Monday, November 3, 2014

Musings: Lingering Drama

It looks like some political drama will persist past tomorrow's election.

The “red shirts” who endorsed the GMO/pesticide regulatory Bill 2491/Ordinance 960, which was killed by a federal judge before it took effect, are making a last gasp effort to salvage that piece of crap. They'll be rallying at Wednesday's Council meeting to protest proposed Bill 2562, which would repeal the invalidated law from the books.

This time, though, they'll be wearing black arm bands to mourn their defeated champions — informal polls show Councilmen Mason Chock and Tim Bynum are out, and Gary Hooser is barely hanging on by his fingernails — and chanting DON'T PASS THE BILL.

What's that old saying? Oh, yeah: “Karma's a bitch.”

Kauai Ohana member Fern Rosenstiel issued the tepid rallying cry on Facebook:

Its last minute and its late notice, but lets get together our ohana's and huis and be there to insist on supporting 2491 and provide testimony for NO REPEAL of 2491!!!!

Insist on supporting 2491? It's a little late for that. Haven't you heard it's dead, girl? As in the county is barred from implementing it on the grounds that only the state, and not any of the counties, is empowered to regulate GMOs and pesticides.

Which is why I shake my head when Kilauea resident Elif Beall says silly stuff like, “To abandon protections at the County level is to abandon looking out for our local residents' health and safety.”

Don't you guys get it? There are no protections at the county level. Ordinance 960, which didn't actually protect anyone's health, is DEAD. Even if it's not repealed, the county still has no power to regulate the chem/seed companies.

Gary showed he doesn't get it, and never will, when he labeled proposed Bill 2562 “an unfortunate example of political opportunism at the expense of our community.” Mmmm, you mean, like your entire last term on the Council, Gary?

Gary went on to say that “the Council may and should pursue other regulatory initiatives.”

Give it up, Gary. There ain't gonna be no more regulatory initiatives on GMOs and pesticides.  You shot your wad, buddy, and you got nothing to show for it, save for legal bills, bad vibes, a big win for the seed/chem companies and sweat-stained red tee-shirts.

Councilmen Mel Rapozo and Ross Kagawa, who introduced proposed Bill 2562, say they want to repeal the dead law to stop the county from spending any more money on an appeal. 

It's unclear whether a repeal would totally halt the appeal process, since Earthjustice, Center for Food Safety and other mainland groups have joined in. But if Ordinance 960 is repealed, winning on appeal would mean nothing, since the law would be off the books.

Meanwhile, Kilauea goat farmer and “red shirt” Louisa Wooten was absolutely right when she wrote, in a recent letter to the editor:

The voters in Kauai County and throughout the state need to pay attention and wake up to who is trying to control the power, land and economy of our home.

They sure as heck do. Make no mistake, folks, this is indeed the latest battle for land and power playing out in Hawaii. And it's mainland groups like Center for Food Safety, Pesticide Action Network and Surfrider that are jockeying for control of land and water in the Islands.

These groups have turned Hawaii into a “ground zero” poster child for their fundraising efforts. They're also using the Islands as a “test site” for experimental legislation and an anti-ag political agenda that they want to impose elsewhere. They're starting here because it's small, insular and easy to con the gullible into believing they're “malaming the aina,” even as they actually do nothing to reduce pesticide use or improve human or environmental health.

Every action these groups are taking is geared toward destroying big ag, which is essentially the only profitable ag in the Islands. When ag succeeds in Hawaii, land values level off. When it fails, land values are driven up. Hence the reward for the upscale Realtors who are also backing this movement.

A press release issued by Andrea Brower for the Coalition for 960 includes a comment from Aria Castillo, leader of the Kauai Young Democrats, saying she “hopes voters turn out in large numbers on November 4 to show their support for a council that is more willing to work together in the best interests of all of Kauai’s people.”

That's exactly what the voters will be doing. Which is why we're going to see a slap-down of certain candidates, a new power bloc on the Council, and a renewed focus on important county issues like roads, landfills, sewage, drug treatment centers, affordable housing and property tax reforms, rather than the single-issue politics of mainland advocacy groups that dominated this past term.

