"Nobody here is coming even close to sympathising with terrorists. . . ."

Well, you sure could've fooled me!

You and one or two others seem to totally disregard the young woman who stood there at a shattered window in the World Trade Center that morning and tried to decide whether she preferred to jump out and die when she struck the pavement forty stories below or stay there and burn to death. Or be crushed to death when the building collapsed—and the 3,000 plus other people she was with. Or the firemen who died trying to rescue people and fight an impossible holocaust at the same time. Or the families of those who died that morning, or later as a result of injuries or inhaling asbestos and other building materials released.

Not to mention the personnel in the various embassies around the world that bin Laden masterminded attacks on prior to 9/11.

What manner of justice did Osama bin Laden grant them?

Or, for that matter, the people whose deaths he would continue to mastermind had he NOT been taken out as he was?

Unworthy of me? I DON'T THINK SO!!

I was just stating what should be obvious to everyone!.

####

Apparently Hawaii was far too remote to be exploited by the European counties that tried. Portugal, England, France—and Russia, among others.

On February 10, 1843, Lord George Paulet, on the Royal Navy warship HMS Carysfort, entered Honolulu Harbor and demanded that King Kamehameha III cede the Hawaiian Islands to the British Crown. Under the guns of the frigate, Kamehameha stepped down under protest and surrendered to Paulet on February 25,

Gerrit P. Judd, a missionary who had become the Minister of Finance, secretly sent envoys to the United States, France and Britain, to protest Paulet's actions. The protest was forwarded to Rear Admiral Richard Darton Thomas, Paulet's commanding officer, who arrived at Honolulu harbor on July 26, 1843 on HMS Dublin. Thomas repudiated Paulet's actions, and on July 31, 1843, restored the Hawaiian government.

The Reciprocity Treaty of 1875 between the Kingdom of Hawaii and the United States allowed for duty-free importation of Hawaiian sugar (from sugarcane) into the United States beginning in 1876. This promoted sugar plantation agriculture. In exchange, Hawaii ceded Pearl Harbor, including Ford Island (in Hawaiian, Moku'ume'ume), together with its shore for four or five miles back, free of cost to the U.S.

This treaty explicitly acknowledged Hawaii as a sovereign nation.

During the next decades, there were several internal squabbles and revolutions among would-be Hawaiian monarchs, until finally a group of European and American residents—and native Hawaiians—began the political machinations to become a territory and protectorate of the United States. This took some time, spanning a couple of presidential administrations, but eventually—and I point out that this action was initiated by Hawaiians themselves, NOT the American government—Hawaii was "annexed" as a United States territory and protectorate.

There were some—NOT Hawaiians, incidentally—that tried to claim that this was the United States venturing into "imperialism," despite the fact that, as I said, the move was requested by Hawaiians themselves, hoping that this would resolve the rash of internal disputes. Which it did.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Hawaii Admission Act on March 18, 1959 which allowed for Hawaiian statehood. After a vote of over 93% in favor of statehood, it was admitted as the 50th state on August 21, 1959, with a population of about 423,620 (85%) Americans, Asians, and Europeans, and 76,620 (15%) Native Hawaiians.

Colony? Nah, I don't think it was ever that.

Don Firth

P. S. Thanks for the question, gnu! In looking for the answer, I learned a bit!

P. S. Don't fret it, GfS. Not every person in Great Britain is weeping tears over bin Laden. Most of them remember the World Trade Center massacre and the people murdered in the London Underground a few years later, and remember who was responsible for it.

And most Americans I know are really quite fond of the British. Great people. Great country. But every country has its—    Well, forget it!