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Pathways to the Present: U.s. Development and Its Consequences... |
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Pathways to the Present: U.s. Development and Its Consequences...
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by Mansel G. Blackford
Sales Rank: 2538320
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$48.00
At Amazon
on 3-16-2008.
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Features
Hardcover: 267 pages
Publisher: University of Hawaii Press April 2007
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0824830733
ISBN-13: 978-0824830731
Product Dimensions:
9 x 6.3 x 1 inches
Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
Book Description
Ranging from the Hawaiian Archipelago to the Aleutian Islands, from Silicon Valley to Guam, Pathways to the Present is a thoroughly researched and concisely argued account of economic and environmental change in the postwar "American" Pacific. Following a brief survey of the history of the Pacific, the author takes the Hawaiian Islands as the center of American activities in the region and looks at interactions among native Hawaiian, developmental, military, and environmental issues in the archipelago after World War II. He especially considers land-use matters on the island of Kaho`olawe, which had been used as a bombing range by the U.S. Navy until 1990 and has since been partially restored by native Hawaiian groups. The chapter closes with a comparison of developments on Kaho`olawe to conflicts with other naval live-fire ranges in the Pacific and the Caribbean.
The author turns to land- and water-use problems that have intersected with more nebulous quality-of-life concerns to generate policy controversies in the Seattle region and the San Francisco Bay area, especially Silicon Valley. He goes on to compare high-tech districts in these areas with similar technology districts in South Korea and the Hawaiian Islands. Economic expansion and environmentalism in Alaska are examined through the lens of changes occurring along the Aleutians. From there the study considers Hiroshima after its destruction by the atomic bomb in 1945, looking at residents' desire to combine urban-planning concepts, including environmental-protection measures, with economic development. The author investigates the effort to remake Hiroshima as a high-tech city in the 1990s, an attempt inspired by the perceived success of Silicon Valley, and postwar planning on Okinawa, where American influences were particularly strong. The final chapter takes into account issues raised on Guam regarding the growth of tourism and the use of the island for military purposes and links these to developments in the Philippines to the west and American Sâmoa to the south.
The stories told here reveal how and why individuals and groups of people, especially indigenous peoples, acted to influence their economic, social, and physical environments and the consequences of those actions. Thus Pathways to the Present contributes in important ways to environmental, business, and economic history and to Pacific history. It looks beyond Oceania to the North Pacific to paint a thought-provoking picture of broad regional growth, which greatly increases our understanding of why the Pacific is the way it is today.
About The Author
Mansel G. Blackford in professor of history at The Ohio State University.
Reader Reviews
Business historian Mansel Blackford does a fine job in highlighting several key environmental issues concerning U.S. development in the region known as the "Pacific Rim." As Blackford himself points out in his conclusion, there have been many environmental studies done on particular issues in the Pacific. Many of these have tended to be highly detailed and technical, and therefore not acessible to the general public. One of the positive aspects of this book is that it is highly readable, quite a feat when considering the complex issues Blackford tackles in his book. I found Blackford's chapter on the island of Guam particularly fascinating. Here, Blackford focuses on three important issues: the controversy over the U.S. Navy's decision in the early 1970s to build an ammunition wharf at Sella Bay, efforts by the Federal Government to establish two national parks during the same period, and the devestating enviromental impact of the brown tree snake. Blackford ultimately argues that the Navy was forced to incorporate political, cultural, and environmental concerns into a compromise package that spared Sella Bay, and which helped spur the development of tourism on Guam. I also found Blackford's analysis of legislator and Chamorro rights activist Paul Bordallo surprisingly nuanced and incisive. Blackford largely avoids the binary trap of "government" versus "natives" by illustrating the opposition Bordallo faced from Chamorros and local residents, as well as U.S. Navy and Federal officials, in fighting to stop development at Sella Bay. Guam government officials and businessmen saw a good deal in exchanging Sella Bay with the Navy for greater civillian access to port facilities in Apra Harbor. Bordallo disagreed, arguing that Sella Bay's pristine environment must be preserved for future generations of Chamorros, local residents, and tourists to enjoy. Bordallo's vision, with the support of fifteen thousand signatures from local residents, ultimately prevailed, and one of Guam's most scenic locations was spared from becoming an ammunition wharf. Overall, "Pathways to the Present" is a well-written examination of several cases of U.S. development in the Pacific Rim. Blackford does an excellent job in including both the "big picture" issues and the smaller "pictures" of indigeneous peoples, local residents, and individuals. I'd highly recommend this book to anyone familiar or unfamiliar with U.S.-Pacific history.
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Pathways to the Present: U.s. Development and Its Consequences...
Available from Amazon
Price: $48.00
Updated on 3-16-2008.
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