Stuff We Like
Stuff We Like
FSM Music Revival There’s a musical revival underway on Pohnpei, capital of the Federated States of Micronesia. More people are now listening to the “old songs,” local standards from 20, 30 and 40 years ago that they grew up with, but which haven’t been readily available in recent years. The revival is being led by Daniel Isaac, something of a Renaissance Man, who is a musician, music studio producer, band leader and, during the workday, a senior executive with Pohnpei State’s Port Authority. Isaac, who is originally from Pingelap Atoll, has so far produced four CDs of old favorites. He records them at his home studio, does all the mixing and balancing there, and then burns CDs for customers. Sound quality is good, and the tunes are wonderful. Listening to one of Danny’s latest collection—Erim-Away; Ekis Ekis; Ekedaia; and Daidohwa—is like spending a warm Micronesian night with long-time Pohnpeian friends, trading stories, eating sashimi and drinking cold beer. It doesn’t get much better than this. For information about purchasing his CDs, contact Danny Isaac by email at daniel@mail.fm. - ADVERTISEMENT -
A Region In Review Despite its odd cover, the Fall 2003 issue of the bi-annual, The Contemporary Pacific, is filled with important and in-depth treatments of regional issues. This is a journal for scholars as well as practitioners of government, business and education around the region. Most interesting are two features at the front of the book—Anthony B. van Fossen’s incisive look at the centers of money laundering in the Pacific and Kerry James’ paper called “Is There a Tongan Middle Class?” which is not just idle sociology, but also focuses in on the growing democracy and free speech movements in the troubled kingdom. In addition to these major features, there is a very thorough bibliography for the writing career of Albert Wendt. And there are two overviews on the events of 2002 in the region, one focusing on Melanesia, the other on the whole region. The Contemporary Pacific, University of Hawaii Press, www.uhpress.hawaii.edu/journals, US$23.00 per year.
Under the Gun David Capie is one of the region’s key experts in the no-longer arcane study of the small arms traffic. In his new book, Under the Gun: The Small Arms Challenge in the Pacific, Capie points out that, despite all the security hype, there is no substantial small arms trade plaguing the region. That’s not to say there are no problems with guns. The real danger Capie sees is in the arms caches acquired legally by governments around the region. Held in poorly guarded armories, which are sometimes administered by corrupt or politically compromised officials, these weapons have a way of moving from official hands into the custody of criminal gangs or rebel insurgencies. This has happened in Fiji, the Solomons and PNG, to name a few of the usual suspects. Under the Gun: The Small Arms Challenge in the Pacific, Victoria University Press, NZ$39.95.
Moon on Tahiti The ever-reliable David Stanley has done it again. His Moon Handbooks Tahiti, which also includes the Cook Islands, is another gem of a guidebook. For once, someone has explained the origin and history of the CFP, the cour de franc Pacifique, a monetary unit that has always puzzled. If you’re planning a trip to the Cooks or Tahiti, this guide is a must investment. Handy, zoomed-in maps, sidebars full of Web sites, sailing schedules, radio station frequencies and all sorts of other useful information are spread throughout a text organized by major islands and island groups. You will not only get the contact information for hotels and restaurants, you will also get incisive briefings on each location’s history, geology, archaeology, as well as good coverage of the sea life and wildlife in each area. Stanley’s guidebooks just keep getting better. He has visited 177 of the world’s 245 countries and his guidebooks for the Pacific, Alaska, Eastern Europe and Cuba have opened up all these places to the budget traveler. Moon Handbooks: Tahiti, Avalon Travel Publishing, www.moon.com or see author David Stanley’s Web site at: www.southpacific.org. US$17.95. |