49 comments:

Anonymous said...

The mainland advocacy groups are seeking the ultimate in gated communities. Gated white retirement communities with a sprinkling of Hollywood and CA artists posing as local color.

While the real local color is reduced to ghetto like existence in old plantation camps.

Anonymous said...

"a new power bloc on Council, and a renewed focus on important county issues like roads, landfills, sewage, drug treatment centers, affordable housing and property tax reforms, rather than the single-issue politics of mainland advocacy groups that dominated this past term."

Keep on dreaming the county of Kauai spent all of the 50 million in surplus on consultant fees.

Yeah it's gonna cost the county 2 million to build a new roof on the Kilauea gym- now pay me my 110 k consultant fee. Hahaha cha ching.

Yeah its gonna cost about 350-450k for affordable housing- now pay me my 250k consultant fees. Hahaha cha-ching

Yeah we can have a landfill ova hea (cha-ching) no ova dea (cha-ching) nah jus keep em at the same place (cha-ching) millions in consultant fees.

Yeah we can have a drug facility in a neighborhood that doesn't want a facility because there's already many half-way houses that would lose federal funding (cha-ching).

Hey for solid waste lets double-triple tax the citizens. They won't know- they're too stupid and work too many jobs to notice this tax scheme. (cha-ching) tax schemers salary, consultant fees, and 3-6 million a yr from the stupid tax payers.

Property tax reform- do the county really want to SUE itself again to over turn the voters consensus of the 2% annual cap? Let's just raise the tax then lower so we can look like heroes (cha-ching) elected official seat for 55k to 115k yearly salaries

Now who's fooling who round hea? Guess its true the animals run this Kauai Dirty Pig Farm!


Tourist Y'all come back now u hea! But go back home! Mahalo very much fo yo money. Now I gotta pay these frickin county idiots. We all pay for these Frickin Idiots.

Anonymous said...

Thank you, Joan.
Whatever the results of the election.
The island is tired. Too much BS passion. Too much "I'm smarter than you". Too many Council members taking pot shots from the Council floor.
Whatever the results, if Jay is re-elected, whether he stays on as Chair or not, hopefully he will find some balance. He has really put his hat in with the newcomers and the Anti-Ag profiteers.
The new Chairman MUST keep ALL Council members and testifiers ON POINT. Hit the gavel, point of order, move the meetings along.
The budget looms like a big angry hornet's nest over the entire County.
This Council's legacy is -an angry citizenry, a divided citizenry, a broke County and finally NOT ONE thing was done by LAW to modify Ag's perceived bad actions.
Guaranteed, a NEW council with level heads WILL be able to work with Big Ag and, together they will work out plans for dust mitigation (the real big problem), testing etc......the Council has treated Big Land like they are law breakers and criminals....they are not.

Anonymous said...

8:03 Except JoAnn want Apartments...the old camps are not ghettos, they are nice neighborhoods with too many people living in the houses....we need local housing, get JoAnn out and maybe we can get some.

Anonymous said...

If we can have "protections" on a county level then I want our police armed under the 1033 program with M16 semi-automatic rifles, camouflage, masks and full body armor, heavily armored trucks, night-vision goggles, and aircraft so that they can protect us against the criminals destroying people's campaign signs, cutting down GMO crops, writing graffiti all over public property, etc. Or maybe that's not what they wanted for "County protections". But if they can have their protections, I want mine against them!

Anonymous said...

Hey Joan! Hope you can clear this up D. Kawakami is running to represent kapaa- north shore but for the past 3months he has been residing at his home in Pikaki. How does that all work out? Don't you have to reside in the area you represent???

Anonymous said...

Joan, what poll are you referring to? What's it looking like?

Joan Conrow said...

It's an informal early election and telephone poll that has Tim out, and KipuKai Kualii, Darryl Perry and Gary in a close race for sixth and seventh.

Anonymous said...

