Along with all the high drama surrounding the attempt to get an interisland ferry service launched lies an interesting political tale that may reverberate for years among our three branches of government: Administration, Judiciary and Legislature.

At one level, the issue pits a new business against environmentalists and others who fear the service could wreak environmental havoc. Those who are concerned about our economic climate see the opposition to the Superferry as yet another signal that Hawai'i is simply not open and ready for business.

Opponents, including those who threw themselves into the ocean to stop the ferry's arrival on Kaua'i, argue this is yet another case of someone's pursuit of a dollar taking precedence over a fragile and difficult environment.

Sadly, there are no winners here. The Superferry folks, who proceeded in good faith on assurances from state officials that they had met all legal hurdles, are now stuck in a bad spot with a lot of money on the line and massive legal ambiguity in the way of beginning full service. Environmental groups and other opponents are being portrayed as Luddites, opposed against all reason to any economic progress in the Islands.

None of this had to happen. The state should not have been so eager to get this new enterprise going that it ignored the common-sense idea (now supported by the Hawai'i Supreme Court in an astonishingly swift and decisive opinion) that some kind of environmental assessment by the state was required.

A few points are worth noting: