In case you haven’t noticed, living on an island is isolation. We’re in the middle of the largest ocean. Hawaii is large, as islands go, some call it the smallest continent. Every type of natural disaster is possible on Hawaii. We have only 45 people per square mile, similar to Oklahoma. People love to complain, all people including me and you. The important thing is productive complaining. There are complaints that are unreasonable. People move here from mainland and expect to take for granted the same things as home. Then they notice that the services are not what they are accustomed to. Why can’t the county or state do this or that? Economics and geography. Big cities with a big tax base can easily find millions for a special project.
On the other hand, there are things that can’t be done anywhere else. We can have all four seasons at the same time. We have lots of open space including magnificent Maunakea. It belongs to everyone, but a small group of activists make a claim that it is sacred — to them. Everyone has something they rightly consider sacred. Their next claim is that they, the kia’i, and only they can determine how to respect the sacred mountain. Apparently, leaving a ton of trash behind is respectful. The purpose of the telescope seems to me to be similar to the purpose of many a sacred site, to communicate with the heavens.
The courts have ruled in favor of science. The kia’i probably decline to recognize the authority of haole courts now that they sued in state court, but lost. In the era of Trump, when you lose, you deny reality.
One thing has become obvious, neither the governor nor county mayor has any idea what to do. Maybe they are just too timid to do it. The governor is termed out, so he could do the right thing without worrying about re-election. All he has done so far is delegate it to the mayor. The mayor is 81 and does not seem to be interested in a third term, just his vision that if we delay long enough a miracle will happen. So far there is no evidence of active TMT management or procurement in Hawaii! They had a “Manager of Community Affairs” (PR) with no authority. She could not even address the lack of a Hawaiian name.
The governor closed the road to the summit in preparation for construction traffic that could not exist. There was no evidence that such traffic was ever planned, but it provoked the kia’i protest costing millions for law enforcement and hard feelings all around. Was that part of a secret plan? TMT should hire its own security guards from somewhere else to avoid conflict with family. When Eisenhower integrated Little Rock High School, he didn’t depend on local cops to carry it out.
It is time for TMT committee to put their textbooks aside and get serious. Hire someone with thick skin and experience managing complex controversial projects. Is Rex Tillerson available? There are many retirees from business or government, who could handle one more three-year project to get it started. Some would do it for fun or prestige. Has TMT even put it out for bids? Not according to their website. TMT is a big project for Hawaii, but compared to the Panama Canal, in a remote tropical jungle, or Hoover Dam in the middle of nowhere in undeveloped Nevada desert; it’s more like a new Safeway.
There is no reason that it can’t be done without interfering with other uses of the mountain. Precision scheduling, what the Japanese call Kanban (Just in time) could make it possible to build the project and allow other uses. Railroads manage two-way traffic on mostly single tracks. Hundred-story buildings get built in the middle of busy cities. It starts with the will to succeed.
Ken Obenski is a forensic engineer, now safety and freedom advocate in South Kona. He writes a biweekly column for West Hawaii Today. Send feedback to obenskik@gmail.com