Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Sounds very familiar to what is happening across the United States. Everyone hates Congress and yet they keep electing their Senator and House Representative.
Absolutely. While we are not unique...... I feel we are worse.
__________________ ____________________________________________
My posts as a Mod will always be in red.
Be sure to review Terms of Service: TOS
And check this out: FAQ
Moderator: Relationships Forum / Hawaii Forum / Dogs / Pets / Current Events
So now we are on 'Asian influence' - I thought it was 'Hawaii Culture' - I don't know, I go to each island at least every other month - including Molokai for work - I've lived in Europe, Asia, Australia, Chicago, San Francisco - been to most countries in Europe, somewhat less in Asia - been to most of the '52' States (yes, I typed that right, anyone following the thread would know what I mean) - and I don't see much 'Asian influence' here (except more restaurants and tourists) - it is predominately West coast influenced - after everyone gets back from the beach tonight - or watching football (not terribly Asian is that) - or running errands, just about everyone will do the same as their West coast counterparts.
You want it to be so different - but it isn't that different.
I'll do this - I get the impression many of the posters here haven't lived around the world or travel as much as I have - perhaps because of this - Hawaii just seems so different to them because they haven't experienced much else.
"Local" culture in Hawaiʻi has a relatively high degree of "Asian influence", compared to the "local culture" of California. You might need to expand your social circle in Hawaiʻi a little bit -- many of the folks I know watch sumo, follow Korean soap operas, eat saimin and Spam musubi, and do other things that most of their counterparts on the U.S. West Coast don't do. Like you, I've travelled and lived in different places around the world; however, I took the time to learn about various cultures and subcultures in detail from the locals and even managed to acquire a degree of proficiency in several languages.
People from Hawaiʻi that moved to the U.S. West Coast know that things are a little different when they turn on the television or radio and find dozens of Spanish-language broadcasts, try to find li hing mui powder and "crack seed" in a local supermarket, go to a McDonald's or Burger King and not see Spam and Portuguese sausage on the menu, get on an "interstate highway" that actually goes to another state, have someone cut them off in traffic and not give a "shaka", or actually get to attend a professional football, basketball, or baseball game and root for the "home" team. Things are simply different in Hawaiʻi, compared to the U.S. West Coast and the continental United States, regardless of what anyone wants or thinks. Yet, despite the differences, many folks from Hawaiʻi try to make things a little more like "home" by establishing "Hawaiʻi civic clubs" and halau hula.
Absolutely. While we are not unique...... I feel we are worse.
You're probably right. Unfortunately, Hawaiʻi is so small that it's not exactly the best idea to "talk stink" about the local politicos, since some of them are friends, relatives, classmates, neighbors, etc.
You're probably right. Unfortunately, Hawaiʻi is so small that it's not exactly the best idea to "talk stink" about the local politicos, since some of them are friends, relatives, classmates, neighbors, etc.
They absolutely are, I tell them the same thing.
__________________ ____________________________________________
My posts as a Mod will always be in red.
Be sure to review Terms of Service: TOS
And check this out: FAQ
Moderator: Relationships Forum / Hawaii Forum / Dogs / Pets / Current Events
You might need to expand your social circle in Hawaiʻi a little bit -- many of the folks I know watch sumo, follow Korean soap operas, eat saimin and Spam musubi, and do other things that most of their counterparts on the U.S. West Coast don't do.
Sumo? Oh come on. What a niche that must be. If you said MMA we could agree. Anyway, thank you for the suggestion, I'm already pretty busy as it is to incorporate the sumo, Korean soap opera watchers, and spam eaters into my life.
I can't see how you can argue that Hawaii does not have a unique culture, so do a lot of locations/cities.
I think the self love of the culture here prevents improvement and lowers expectations. "Lucky you live Hawaii" justifies poor schools, poor infrastructure, poor government and high prices.
Hawaii seems to want to rest on it's laurels of Polynesians, beaches and good weather.
If and when we ever move on to another part of the country I've decided that, among other factors, moving to an area that has excellent PUBLIC schools will be a priority. We are long past the days of having school-aged kids to worry about but I do believe that a community that cares enough about its children to give them a good education is one where I'd want to live.
