i was at the honolulu airport waiting for my flight when i opened up the latest hawaii fishing newspaper. in there, there was an interesting article somebody wrote about how the DNLR is screwed up. for all of you who don’t know, the DNLR stands for DEPARTMENT OF LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES. it’s this government organization that makes and enforces the laws of our oceans. they make the rules and we have to follow. no overnight fishing? what? anyway, the person who wrote the article was really upset on how the DNLR is operating. lies? nonsense? ridicule? yeah, i read a lot in the article. but because i don’t judge something by just one side of the story, i’m a lot more interested in it now. and when i get back to hawaii, i’m going to look more into it.
but one thing in the article that made me stop and think was this sentence this person wrote:
i like tourists. i really do. believe me, i do.
we are a tourist destination remember.
be nice to the tourist. they make our economy.
go round and round and up and down.
but what i do not like is when the tourist
come to hawaii and forget to go home.
make house and tell us locals how we supposed to live.
WOW!!! strong words. i had to read that over and over. the reason he wrote this is because the DNLR chairperson is named laura thielen and she’s not from hawaii. that thought was stuck in my head as i almost missed my flight. yeah, the door was closing and i was just sitting down thinking about this. as i rushed onto the plane, this was still in my mind. want to hear my point of view? no? sorry, your going to have to.
being that the ocean is part of everybody’s life in hawaii, i feel that unless you fish, dive, surf, or appreciate the ocean as much as the local people of hawaii, you shouldn’t be in the top seat making rules. i think that position should be run by a well respected local that knows the ins and outs of hawaii and it’s oceans. nobody outside of hawaii should be in that role when making decisions on culture and traditions. it’s almost like somebody from india becoming the president of japan? yeah, think about it.
when i get back to hawaii, i’m going to look more into this issue because it’s not about me and now, it’s about our children and the future. keep you posted…
