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Roth sits with Ron Hays, a retired admiral and former Commander in Chief of U.S. Pacific Command, and Paul Lister, President of the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii and a Major General in the Army Reserve, to assess the military's presence in Hawaii. Hays argues that post-Cold War uncertainties—particularly North Korea—justify maintaining strong forces in the Pacific and warns that eroding training access, as in the ongoing Bellows debate, risks a domino effect on Hawaii's military viability. Lister discloses that his chamber receives roughly $72,000 annually from the state to support military advocacy and reports that a new Defense Finance center will add about 500 civilian jobs to the local economy. Hays describes his campaign to bring the USS Missouri to Pearl Harbor in time for the 50th anniversary of V-J Day, pairing it with the Arizona as symbolic bookends of World War II. Callers press both guests on contested terrain: a listener cites the 1988 Hawaii Data Book showing the military controls roughly 23 percent of Oahu's land; another raises homophobia within military ranks; a veteran complains about sailor behavior in Waikiki. Both guests defend the overall quality of today's military personnel while acknowledging isolated problems.
Transcript
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