Quote:It's not Nebraska, but it is America. I know a couple of Navy brats who grew up there and are as red-blooded as any Kansas farmer. It feels like a foreign country because of how tiny and remote it is and how disconnected from everything it feels, but it's still very much an American state full of people with the same political ideologies as you or I.

 

I have to disagree with you.  I spent a pretty good amount of time in Hawaii, and I can assure you that the only place that "feels like" America is around the bases and the tourist areas.  There is even an island there where "outsiders" (non-Hawaiians) are not allowed to go to or interact with the inhabitants (Niihau).  Although there is limited tourism to the island, it's only in remote locations and visitors are prohibited from going to the area that is populated.

 

There are also many Hawaiians that openly speak about their belief of not being part of the U.S.A. and consider themselves "prisoners" in "their own country".

 

Now of course, the areas around the military bases and tourist areas are more "Americanized", but for locals living on the islands it's a very different way of life.

 

My point is, that yes it is "America" technically, but it's more of a very different "America" than people realize.  I guess the same could be said regarding many of the Indian reservations in the southwest.

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