The public education system in Hawaii is disgraceful. "We Love Our Keiki!" sentiments abound but ring false when you look at the public schools here. I have no doubt that there are individual teachers who care deeply about their students and are terribly frustrated with the conditions under which they are forced to work but the situation, as Mikala pointed out, just looks hopeless. Nobody in power cares enough to make a difference. Maybe it's because they themselves have enough to send their kids to Punahou, Iolani, etc? Ya think?
Those who have enough money send their kids to expensive private schools, those fortunate enough to qualify (don't get me started on this one, please) can try for the affordable Kamehameha schools, some go for homeschooling. The rest of the kids are left to rot in the public school system.
Everyone agrees that the schools are horrible here---the reports come out, everyone sighs, and the beat goes on. Selfish, short-sighted. Nothing ever gets any better.
"We Love Our Keiki!" Not.
Sumo? Oh come on. What a niche that must be. If you said MMA we could agree. Anyway, thank you for the suggestion, I'm already pretty busy as it is to incorporate the sumo, Korean soap opera watchers, and spam eaters into my life.
Surely, you're aware that many sumotori and ex-sumotori such as Takamiyama, Konishiki, Akebono, Musashimaru, and Takamishu (who now stars as "Kamekona" on "Hawaii Five-0") came from Hawaiʻi. Some of them even tried their hand at MMA after sumo careers were over.
I've lived all over tarnation, as my great grandmother used to say, and I've traveled widely and been to hell and back three times.
At different times I've been puzzled by, delighted by, frustrated by, and deeply enjoyed the wide range of cultural differences I've found in each and every new place I have experienced. One totally random example comes to mind, it's quite normal for a butcher in the UK to wear a white shirt, a necktie and a white straw hat, and greet you as you enter with nod of the head and a "Good morning, sir." By contrast, at the Hilo market I patronize a butcher in an Aloha shirt is most likely to greet me with a big grin and a "Howzit!"
A small thing, sure, but multiply small things 1,001 times, and they weaves a dense cultural fabric, and it's different fabric than you'll see anywhere else. I explored this topic a couple of years ago in this thread: https://www.city-data.com/forum/big-i...land-life.html
To review just a few that come to me newly: Spam musubi in a refrigerated case next to the cash register at gas stations. Malasadas and haupia pie on the menu at McDonald's. The Governor signing a new bill while wearing a flower lei. Teenagers passing a ukulele around taking turns as they mess around at the shopping mall. People wearing slippahs everywhere. Stores and government offices opening at 7:30 am and closing at 4. Incense burning on a little altar in a store. Signs warning you not to stand under the coconut palms. Being greeted with "Aloha," and then hearing it again when you leave. People regularly knocking off work to go surfing. Having no mainland banks. Community meetings being opened with the blowing of a conch shell and an invocation by a kahuna, in the Hawaiian language. People sharing the bananas and papayas and fresh eggs from their back yards with friends and coworkers. People knocking off work early to go surfing. Monthly tsunami siren testing. Newcomers getting a warm greeting, but being held at a little distance until they've been a local resident for a couple of years. People comparing the size of cockroaches in their homes without shame or embarassment. Single family homes having a second "ohana" residence in the back. "Ohana" being a bona fide legal concept which honors the fact that so many Hawaiians live in extended, multigenerational families. Plate lunches and bento boxes. Oban festivals all over the place. Mongooses running across the road, scaring the mynah birds into flight. Non-tacky, non-glitsy, non-touristy performances by hula huis. Traditional Hawaiian music in public places. A widely felt distaste for rushing, or displays of impatience. And though they are not accessible to most outsiders, there are very traditional Native Hawiian groups living very traditional lifestyles, raising kalo, pounding poi by hand.
To be sure, Honolulu is less Hawaiian than the rest of the state is, it's kind of like a small San Francisco today, only with better weather and much better surfing.
But get outside Honolulu and the differences from the mainland become more pronounced as you go more rural.
Are the edges being rounded off in Hawai'i? Yes. Are the differences fading out? Yes. Are the old ways disappearing? Yes. Is Hawai'i becoming like everywhere else? Yes, bit by bit, just like everywhere is. And people are fundamentally the same wherever you go. But there is still very much about Hawai'i that is different, if you're open to experiencing it.
After all macaroni and cheese and fettucine alfredo are pretty much the same dish, just with different expressions, but they are distinct, and it's possible to enjoy each in its own right.
Last edited by OpenD; 10-13-2013 at 06:48 PM..
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
