War of the water rages on in Hawaii
Hawaii is not the first place you think of when the word "activism" comes to mind. Nevertheless there is a David and Goliath struggle in the islands of Aloha. In short, the promoters of the Hawaii Superferry have deep pockets and friends in power. Recently elected representatives decided to push the Superferry forward amidst protests from the outer islands and the Hawaii supreme court call for a environmental impact report. Why no environmental impact report? Most people feel that there must be something the Superferry wants to hide to not provided a simple environmental impact report. In addition, it sets a poor precedence for other companies planing to operate in Hawaii's waters.
is there any hope for "David?" It is difficult to say although the issue is more complicated then just two opposing parties. For example, the other day I was in a shop on Oahu and was talking with the clerk about the Superferry and if he had heard the latest turn of events. I was somewhat surprised (although in hindsight I shouldn't have been) that he had very little concern for the outer island protesters and felt overall that the Superferry was a good thing. the simple gist of what he felt was the masses on Oahu want the Superferry so they can get to the pristine places on the outer islands. How long will they continue to be pristine if the masses have their way only time will tell. Yet, is it fair to keep it difficult and expensive to get to the outer islands so only the rich can visit when there could be a alternative so the average joe can visit as well. Certainly there are many questions to ask and very few clear cut answers. here is a site that discusses some of these issues:
superferry issues
