Today on the radio, the station invited opponents of the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) onto their show. I didn't get to hear much of it, but something that stood out to me was that one of the contributors said, "You'd be surprised, I used to work with the telescopes but changed my mind after I saw that they weren't taking care of it."

I found that thought kind of disheartening. I believe that both our futures and pasts can be reconciled with the right amount of compromise and the right amount of accountability. Part of my problem with the constant protesting is that it's always one way or another. I think there's some fault in both the government and the Native Hawaiian Organizations (NHO). The government for not reaching out to these groups beforehand, and the other group for not taking a more active role in the community and politics (I addressed this in my last blog.) I may be completely wrong about how active the Hawaiian groups may be in the politics, but as I stated with statistics last blog... I don't know.

I understand the desire to stop TMT, I do. At the same time, I think it's perfectly reasonable to build a telescope on a perfectly formed mountain. I also think that it's very possible to keep sacred a mountain of significance and maintain the veneration towards it when building upon it.

These things come at a cost though. I don't think the unused telescopes should remain, and costs should include the restoration of land that previously housed these telescopes. I am a bit hesitant to completely trust Environmental Impact Statements (EIS), because they're all just statements, and may not have contingency plans for obstacles encountered. I also don't believe that the Hawaiian groups can protest something or complain that something does or doesn't go their way.

Personally, I would love to see the telescope be built; I think that continuing education and bringing modern day significance to a sacred place is a way to keep something hallowed and sacred. The quest for knowledge and understanding spans all cultures and religions and societies, and it's important that we continue to grow in Hawaii. I feel development can be a way to keep tradition and evolve a culture as long as it's done respectfully.

The government, and perhaps the university, should really look into removing older telescopes as a compromise. Sure it will cost money, but it has the potential to dissipate and dissolve much of the tension and animosity towards previous, current, and new projects on the mountain. Growing up, everyone's heard that we should clean up after ourselves and leave it as we found it. That should be the case here.

I don't think that NHOs should grumble about losing their battle. I think that TMT provides an opportunity to evolve the culture, make it relevant, and also become active participants in shaping the land. What this means for me is probably including NHOs in the development of the EIS, the planning of the project, and should the telescope be built, continued consultation on the maintenance of the telescope.

People sometimes view conflict as bad, and I don't think it's bad. I feel that conflict can be constructive if done in a healthy and respectful way. I think putting opposing groups together can be challenging, but it's important to be challenged. Sometimes in our desires to be right, we find better solutions than the original ones we sought.

Everyone is responsible for reconciling our pasts and futures, however difficult it may be. People will not always agree, and compromise is necessary. Sometimes, even after we try, one side will win out before the other. That may make for a sour loss on one end, or a well fought one, if lessons are learned. Accountability is key, and unfortunately, I'm not seeing a lot of it here.

Of course, I understand that I'm being naive. It would be nice to see everyone play nice, but the fact of the matter is that people feel strongly about this, and rightfully so. I just hope that there is future courtesy and respect in the continued discussions revolving around this, as well as an active engagement around understanding the opposing side.

Part of this is just maybe a little selfish. I just imagine as a kid, reading mythology and reading origin stories, and learning about how fascinated ancient cultures were with the gods and the heavens, so much so that they desired to reach for it. The Tower of Babylon in the bible, Icarus in with the sun, and so much more. I feel like the past and the culture and the stories that Hawaiian mythology has to share can inspire and excite a whole new generation to find the same fascination and awe from believing that there's magic somewhere in the earth that can be explained by the story of our origins in the sky. (That was a long sentence). Imagine the cultural renaissance that inspired us to get from there to here, and the contributions that the past can make towards the future.

Or don't.

The universe is ever growing and living and expanding and if we don't dare to learn more of it, the hard-earned preservation of Hawaiian culture will die with it. Hawaiian sailors navigated the seas with the stars, imagine if the legacy was continued into space.

To infinity and beyond.