Way to go. Run the term "red shirts" into the ground. Use it for people who don't even own a red shirt. Polarize, polarize, polarize. Way to go. Stereotype, stereotype, stereotype. Let's teach our kids to use stereotypes, too. Mom, "What's a red shirt?" "Son, a red shirt is one of those awful people who are working for a world where chemical pollution of our air, water and soil becomes a thing of the past." "But Mom, you never wear red. You teach me the importance of a healthy aina and a healthy people. I don"t think you should be called a "red shirt". "I know, son, but some people just have a need to put people into categories and then blame them for the problems of the world. Beware of the labels people use in ways that polarize and separate. Use your words carefully in ways that help bring people together in harmony." "It's hard, Mom, but I have you for a teacher. I love you and mahalo for always keeping me on the path of aloha!"

Anonymous said...

The "red shirts" made their own label and stereotype when THEY decided to wear red shirts to the marches and council hearings.

Anonymous said...

I'm glad Mel and Ross laid it out there. They're telling everyone its going to be different from now on.

Anonymous said...

Oh 11:51. Spare us the crocodile tears, self righteous lament and heaping serving of bullshit. You folks wore red shirts and marched in them on Rice Street for the parade nobody witnessed, your mainland friends viewing on YouTube excepted. You compounded it by wearing them in the infamous “Pass the Bill” Council meeting that plainly demonstrated to a lot of us up to your misplaced fanaticism. And who subjected us to a stream of fakers like Vandana Shiva, Jeffrey Smith, Don Huber, Andrew Kimbrell, little Jennie Ruggles with her Puna buds and ambulance chasers like Achitoff and poaching district health officers like Lorrin (“let’s not call it a ban; let’s call it a moratorium”) Pang who make take the hoodwinking prize in this little freak show? Wrap yourself in a mantle of malama ‘aina and the “preemptive principle” and all the propositions that you can barely wrap your mind around if it stokes your delusions of grandeur. Red Shirt behavior renders your comment here as meaningful as a fart in a whirlwind. Tell me that you have not tried mightily to stigmatize the seed companies. Do not for a minute consider that many of us who disagree with you, have not done far more work informing ourselves on the issues of GE technology and pesticide use and the legal regimes governing them in addition to research and reading on available presentations of various diseases presenting in Hawaii- without resorting to Facebook and YouTube. You are trying to stake out a high ground you have abysmally failed to demonstrate you are entitled to. By the way, I hope your kid isn't home schooled and has some of the science and logic courses you seemed to have missed in your education.

Chuck Lasker said...

All we've heard from the red shirts has been, "The people have spoken! Majority Rules! The people want 2491!"

They forget that only five people on Kauai voted for the 2491 veto override. Five.

So when the results come in and the winners are anti-2491 folks, the people WILL have spoken. Will the red shirts follow "majority rules," like they have been preaching, or will they hypocritically try to force their minority will on the majority?

I predict they will simply declare the election results corrupt, because faith-based beliefs are not altered by facts.

Anonymous said...

News Flash- from undocumented sources
The new County Council of Hooser, Chock, Bynum, Felicia, JoAnn, Jay and Arryl just got elected.
They had a meeting at MIDNIGHT with all but Arryl Kaneshiro in attendance.
After congratulatory snickers and and sneers the new rules were in place-
The new Council will hold all meaningful meetings at Midnight.
Tim- the new Chairman announced the new laws.
The Police Department budget will be cut by 75 percent. The new department now called, Harmonious Living Services and will NOT be allowed to carry guns and must count to ten three times backwards before asking permission to see someone's ID. Theft and Vandalism from Big Land is OK. Tourist Theft is still a no-no and will have a 25 dollar fine per incident. All Drug Offenders will be let out of jail immediately.
All Auto registrations will be $2000 per year per car.

