Sunday, August 5, 2012

Musings: Smoking and Spraying

At first I wasn't sure how long our walk would last this morning, since a light rain was already falling and might possibly get heavier, which it did, but the dogs and I pushed on, anyway, as silver-white beams shot out from a hole in the tawny clouds and a rainbow began to appear, soon forming a perfectly wide and vivid arch before us, one end firmly anchored in a blur of iridescent color on the face of Makaleha, the other wavering in front of the Giant.

A friend called the other day, stuck in traffic in the never-ending roadwork between Kukui Grove and Puhi, ranting a bit and wondering if the massive concrete highway was intended to double as an emergency runway, before observing, “I don't know how these guys pronounce their company name but I just want to say Kiewit already. Enough.”

I must say, when I drove through there Friday evening, along a span so wide that some pedestrians would be hard-pressed to cross the street in the time allotted by just one traffic signal, I thought, with a shudder, is this ugly, impersonal, urban monstrosity the future of our little island?

It's all to benefit PMRF,” another friend said. “We will have whatever roads they think they need to keep doing whatever toxic, dangerous shit it is they do out there.”

And that got me thinking of how Councilman Dickie Chang is pushing a bill to ban smoking in county parks, supposedly to protect people's health, when meanwhile, the county continues to spray herbicides at the parks and alongside roads. As I reported for Honolulu Weekly back in 2009, county ADA coordinator Christina Pilkington, who has since been inexplicably relieved of her job, met a lot of resistance, but was finally able to convince the county to stop spraying at some East Kauai parks. But just the other day I saw a county worker ready to Roundup Kapahi Park, which is heavily used by very young children.

The Council is pushing the no-smoking bill at the behest of the Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Hawaii, and I thought, so how come you guys aren't also listening to the coalition that is pushing for a GMO-Free Kauai? How come the Department of Health, which is throwing money at the Path and the anti-tobacco coalition, doesn't give the anti-GMO guys any money? Because GMOs are inextricably linked to pesticide use, and we know that pesticides are harmful to human and environmental health.

As Dr. Basko reported on his Pets, People and Paradise radio show yesterday, a new study by Dr. Charles Benbrook of the Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources at Washington State University found that herbicide-resistant crops have resulted in a dramatic increase in herbicide use. In the first 16 years that these Roundup Ready-type crops were on the market, farmers used an estimated 527 million pounds more herbicide than they otherwise would have.

Meanwhile, the heavy poison use has caused some 22 species of weeds to develop resistance to the glyphosate in Roundup. So now the chemical companies that are cultivating lands from Lihue to Mana want to up the ante with the next generation of crops resistant to such super nasty concoctions as 2,4-D, dicamba, and paraquat.

Since Kauai is used for both experimentation and seed cultivation, they'll be seeing just how big a dose the crops can withstand, which means more pesticides leaching into our soil, water and ocean, floating on the breeze.

So I kinda had a WTF? moment when I read that Councilwoman JoAnn Yukimura supports the non-smoking bill because “One of the visions for Kaua‘i is a place for health and healing.”

Guess it's a lot easier to bully smokers than confront the multinational chemical companies that have assumed control of the island's agriculture, with the full support of the county and major landowners like Grove Farm, Gay & Robinson and Kamehameha Schools-Bishop Estate.

Meanwhile, the Kekaha Hawaiian Homestead Association has expressed concerns about the state's plan to ship soil contaminated with dioxin and arsenic years from Kilauea to their back yard. Aside from the social injustice issues, rapidly accelerating coastal erosion is a serious concern, seeing as how the Kekaha landfill is right on the ocean.

I was a little concerned when I read the July 31 opinion issued by Special Counsel Gary Slovin, in which he gave this description of his duties:

Special Council was retained, effective June 25, 2012, to analyze and assess the circumstances surrounding the establishment of the P.O.H.A.K.U. diversionary program that was established during the year 2011 by the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney.

I didn't recall the County Council giving any such direction when it authorized spending up to $15,000 on Special Council to represent the OPA. So I checked, and here is what is stated in Slovin's contract with the County:

Scope of Services. Special Counsel shall provide all such professional legal services as may be necessary to represent the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney limited to civil matters related to the POHAKU program.

