I don't know how much longer Molokai can remain untouched. Kids are leaving because there are few jobs available and the opportunites are limited there for them. Some come back but most leave. Many take the ferry to Maui and work and come home that afternoon. Miss that boat and you're staying in Maui overnight. Hopefully with the development of Maui those keiki growing up can eventually make that trek can live in Molokai and work in Maui.
                      Life is what you make of it...so please read the instructions carefully.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

                        400 residents showed up yesterday to protest Molokai Ranch's intentions of putting two hundred, million dollar estates at Laau Pt. That turnout constitutes about 5% of the population of 7400 (according to the 2000 census) on the island.

                        Protesters object to the development, according to Ritte, because they believe it will impact traditional fishing grounds and because of the social impact of 200 wealthy families moving to Molokai with values and attitudes that can clash with the lifestyle of residents.

                        According to Ritte, Molokai will lose nearly six miles of its best fishing grounds if the subdivision is created on the slopes along the coastline.
                        ...
                        Despite some initial skepticism, numerous meetings and planning over 2 1/2 years led to an agreement for the ranch to give back significant Native Hawaiian legacy lands to the community; permanently protect agricultural lands; provide lands for community housing; and reopen the Kaluakoi Hotel, according to Machado.
                        While the return of some of the legacy lands back to the kanaka maoli is admirable on the part of Molokai Ranch, the new development will not create very many new jobs (except as housekeepers or yard maintenance workers) for the residents. If Kaluakoi is re-opened, more than likely it would become a condotel/timeshare resort which has less need for a full complement of service workers.

                        My heart really goes out to the people of Molokai. I hope they continue to make their voices heard.

                        Miulang
                        "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

                          Originally posted by Miulang View Post
                          My heart really goes out to the people of Molokai. I hope they continue to make their voices heard.
                          Ok, I'll play the mean one. While I understand the sentiment of "keep the country country", as a taxpayer, I think I have a right to demand that the island be economically self-sufficient as far as State money is concerned. Is it?

                          If it's a case of them sponging off the rest of us though welfare and then demanding nothing that will create more jobs, then I have a problem. If they are self-sufficient and they don't take more then they put into the state coffers, then more power to them.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

                            Miulang, Oh Miulang, you are so naive and brainwashed. You truly believe your own drivel.

                            200 million dollar homes on Molokai will be built by maids & landscapers????

                            What about operators, concrete finishers, carpenters, plumbers, electricians, painters, etc etc. It will take many, many years to build so many homes. And what about the ancillary income to the local economy in the form of groceries, fuel, etc etc.

                            Or would it be better for Molokai to stay trapped in a time machine of poverty, which is what you want for those people? Liberalism should be painted with the brush of criminal intent.
                            FutureNewsNetwork.com
                            Energy answers are already here.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: More pilikia on Moloka'i

                              Originally posted by GeckoGeek View Post
                              Ok, I'll play the mean one. While I understand the sentiment of "keep the country country", as a taxpayer, I think I have a right to demand that the island be economically self-sufficient as far as State money is concerned. Is it?

                              If it's a case of them sponging off the rest of us though welfare and then demanding nothing that will create more jobs, then I have a problem. If they are self-sufficient and they don't take more then they put into the state coffers, then more power to them.
                              Interesting question. For an example of how someone else has handled this, investigate the "equalization payments" program in Canada, designed to balance out the discrepancies in economic status among all the provinces.

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