The Planning Dept is abolished. The newly named, Department of Social Engineering will be headed by Gary Hooser. He immediately announced that all plans and permits are stopped. He will determine which will be a go or no go, on an individual basis. All of his friend's permits will go ahead and all Ag TVRs will be expedited.
The Parks Department is abolished. The New, Department of Social Rejuvenation is headed by DYLAN HOOSER. All non-residents will be required to pay $20 entry to parks per hour of use. Residents will pay a 2 dollar entry. No cooking of meats and a $1,000 per Hot Dog will be enforced. Smoking is banned, except marrywanna.
The Water Department is now part of the County and not a separate entity. it is headed by Gary Hooser, who will collect $200,000 per year as Water head. The Water Department, now called Resource Replenishment agency will NOT be allowed to use Restricted Chemicals and so Chlorine is abolished. The residents will have to boil the water for drinking. Ag use for Goats is OK.
The Finance Department, now called Subsidize and Spend will be headed by Tim Bynum, who will receive $200,000 for this work. All Ag lands will be taxed at $1,000 per acre. GF, AandB and GandR will now be taxed at about $50,000,000 each. Tim will personally determine how excess funds will be spent. First on the list will be Anger Management Courses for anyone that throws pencils during Council meetings.
The KIUC will IMMEDIATELY stop all Smart Meters.
All Hospitals can only use County approved medicines. No GMO medicine permitted.
Mason will be in charge of carrying Hooser's lunchbox and papers. He can be on "loan" to Tim Bynum as time permits.
JoAnn will supervise all Study Groups. She will be required to ride the bus to Mt Yukimura daily, to monitor growth and development.
Jay will bloviate about nothing.
All Council testimony will be limited to people who agree with Tim and Gary.
The Mayor will only be allowed to sing at public events, he will not have a "say" on anything.
All illegal rentals will be required to have a COUNTY approved Rice Cooker.
All meetings are started with a namaste prayer. All references to the Constitution, Bill of Rights, Bible or Christianity are BANNED. All Newspaper and Blog reports must be approved by Hooser or Bynum.
God Bless America.

Anonymous said...

1:43; i am 69 years old, never wore a red shirt, marched from the stadium up Rice Street and am glad i did! You may be correct on some of the things you stated, but don't think all the people who marched are not local and have other intentions then to malama the aina. We look to people like Vandana Shiva, Jeffery Smith, D. Huber, Andrew Kimbrell and Lorin Pang
because they have given us the other side of your story. They have also educated me and made me realize that pesticides and the foods produced by gmo crops have caused some people to suffer, they have animal studies to share that explain the dangers. I realize you will not agree with me, and that's fine----but, your retort to 11:51 is so mean spirited that i had to reply. Maybe if your response was kinder with a lot of facts, you wouldn't enrage people to have to respond with the same. I agree with 11:51, and she wasn't ugly or mean with her words! Be kind and reasonable---like Joan said, karma is a bitch---what goes around, comes around!

Anonymous said...

Amen Joan. I hope this election sends a clear message to the Council. Hoosier, if he gets back in, will not have his pit-bull and side kick. He will finally feel all the frustration he has caused us. Right back at ya...baby.

Anonymous said...

If you want to find out who is playing politics, find out when the bill to repeal was written. Supposedly, Mel and ross wrote it in July, but the chair decided to post it on the agenda now.

Anonymous said...

8:15. Please check the record. JoAnn has done more to develop both single family and multi-family affordable housing on Kauai than any other politician. Housing along with Public Transportation and Parks have been her focus for decades. In the past she's gotten very little support for her efforts because she was so far ahead of her time. Now almost everyone in the community can see how essential these services are for all of us. Because, whether we as individual citizens use them or not, affordable housing, public transportation and recreation build a stronger, healthier, more diverse and affordable community.

Anonymous said...

Joan, My immediate concern is how quickly your fans forget: Remember Shaylene Iseri Carvalho and her office full of lying criminals? Shay guys are Mel guys. Kipu Kai came running at Shay's and Mel's bidding. Their corrupt and conflicted gang is backed by Chief Perry against the Mayor and his nepotistic administration of friends and relatives. Kipu Kai promised that he would override the Mayor's veto if he were chosen to replace Nadine. Connect the dots and it's not a pretty picture.

How to get rid of Gary and Tim without giving Mel control of the Council and making it ugly[ier]?

Dawson said...

