Original Polynesians are from northern Luzon
People of Filipino ancestry are the largest national ethnic group in Hawaii, totaling 23 percent of Hawaii’s population. Of these, 85 percent are Ilocanos, from northern Luzon.
My wife’s family are Ilocanos who have been on Kauai for four generations. Diane recently did a popular DNA test. We wondered if we would find some Spanish blood since the Spanish were in the Philippines for over 300 years.
The test results surprised us. Her DNA profile was 67 percent Filipino and 33 percent Polynesian. The company also matched her with cousins on her father’s side, proving her Filipino parentage.
What’s up with the Polynesian DNA? I found out that in recent years they have discovered that the original Polynesian voyagers came from northern Luzon (and Taiwan previously). The DNA in the oldest skeletons in early Polynesia are a pure match with the Lapita culture of northern Luzon.
The DNA also indicates that the Papuan influence on Polynesians (with the darker features) came hundreds of years later from male Papuan immigrants to Polynesia.
A 33 percent connection between Ilocanos and Polynesians is quite strong, since the original Polynesians left northern Luzon around 3,000 years ago. Since then, there has been genetic mixture on both sides. The square root of 33 percent is 57 percent, so the mixtures would average 57 percent on each side. Modern Polynesians might have 57 percent of their ancestry from northern Luzon. Modern Ilocanos might also have around 57 percent of their ancestry in common with the original Polynesian explorers.
It is interesting how things come full circle. The Filipinos from northern Luzon are the largest ethnic group in Hawaii today. They are immigrants, yet they happen to come from the same island and tribe as those who originally discovered the islands of Polynesia.
Mark Beeksma, Koloa
US militarism is toxic
Donald Trump’s recently announced 2018 Pentagon budget of $700 billion should alarm all world citizens. The word “militarism” is rarely heard in American public discourse. “Militarism” is not a word you will ever hear discussed let alone mentioned in any corporate news forum.
However the prophetic warnings of Dwight Eisenhower in this the most famous and important of all presidential farewell speeches haunts us now like a Dicken’s ghost. Militarism has absolutely nothing to do with the defense of the country. And it is the antithesis of participatory democracy. Eisenhower’s warning about the unwarranted “influence” of the “military industrial complex” has been largely ignored and minimized. And we the people and the world are now paying the price.
A militaristic culture glorifies and sanctions endless conflict and war. Think of Libya, Iraq, Syria, and our starvation blockade of Yemen. The morality of first strikes, drone attacks, and covert assassination are never debated if even mentioned. In a militaristic culture there is no such thing as failure. Every action is heroic and worthy of reverential awe. Questions of legality and international law are trifles that don’t even merit mention.
U.S militarism has become the toxic and evil conjoined twin of “American Exceptionalism”. These forces have combined to create one of the most dangerous nationalistic mindsets in world history. Sired from our endless adulation and devotion for the military is the emerging strategic notion and belief that nuclear war is viable, winnable, and justifiable. One example is our recent strategic announcement that nuclear first strikes may be used as a reasoned response for a major cyber attack.
Americans need to quickly hone their survival skills and take action and face head on the juggernaut of U.S militarism. The task and challenge is daunting. Failure to act however will inevitably lead to unimaginable catastrophe if not species extinction.
Jim Sawyer, Edmonds, Wash.
