Those Christians, they want to strip all the fun out of life

If ever there was a news story to illustrate the dramatic difference between Hawaian and "Mainlander" philosophies, this is that story.

Tom "Pohaku" Stone works to revive
the ancient Hawaiian tradition of
he‘e holua, or lava sledding

[...] Stone, now a 54-year-old community college professor who teaches the ancient Hawaiian sport and gives classes on sled building and riding. "That just became my cultural passion because of the similarities with surfing, but it also became my academic passion."

[...] But missionaries who brought Christianity to Hawaii saw the sport as "a frivolous waste of time," Stone said, and its practice ended in 1825, when the last he'e holua racing event was documented.

"They wanted us to work, stop being happy," Stone said. [Emphasis mine]

Therein lies the rub. Given your 'druthers, would you a) dedicate your life, expend your daily energies to further your own "happiness" in the form of brief thrill rides down a mountain? Or b) dedicate your life, and expend your daily energies to further goals more, um... lofty. The Space Shuttle Discovery launched early yesterday morning. I haven't yet read any reports of "crucial Hawaian input."

Previous rant on Hawaii here.

(Via: Jonah)