Military boom, research a devil's bargain

The Advertiser reports: "Hawai'i defense technology programs and companies would receive $34.2 million for everything from studying sound impacts on whales to virtual combat training under legislation approved by the U.S. House Armed Services Committee. [...] Abercrombie said the projects are strategically significant and will help Hawai'i's economy."

The Star-Bulletin reports on the increasing military research being done at the University of Hawaii even prior to the proposed Navy UARC, and the various issues surrounding that.

And Robert M. Kamins and Robert E. Potter, emeriti professors at UH who have written a book on the history of the university, have a commentary in the Advertiser about the recent anti-UARC sit-in, and a 1968 sit-in that also took over Bachman Hall. They say that "the burden of proof is on those who propose changing the ground rules of a self-respecting university" and hope "after this sit-in, that the regents and administrators will be candid, open and thorough" in the discussion about the UARC. At the same time, they also provide a warning about the unintended consequences of protests that are not respectfully conducted. Fortunately, based on the very respectful behavior of the protesters this time—everything from removing their shoes to removing graffiti to watering plants in the office—it seems like the protesters have learned that lesson.

Meanwhile, a column by Jerry Burris brings some useful perspective on military expansion in Hawaii. While believing that "the importance of the military in the Pacific — and in Hawai'i — will only grow over the coming decades" as American strategic concern centers on the Pacific, he says that, "Over the years, Hawai'i has had a complicated — one might even say love-hate — relationship with the military here," with "conflicts ranging from land use to lifestyle differences."

He calls the trade-off of perceived economic benefits a "devil's bargain," and says, "as we walk into the 21st century, the bargain will have to be re-evaluated."

The question arises: Where will these people live? Where will their children go to school? How will we supply them with the proper ration of roads, water, electricity and other necessities?
[...]
Yes, the military brings money and jobs here, but it also puts Hawai'i squarely in the middle of the "military-industrial complex" that President Dwight D. Eisenhower so famously warned against.

We could — and in an ideal world, perhaps should — do without the military here. But in practical terms, that's unlikely.
[...]
The political challenge is to deal with that growth in a way that accommodates not only our national interests but the interests of a fragile, economically dependent and increasingly crowded Hawai'i as well.

Just remember, whatever the perceived "practical terms" and whatever one's attitude about the military overall, the truth is that their entire presence in Hawaii is an illegal occupation.

Posted: Sun - May 22, 2005 at 08:08 AM

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Military boom, research a devil's bargain

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