So him issuing “a decision” that prompts a press release from Prosecutor Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho claiming “P.O.H.A.K.U. Cleared: Declared Legal and Valuable” seems to be just a bit of a stretch.

Since the county has not yet made any payments to Slovin, perhaps he could bill Shay's re-election campaign, instead, since that seems to the primary beneficiary of his work. 

And finally, the best "laugh out loud" experience I had all week was seeing a guy driving a pick up truck on Kuhio Highway, with a big dog sitting in the passenger seat, gazing at him with adoration and steadily licking his face. 

37 comments:

Anonymous said...

Can't you see the park worker spraying poison while telling someone to put out theit cigarette?

Anonymous said...

The non smoking bill is a hidden tax law. It's as stupid as the curfew on beaches and county parks between 11pm and 6am, it's not being enforced nor do citizens believe that it is a real law. It cannot be enforced properly, just like dog shit in county parks and bike paths. If you are caught by law enforcement then you are subject to penalties, that's so manini that even if the county hired 100 park rangers it still couldn't be enforced.

GMO gives jobs to the community thats why they would rather sacrifice the health of citizens and the poisoning of the land for a paycheck. FEDS have already condemned 100 of these GMO companies sites as superfund toxic areas.

Anonymous said...

Well I guess the county worker cannot smoke at work then, these people are hypocrites.

I smoke wea eva I like, Wen I Like, ainofea and ainokea!

Anonymous said...

After all of yesterday's angry (and racist) protests that Slovin speaks for the County and celebrating that OPA was "cleared", it turns out Sllovin actually IS Shays lawyer, and is only speaking for the OPA?
She wouldn't try to mislead us would she?

Spraying chemicals that are killing us while our "leaders" are going after a rice cooker or a sloppy little diversion program - now that is a real problem. Toxic cleanup should be top priority on the supposed "healing island" - but hey don't let the highest cancer rates in US. get in the way of marketing healthy Kauai. Maybe hire Slovin to say it's all OK. For 15 thousand bucks I hear he writes a good letter.

Anonymous said...

Does this mean Iseri Carvalho will answer Council's questions now or is she still lawyered up?

Anonymous said...

The dogs got it, at least something on this god forsaken rock is happy.

Anonymous said...

All the grasses growing along the side of the road get sprayed. Takes too much manpower to remove by hand.

Anonymous said...

Joan,
Your reporting to date is almost entirely accurate. Please do not let the spin by Shay supporters dissuade you. POHAKU is just the tip of the ice berg and Shays response is the big story. Best defense in her mind is a strong, angry, deceptive offense. Slovin is most likely unhappy that his opinion in defense of OPA is being characterized as a "decision" that "clears" Iseri. Nothing could be further from the truth. More shoes to drop soon; bigger shoes.

Anonymous said...

OJ Simpson's defense lawyers said he was innocent. Now how many of you believe that statement was true an accurately prescribed.

Shay was quite clever in her deceptive ways. She gets a front page lead article of her defense attorneys opinion on a friday paper. She puts out information that would make her and Jake look good and leaves out the criminal elements.

Shay has learned that playing political games utilizing the only newpaper on Kauai has benefited some certain people in her inner circle so these moves were well calculated and the average citizen is fooled once again.

Anonymous said...

Lawyers write OPINIONS - Courts decided legality.

Honestly, some of your commenters are almost as unfamiliar with the system as you seem to be sometimes.

You hire an attorney to get you off - guilty or not - your lawyer's job is always going to try to get a court (judge) to determine your innocence.

Anyone that believes Shaymeline is innocent is either paid by her or related to her.

Anonymous said...

There is a presumption of innocence, so let's give her the benefit of the doubt. She hasn't even been charged with anything.

Anonymous said...

Is that the same presumption of innocence she never acknowledged for Bynum? Even after he was ACTUALLY cleared?

Anonymous said...

We should aspire to higher standards of conduct.

Anonymous said...

POHAKU is looking more like a (quid pro quo) Political Slush Fund.