Way to go. Run the term "red shirts" into the ground. Use it for people who don't even own a red shirt. Polarize, polarize, polarize. Way to go. Stereotype, stereotype, stereotype. Let's teach our kids to use stereotypes, too. Mom, "What's a red shirt?" "Son, a red shirt is one of those awful people who are working for a world where chemical pollution of our air, water and soil becomes a thing of the past." "But Mom, you never wear red. You teach me the importance of a healthy aina and a healthy people. I don"t think you should be called a "red shirt". "I know, son, but some people just have a need to put people into categories and then blame them for the problems of the world. Beware of the labels people use in ways that polarize and separate. Use your words carefully in ways that help bring people together in harmony." "It's hard, Mom, but I have you for a teacher. I love you and mahalo for always keeping me on the path of aloha!"

Yikes! Good luck to your kids if that's the kind of dysfunctional reasoning and non-critical thinking you're modeling for them.

Anonymous said...

GMO bill was suppose to be about Restricted Use Pesticides then came the circus.

I guess the show was better than the program.

The Chem/Bio companies are Lovin it! Basically the zoo keepers let the animals loose and are laughing at the big show. You clowns are just an after thought.

Anonymous said...

Dawson, In what way is teaching our children to walk the path of aloha 'aina, the importance of a clean and healthy environment, and how to use language in ways that unite people instead of dividing and polarizing them- in what ways are such teachings dysfunctional and require non-critical thinking?

Anonymous said...

"and a renewed focus on important county issues like roads, landfills, sewage, drug treatment centers, affordable housing and property tax reforms"

Or rezoning Grove Farm and A&B land.

Dawson said...

Dawson, In what way is teaching our children to walk the path of aloha 'aina, the importance of a clean and healthy environment, and how to use language in ways that unite people instead of dividing and polarizing them- in what ways are such teachings dysfunctional and require non-critical thinking?

Oh, please. If you think the sanctimonious bullshit of your previous post isn't obvious, you're in terminal denial.

Anonymous said...

I'm glad that I'm not the only one that sees this.

We have talented and educated people on island that would better serve this county than these good ol boys and gals.

Now we have to suffer another 2 years for council and 4 years for the Mayor's seat.





Anonymous said...

Dawson, some people truly believe what 5:51 conveyed to you----come to our world and find out---we teach our children just what she/he voiced. We hope for a better world for our children----peace, kindness, respect, empathy, aloha/malama the aina---has to start with someone and we hope that our children will be able to walk that path.

Anonymous said...

It's not the belief systems themselves but the sanctmony that's offputting. Look at all the hate, stigmigtising and labeling done by the red shirts! Doesn't matter if they never wore a red shirt. The denial about the tactics of their own movement is shocking and hypocriticalm

Joan Conrow said...

I just keep wondering why 11:51, 2:23, 8:19 etc. never said a peep about the death threats, hate speech, bullying and mob mentality perpetrated by the 2491 supporters. Why weren't they out there leading by example, acting as a moral compass? Instead they're anonymously chiding us for using the term "red shirt." You can't be anonymously claiming the high road here when it wasn't taken by the movement in real time!

Anonymous said...

Aloha all of Joan’s bloggers! Vote of 8 and 9, Kipukai and Perry in order to gain ground, you will have to vote for them to remove 6 & 7. So far we’ve been gaining ground, finish off what we’ve all started to do. Vote for candidates who will represent ALL OF KAUAI, who are respectful, responsible, honorable and FAIR for ALL OF US. To the silent majority, please continue to remove the lair, public divider and the hypocrites at its worst.

Remember, this blog has been bashing these people because, of the lies and hypocrisy. Let’s finish our responsibility on November 4th.

Good luck to you all!

Remember, it is what it is. What happens will happen. At the end, let the Kauai County Council continue conducting Kauai’s responsible business for ALL OF KAUAI.

Anonymous said...

