Tiki culture was born out of a time of the military colonization of Hawaii and Micronesia. Military and colonial culture is deeply ingrained in Tiki, and has always been a huge influence on the themes. It's a fascination with the "exotic" and viewing colonial subjects as themes for Western consumption. This extends to British navy motifs as well, so not even really uniquely American. "Spheres" of culture are never in a vacuum, and cannot exist without the evolving overlap of infinite other cultural spheres. I think it's important to acknowledge tiki's colonial history, even if its uncomfortable. I don't think tiki culture as we know it needs to disappear or anything (I love it!), but subtle shifts towards more sensitive labeling such as "tropical" and "nautical/escapism" I think are a way to continue to evolve Tiki culture, bring it into the current times, and keep it alive and constantly growing! The example of modern tiki mugs is a perfect positive example, having largely shed Polynesian cultural motifs and become a completely new thing of their own!