Anonymous said...

How could they proceed without a written agreement?

Anonymous said...

How could they proceed without a written agreement?

Anonymous said...

I suspect the OPA did have a written agreement with Strategic Justice for POHAKU. I believe Shay and co. are simply hiding it.

Anonymous said...

Joan's problem is she's taking one side's word for it. Just wait and see if Slovin is representing Joan. Bet he's not.

Anonymous said...

I suspect the OPA did have a written agreement with Strategic Justice for POHAKU. I believe Shay and co. are simply hiding it.

August 5, 2012 5:20 PM

Give it a break. This is a pissing match caused by Wally Rezentes getting his panties in a wad because he thinks a girl is making a contract without asking Wally first. But there is no procurement so Wally doesn't need to be involved. but al and Joann might as well pile on too if they can score points against shay, who they hate. And who knows what Joan's motivation is. It's a bunch of hooey and the FBI sure as shit is not going to get involved. As if that needed saying.

Anonymous said...

If Shay's not hiding anything, why wouldn't she just answer the County Council's questions about Pohaku from the beginning? Why did she request a lawyer? Now that she has a lawyer, and if his opinion is that she's been cleared of any wrongdoing, well answer the County Council's questions!

Anonymous said...

They didn't bother to write up a contract? Did her whole office miss that class in law school?

Anonymous said...

August 5, 2012 10:07 PM

It's everybody's fault, except Shay's.

I don't buy it.

Anonymous said...

At fault for what? She hasn't been charged with anything.

Anonymous said...

Deception - waste of taxpayer dollars - unethical behavior - not guilty.

There are several psychological issues at play here, all of which should be determined by a fitness for duty evaluation by a licensed psychologist.

Has any one (ethics commission) required this common evaluation of Shay?

Anonymous said...

Shay must be hoping the Ethics Commission investigation does not become public before the election. She must be banking on executive session deliberation and findings. Just hope the public can be kept in the dark, Shaylene! That is your only hope.

Anonymous said...

"She hasn't been charged with anything."

That doesn't mean she hasn't done something wrong.

Anonymous said...

"dog sitting in the passenger seat, gazing at him with adoration and steadily licking his face"

Judge Rothschild would convict that dog of harassment.

Anonymous said...

So the County has no ADA coordinator? Sounds like they're setting themselves up for more EEOC trouble.

Anonymous said...

They (the County) are hiring - as long as you don't mind a little sexism, a little racism or a little discrimination - you're in.

Anonymous said...

SHOPO endorsed Bynum.... and Shay .......
HGEA endorsed Kollar, but not Bynum or Shay.
Go figure.....

Anonymous said...

Shopo erred in endorsing Shay. They discovered this a little too late. They can't pull their endorsement now after they went public. Would be so shame!

Anonymous said...

You mean would be so Shayme!

Anonymous said...

"
Guess it's a lot easier to bully smokers than confront the multinational chemical companies that have assumed control of the island's agriculture, with the full support of the county and major landowners like Grove Farm, Gay & Robinson and Kamehameha Schools-Bishop Estate."

Thatʻs exactly right. I mean what else could these synapsis deficient councilmembers pursue? Something very easy.

It also serves a good old diversion.

PMRF needs to GO.

Anonymous said...

I donʻt know about anyone else but I get pretty irritated when a bunch of tax-dollar parasitic drunks call out the troops on smokers that are usually pretty considerate.

Itʻs the tourists that litter the beaches mostly and their rental cars have no ash trays so they toss em out the window.

But the alcoholic councilmembers should shut the hell up before someone gets pissed enough to start evening the playing field.

Come to think of it, tobacco has such high taxes that rise disproportionately compared to alcohol. Thatʻs got me thinking now.

Buy plenty cold packs now, Dicky, before you start getting taxed out of your council salary.

Anonymous said...

Why do they have the right to poison the air that others breath? Exhale when they get home.

Anonymous said...

tax dollar parasitic drunks against smokers that are pretty considerate???
lol
that's funny...actually a considerate smoker is what we would call an OXYMORON..MORON...

Anonymous said...

smokers are not considerate..