What is Your Preferred Future in 50 Years?
Have you ever wondered about the future? If you had, you would also be considering the present and the fact that we live in an unsustainable world where oil is a valued resource that shall eventually become highly expensive; where increased pollution is expected to cause severe climate changes; where capitalism is a problem that never gets solved, only moved and “passed on” to others. These are known as the Unholy Trinity (Dator, 35-39). Only if the next generation takes a stand in creating a better future shall we hope to “derail” ourselves from our current path and forge a new one. Social change is driven by the need to improve our government and judicial systems. These systems are essential in deciding how our world operates. Without the right people in charge, without the right laws being passed, without better decisions being made - the world will only follow a future of continued growth.
In the past, the people of Hawaii have “. . . lived under the authoritarian rule of an openly white supremacist oligarchy” (Stannard, 1). Power was held in the hands of few and people couldn’t even vote for their own governor (Ibid). Regardless of personal interest, the government was supreme - their word was law. Even in the Massie case, it was shown that the power of the government could override the decision of the people. Although the jury had ruled the defendants – Mrs. Fortescue, Mr. Massie, Mr. Jones, and Mr. Lord – guilty of murder, their penalty of ten years had been pardoned to one hour by territorial governor Lawrence Judd under pressure of members of the U.S. Congress (Linder, 11).
Even now, political leaders are known to have much power over all sorts of issues and yet, it is their actions that determine their worth. In Chad Blair’s article, “Government,” he acknowledges that “Political leaders have been fodder for ridicule for millennia . . . It’s all fair game – as with politicians everywhere, the bodies politic in Hawaii have made their share of screw-ups” (Blair, 77). Hawaii’s present government is currently facing financial problems resulting in budget cuts, furlough days, and layoffs (Ibid). Recently, Neil Ambercrombie was elected the new governor. The people had to place their trust in him that he would make Hawaii a better place to live in.
Since it’s so essential to have responsible, trustworthy people in government and judicial positions, social change is possible because people find it necessary to acknowledge and adapt to the current situation in order to elect who they feel will best address their concerns. Based on this, my preferred future 50 years from now is transformational – a future where power will be distributed more equally. In the future, international government relations should be more important than just the focus of the U.S. as a nation. The threat of the Unholy Trinity provides evidence of this. Eventually the “West” will no longer be dominant. Even now, the U.S. is a major importer of oil rather than an exporter.
Bibliography
Primary Sources
Ariyoshi, George R. Hawai’i: The Past Fifty Years – The Next Fifty Years. Honolulu:
Watermark Publishing, 2009.
This is a source by the former Governor of Hawaii, George Ariyoshi who
compiles an easy to understand yet vital summary of major social, political, and
economic changes that have occurred over the past 50 years. He encourages
the next generation to start looking forward and thinking about the future –
the changes we could enforce to make it better and the solutions we could
come up with to fix present problems. I hope to use this source to outline the
present situation, what lead to the present situation, and what trends have occurred over the past years.
Cortez, Milton. Personal Interview. By Karla Cortez. Mililani. 15 Aug. 2010.
This source is a personal interview that I had with my dad. From this experience, I learned more about my dad's childhood as he described memorable places where he and his family had fun and "hanged out." I hope to use this information to express how Hawaii has changed over the years to meet the demands of modernization and nature itself.
Secondary Sources
Blair, Chad. “Government.”
This is an article from the book Value of Hawaii that describes, explains, and points out problems in Hawaii’s current government. I hope to use this article as a present day reference to governmental problems that have also been seen in the past – in particular, my history day topic: the Massie Case.
Dator, Jim. “The Unholy Trinity, Plus One.”
This is an article from the Journal of Future Studies made in February 2009. This article describes the Unholy Trinity and the problems it will cause the world in the future, as well as an additional problem that Dator wishes to point out specifically which is the government. I hope to use this article to tie into my argument that having a stable government and judicial system is a driving force for social change.
Linder, Douglas O. "The Massie Trial: A Commentary." 2007. 1 Sept. 2010. < nt.html>.
This source provides a general commentary of what happened during the investigation (evidence found and refuted for both the defense and prosecution), trial (statements from witness testimonies), Kahahawai murder case (including an excerpt from a primary source), and what happened afterwards.
Mackenzie, Melody Kapilialoha. “Law and the Courts.”
This is an article from the Value of Hawaii book that describes the history of Hawaii’s law and judicial system and the need that there has been to reconcile and integrate the systems of two factions – that of the original monarchy and that of the “West” that has since taken primary focus since the Overthrow. I hope to use this article as evidence on my argument that social change is caused by the need to improve the government and laws for equal rights and such.
Stannard, David E. Honor Killing: How the Infamous “Massie Affair” Transformed Hawai’i. New York: Penguin Books, 2005.
This book source was filled with details about the case including the racism, prejudice, and white superiority. However, he also describes the case form the "white" point of view from the mainland. I hope to use this information to express the impacts of the Massie case.