Posted on: Sunday, March 6, 2005

By Jerry Burris
Advertiser Editorial Editor

In recent speeches and public appearances, Interim University of Hawai'i President David McClain has made some interesting observations about leadership and the political culture here.

At the risk of oversimplifying his thinking, McClain points out that there is a difference between "island" culture and "continental" culture.

In general terms, he argues, island culture favors cooperation, respect ("making room for others") and a preference for ambiguity over confrontation.

McClain said he sensed some of this during his years in Japan and feels it here.

These observations, of course, have been made before. One analogy is that Hawai'i, isolated and relatively small, is like a canoe where the only hope for success rests on cooperation and group effort. This is opposed to a continental mindset where if things are not working right, you just move out to new territory.

To the degree there truly is something such as "island culture," McClain said, it informs successful leadership here. Cooperation and consultation and — in effect — a modest approach to leadership seem to work.

While he doesn't say it, McClain's comments immediately make one think about his predecessor Evan Dobelle, who certainly took a continental approach to leadership: Direct, some felt abrasive, confident and quick to announce a decision or proposal.

The implication: Dobelle-style leadership may not be the most successful approach in these multicultural islands.

McClain is also quick to note that making this distinction in no way implies a value judgment on one style of leadership over another. Island-style approaches just might fail in a continental environment on the Mainland.

These thoughts might be of some interest in analyzing McClain's efforts to lead the university. But they also are interesting in a broader political context: If he is right, what kind of leadership works best in the political realm in these Islands?

Surely, modesty, humility, consultation and consensus-building have been prime qualities of many of our most successful political leaders, at least insofar as they presented themselves to the public.

The late Gov. John Burns was the very embodiment of this, famously saying that "any damn fool can take a stand," and "it's the game, not the name," in political leadership.

His style was emulated successfully by Gov. George Ariyoshi, who avoided putting himself at the front of the parade at all costs. Many remember a famous Ariyoshi campaign commercial quoting Lao Tzu on leadership ( "A leader is best when people barely know he exists ...") and depicting Ariyoshi in a crowd, not leading it, but well within it.

Some may argue that Hawai'i has grown up and is now ready for more direct, continental-style leadership. Perhaps. But if you are a gambling person in politics, it's still smart to put your money on the quiet, reluctant leader.

That's where the real power is likely to be found.

Jerry Burris is The Advertiser's editorial page editor.