A few thoughts… On trouble in paradise

By Sandy Compton
Reader Columnist

I‘m writing from Maui, where, as I do at home, I generally ignore the news, but some things beg speaking to. Donnie has managed to piss off the whole world — again — by starting a war with Iran. And posting the Jesus meme. Now, another “sick person” has tried to kill him, though Cole Allen seemed much saner than other attackers, until he wasn’t any more. 

Factoid: There have been 17 documented plots and attempts to kill DJT, a new record.

This is my fifth visit to the island. I’m able to find my way around without much assistance from Google Girl. The road system seems designed by a maladjusted spider, but the anchor of the web is close by. All roads seem to lead to Ma’alaea Harbor — sooner or later. 

However, if you want to drive around the southeast corner of the island, you first have to drive to the north side, where the road to Haleakala National Park begins. There once was a connection of a few miles between the Kula and Wailea at the far southern end of Ma’alaea Bay, but it has been closed for reasons not clear. One thought is that residents of upcountry Kula don’t want hordes of Haleakala-bound tourons driving through. Can’t blame them.

Maui’s climate is paradisical, but it’s also a place with complicated, conflicting cultural values. The population is roughly 30% Asian, 33% white, 13% Indigenous Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and 24% mixed ethnicity. Add to this the dichotomy of extreme wealth and extreme poverty living just across the fence from each other. 

The wealthy, of course, built the fences. The lower class seems one missed paycheck from living in their car, while quarter-acre lots on the beach sell for millions. Wailea and Kapalua resorts charge $500 a night — and more for oceanside views. Mediocre bread is $5. Romaine is $3.50 a head (but it’s good romaine). Two bags of groceries and a 2.5-gallon container of water cost $130. Only my shopping acumen (I’m pretty good at it) saved me from paying $160. 

There is sometimes a not-so-subtle show of resentment toward visitors (about 55,000 on any given day). In spite of my friendly approach, the Safeway checker who took my $130 was just short of rude. One of their fellows stood in my way as I moved the cart through the station, and they gabbed about an acquaintance’s eye problems. They seemed annoyed that I would interrupt such an important conversation. 

As I walked to the beach yesterday, I encountered a Maui Pest Control officer who had trapped a feral rooster, whose sins likely include beginning to crow at three in the morning — along with hundreds of others, island-wide. As I walked to the beach today, I encountered a flock of chickens chowing down on freshly spread feed next to a herd of feral cats breakfasting on a buffet of dry cat food; both delivered, I assume, by the same well-meaning person. Though there are prohibitions against it, they’re being fed. 

The feral people (of which there are many) have to fend for themselves, though I suspect there’s a symbiotic relationship between cats, chickens and the homeless that I don’t want to think about too much. 

One of the bright spots of this visit was stargazing with PacWhale boat tours. We went out at sunset and spent two-and-a-half hours watching stars come out. As Venus appeared in the western sky and the moon and Jupiter above, astronomer Harriet Witt began a two-hour presentation on the heavens, including the way the Polynesians made use of stars navigating from Marquesas and Tahiti to discover Hawaii — only about a thousand years ago. 

Their reasons for looking for new places are familiar: overcrowding, depleted resources, religious differences — and the human compulsion to explore. They found Hawaii in a primal state — the volcanoes rose from the sea fewer than 150,000 years ago — with little in the way of native creatures or plants. The waters were fish-rich, though, and it didn’t take long to find that the soil would grow just about anything.

The couple of centuries after the initial discovery brought a new ecosystem. Cargo carried from Polynesia in double-hulled canoes included taro, pigs, chickens, dogs, sweet potatoes, bananas and coconuts. The 2,600-mile trip from Tahiti to Hawaii took about six weeks; paddling and sailing roughly 60 miles a day in open ocean. When Captain Cook arrived in 1778, the Hawaiian culture — heavily influenced by Polynesian mores — was eight or nine centuries old. 

The coolest thing I learned on the stargazing tour was that the three stars of Orion’s belt are directly above and in alignment with the equator. I was also able — for a precious little while — to turn off the rest of the world, which gets crazier every day.