SK, My response is based on my experiences:
1. There is a real difference in the way you are treated in some parts of the island by the locals. You may not experience everytime but often enough to draw a conclusion.
2. The schools are terrible. Before Hawaii, I lived in San Diego. My kids were doing great in school. In the Hawaii schools they are being taught things they learned about in San Diego schools two years ago. My opinion is that non-local kids have to "dumb down" to the Hawaii school system.
3. Outsiders moving here have visions of the tropical paradise and sandy beaches they saw in tourism ads for Waikiki. What most people don't know about is the traffic jams, cramped living conditions, cost of living, high crime, local's attitude towards outsiders, etc.
4. Island fever. One thing you have to remember, you are landlocked on an island so you must find something to do locally; that is if you don't want to fly off the island. There are plenty of things to do here but a change of pace is nice.
Chazas and BoSox, I've lived all over the country, including Minneapolis (Bloomington) and Washington DC, and have opinions, both good and bad, of the different regions in our country. I think the Minneapolis area is one of the best areas in the country (except for the cold) for that "quality of life" we all desire. Hawaii has many appealing qualities but in my opinion severely lacks many of the basic standards and principles that we take for granted on the mainland. Chazas, the thing to take away from this topic thread is that Hawaii is different things to different people. While I think BoSox and I share some of the same opinions, you will form your own. I hope you have a good Hawaii experience. R, PACMAN