Musings: Catch Up

A poinciana tree, so vibrant it appeared ready to burst into flame, rivaled the cloud fire above the horizon as the day dawned this morning. Ultimately, the tree triumphed, its orange-red blossoms still raging even as the color drained from the sky.

Remember that so-called “mob robbery” at Polihale that was splashily reported by The Garden Island last month, based on the second-hand account of a woman whose brother was supposedly there? But it seemed suspicious to the cops because no one filed a complaint, prompting folks to claim the cops were covering for the “bad guys?”

I've been meaning to tell you that I found out what really happened.

Seems a bunch of young adults from North Shore threw a birthday party for a woman out at Polihale and it turned into a real rager. People were drinking and drugging, the music was blasting super loud and guys were racing their trucks up and down the beach. After midnight, one of the westside aunties went over to party central and politely asked them to reduce their noise, as other campers were trying to sleep.

The drunks got smart and said essentially screw you, we wanna party.

The aunty then called some guys in Waimea, and they came out to break up the party. A few fistfights ensued, but no one was seriously hurt, and some of the revelers had their gear confiscated in the process. As they fled in the night, they left behind a lot of trash.

The episode wasn't haole vs local, because there were plenty of locals in the party crowd, nor was it North Shore vs westside. It was a simple matter of respect vs disrespect. The revelers knew they'd behaved disrespectfully to both the place and the aunty, which is why they left with their tails between their legs and never filed a complaint with the cops.

Oh, and since we're playing catch-up, the well-paid private attorneys under contract to the county have filed motions to dismiss Councilman Tim Bynum's civil rights suit against former Prosecutor Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho, planning supervisor Sheilah Miyake and Kauai County. So it's cost the county $461,000 just to get to this very preliminary point — a point that is still far from where Councilman Ross Kagawa wants to go:

“This is a time when we need the truth to come out and we need to go to trial for this case,” he said.

Wasn't he the guy who ran on the platform of fiscal responsibility? Not to mention that legal actions so rarely have anything to do with truth or justice, but who has the most money to burn.

Witness Jimmy Pflueger dragging out his criminal trial for years and then getting a plea deal that allows him to plead no contest to one count of reckless endangering, while his corporation [wtf?] pleads no contest to seven counts of manslaughter and pays the state $50,000 for each person who died when the Kaloko dam failed in 2006.

I can't see anybody represented by a public defender getting a sweetheart deal like that.

Anyway, Jimmy is set to be sentenced in January, where the 87-yer-old could get a year in jail, which is doubtful, and/or community service. Perhaps he'll be allowed to work it off at his car dealerships, much like former state Rep. Roland Sagum was permitted to do his rock theft community service with the Royal Order of Kamehameha. 

Lady Justice may wear a blindfold, but don't go believing she's actually blind.

Getting back to Tim for a moment, I was glad to see his new property tax reform ordinance actually prohibits people who are running a vacation rental from also claiming a homeowner's exemption for the property. That's a no-brainer that's taken the county how many years to correct? 

And finally, I'm hearing Councilman Gary Hooser currently does not have the votes to pass Bill 2491, the ordinance that deals with restricted pesticide use disclosure, buffer zones and an EIS for the GMO crops. Only Councilman Bynum is solidly on board. So no doubt the rhetoric will ramp up as both sides seek to convince the other five.  Given what's been printed and said thus far,  the public hearing on July 31 promises to be pure theater in the best tradition of Kauai public hearings, which makes the KCC Performing Arts Center an apt venue.

Meanwhile, I'm starting to see signs proclaiming “GMO Free Zone” popping up along roadsides. What, really, is the purpose of these signs? What do they mean when they're stuck in someone's yard? That you've agreed to an inspection to ensure that you don't have a GMO ingredient in your pantry?

I've seen just one place where such a sign seemed appropriate or made any sense: near the packing shed on Lee Roversi's farm, where it serves to inform customers of her organic growing practices.

Otherwise — and I'm someone opposed to GMOs — these little proclamations come across as visual pollution akin to campaign signs. Please, resist the urge to contribute to this blight.

Or as a friend noted, in jest, “You can get one, too. But you have to attend an orientation first, like buying a time share.”