Kaho'olawe

Yesterday, I neglected to mention that the Post-Saturnalia holiday was sheer madness. There were crowds everywhere. Traffic was horrendous. Shoppers and tourists apparently were out in force. Can anyone really get tired of shopping or gawking at cheesy tourist attractions? Apparently not. And, no surprise, the den of consumerism (read: shopping mall) was packed with crazed shoppers last night. To top it all off, the emperor (or president, monarch, puppet, dictator) of empire is on vacation in Kailua. Many of the serfs of empire were loitering in the vicinity just for a peek at "royalty."

The local public radio news revealed that the official number of immigrants over the past year was 10,000 upward. I assume that the number only included legal immigrants. It does not include the internal migration of both the homeless and the extremely affluent of empire. It also does not include illegal immigrants, myriad foreigners who simply purchased one-way airline tickets to Hawai'i. The actual number of immigrants over the year should be revised upward to 20,000 or more.

Are there really that many illegal immigrants? Sure, why not? There is absolutely no enforcement of immigration and naturalization laws. Thus, there has been an influx of Chinese, Filipino, Korean, Vietnamese, and other Asiatics. There could very well be numerous illegal immigrants from Europe, Mexico, South America, and the Middle East, too, but their numbers are much lower in proportion to the Asians. Incidentally, the Micronesians and other Pacific Islanders are allowed to migrate anywhere in empire because of the Compact of Free Association. The reason is that the brain-dead scientists of empire decided to atmospheric tests of prototype atomic bombs in the vicinity of those small island nation-states. Anyway, most of the Pacific Islanders choose Hawai'i as a final destination because of the similarity to their homelands.

Thus, when I complain that the island is way too crowded, I am not just imagining the situation. Add in the tourists, and we have an untenable and unsustainable environment. Let me also mention that the employment figures for Hawai'i are bogus. There are large numbers of homeless and illegal immigrants working for cash "under the table." There may also be a small number of "sweatshops" as well, primarily employing illegal immigrants. Mind you, unemployment is allegedly very low in Hawai'i. However, there are large numbers of the population who are legally employed at two or more concurrent wage slave jobs. I believe that each job position is being counted as one person. So, a wage slave working at two different jobs is being counted as two separate employed individuals. Hence, the bogus low unemployment statistics. In addition, at any time on any given day, there are just too many people out and about doing nothing.

The illegal immigrants appear to be quite savvy upon arrival in the islands. They immediately seek refuge in established ethnic enclaves. An air of legitimacy is claimed because anyone with the same surname is broadcasted as "family." The ethnic enclaves provide minimal protection, preservation of language and culture, as well as the pooling of financial resources that are critical for survival. Needless to say, the ethnic enclaves are overcrowded and normally border other ethnic enclaves. Older enclave "family" members work to insure that recent immigrants have the appearance of assimilation in order to prevent detection by the authorities. A few immigrants have started up small businesses, which seems to be the best fast track to legitimacy.

On the other hand, the homeless population will continue to grow. Don't even bother with "official" estimates. There are about 500 to 1,000 homeless immigrants arriving from the mainland empire every month. The State government has set aside a paltry sum of money that is slated at reversing the trend by giving about one hundred homeless people a one-way ticket back to the mainland empire. A ridiculous program at best. The homeless have no enclaves. So, they are "homesteading" anywhere and any place. The municipal government has enacted all kinds of anti-homeless ordinances that do nothing but provice a "revolving door" between prison and the streets for the homeless. The homeless have already saturated every marginally habitable spot on the island.

In the near future, there will be a larger homeless migration to the neighbor islands. The only impediment now is the lack of charitable and social services. Once in place, though, droves of homeless will be importing themselves there. In the end, extremely Draconian measures will be invoked. Hawai'i may end up leading the nation and serving as a model for the eradication of the homeless. I would not be surprised to see the local authorities round up and incarcerate the homeless in an internment center that is located on a dangerous and uninhabited island like Kaho'olawe. If such drastic measures are not taken, all of the islands will be overtaken by the homeless. As it stands, the homeless presence has affected the tourist industry, the "bread and butter" of the local economy. Public outcry has been increasing. I am not advocating for Draconian action, but I know that it's coming.

Naturally, no one is complaining about the influx of extremely affluent immigrants, both from empire and abroad. Using the maxims of the "ownership society," they are purchasing all forms of real estate and assets on all of the islands. Since they control the wealth, they control the power (political and so forth). The affluent class has divided and conquered the middle class of Hawai'i. We are at their mercy, of which they have none. Rather, the affluent class are driving more and more of the rank-and-file peons into poverty. Soon, the newly impoverished will find themselves interned on Kaho'olawe with the homeless and destitute. I may be joining them. Sheesh!

Surveillance Mini-Update®
The Google® surveillance robot made an unexpected visit at 4:10pm HST for no particular reason. Sorry, the "dirty old man" has not made any perverted moves yet.