@MissConstrue Genuine info request: I need to dissuade some relatives from visiting the US, but specifically #Hawaii.

We’re Australian. Family members that we often holiday with had a great time in Hawaii some years ago and were advocating we all go there. I said I’m not visiting the USA while Trump and the Trumpets are in power. #BoycottUSA.

They argue that Hawaii is different - and it *is* - the political/philosophical distance from Mar-a-Lago is matched by the physical distance. But it is nonetheless still a part of the USA. I can dream they might succeed, but that certainly isn’t the current case.

Admittedly, the idiot’s recent moves have kind of solved the issue in that the family also realises that Hawaii is a military target now (remember Pearl Harbour, etc.) - but I am keen on further information or anecdotes I can use to show them that Hawaii definitely counts as part of avoiding travel to the USA in these ridiculous times.

Hawaiians: sorry, while yours is one of the very few parts of the USA I might otherwise consider visiting, I have to rule out seeing your islands and people for the foreseeable future. I hope you understand.

@whybird Well, from a weather standpoint, one island is flooding, one is on fire, one hasn’t recovered from the wildfires, and now ICE is manning the airports.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Hawaii so much I didn’t move there, because it’s not my land, it’s stolen and we should give it back. Everyone should see its majesty and marvel at her wonders, but now isn’t good.

Check the weather, look at how Maui is recovering, and the volcanoes are angry. I’d wait.

@MissConstrue Thank you for your reply. Any trip we do make would be many months away.

Actually, given the fuel issue it seems even unlikelier now that we will fly anywhere at all, so it might all be moot for some time.

@whybird But when you decide to go, I recommend Maui as the most magical place on earth. I don't have it to hand, but there's a Hawaiian family owned hotel really close to the Black rocks. The same family has owned it since before the colonization. Three generations of my family have been recipients of their hospitality for more than 60 years.

It's not the fanciest, it's not a brand new resort, but everyone who works there is Hawaiian, and it's not owned by a faceless corporation. I'll dig up info for you if/when you want to visit.