Joan, Maybe because 99% of the people do not condone such behavior and would rather talk about issues than personalities. The behavior you speak of happens with people on both sides of the issue. By far, most"red shirts", "blue shirts", "green shirts", "yellow shirts", "t-shirts" and "sport shirts" agree that such behavior is deplorable. Time to drop that focus and move on to the real issues. Ask kupuna if the chemical companies practice aloha 'aina. Speak of the difficulty of testing long-term the effects of chemical poisons and GMO's. Speak of the wisdom of claiming safety based upon 90 day studies. Speak of the wisdom of releasing GMO's into the wild without understanding the long-term effects on the environment. Speak of the history of the chemical companies and ask if such companies with such histories have our well-being at heart. There are so many topics to research and explore. Go to schools, talk to young people, go into depth about issues. And to vilify everyone who has worn a red shirt in support of aloha 'aina? Maybe you could balance all this one-sidedness by speaking of those "red shirts" who do not support death threats, hate speech, bullying and mob mentality. What are their good points? What is their vision for the future? A red shirt is just a shirt. It does not convey the personality of the person wearing it. All "red shirts" are different and I feel it is demeaning to lump them all into a single category which only emphasizes the negative.

Anonymous said...

Of all the candidates, it would be unfortunate if Mason, on his first trip to the table, was sent home because of the Hooser curse. Mason is probably the most level headed person up there. We should be lucky guys like that are puting their name in the hat. Clearly he has a lot to learn about being a solid policy maker, but lets start with solid humans and work from there. Remember when Kipukai got put up? He was Mel and Shays Bi&$%...
Anyway, at least Mel isn't a fan of overloading the vacation rentals.

Joan Conrow said...

10:33. So why are you lumping all GMOs and pesticides together if that approach is so abhorrent? And if 99% don't condone such behavior, why didn't even one person speak publicly against it, especially your elected leaders? Couldn't you see it was turning people off and turning them against your cause? It's not a question of discussing issues vs personalities. It's about the moral fiber of a movement that repeatedly tries to claim the higher ground. But instead of accepting responsibility you make excuses (the other side does it too) and want us all to gloss over it. That isn't going to happen. It has affected the credibility and general acceptance of your movement regardless of what color shirt you wore in the march. I recognize the movement comprises individuals with different views but surely you have heard the old sayings, ""you are judged by the company you keep" and "lie down with dogs get up with fleas?" You wanted everyone to think of the movement as a solid majority when you were saying "pass the bill." You cannot now so easily distance yourself from the negativity that was not an isolated event, but remains characteristic of the movement.

Anonymous said...

Vote Mason, despite being put in at a bad time in a bad way, he is a good champion for the people.

Anonymous said...

10:54 Mason had a chance. He was appointed in one of the slipperiest side-deals in Kauai political history. However, even AFTER his vote (which was mandated, in order for him to be on the Council), he continued to follow in Hooser/Bynum footsteps.
We all have understanding that a new Council person needs a little time to learn the ropes, but Mason did nothing.
Ross, on the other hand, who has been ridiculed relentlessly by many Antis, showed quickly that he got to the point, faced issues head on and was a man, not a limpy little wimpy. Mason did nothing and acted like a limpy little wimpy.
He is a nice guy, but he was used by da Hoos and Bynum. They did NOT allow him to be the leader he may have been.
Now, maybe he can go work with his Sister and Gary at HAPA...they are getting major dollars

Anonymous said...

Joan's 11:52 PM posting-The excuses and lack of accepting responsibility for yes, the abhorrent behavior of the GMO mob mentality is so reflective of my 3 year old mo'opuna. She deflects responsibility to her 2 year old sister, hides the evidence of culpability and cries when confronted with the truth. Wah, wah, wah! But at 3 she is still learning about impulsivity and consequences....what's the anti's excuse besides hiding behind mistruths and a whole lot of conjecture. That we want to protect the aina....Oh puhleese. in my household, that's called a tantrum and stretching the truth! Any lie, no matter how "justified" my mo'opuna thinks it is, is a lie. Vote people, and vote wisely.

Anonymous said...


Extremism in defense of d'Aina is no vice

Anonymous said...

Feeling sorry for the children in in the family above where aloha'aina means having tantrums and stretching the truth. So sad.

Anonymous said...

11:52. I do not lump all pesticides and GMO's together. I never said that all GMO's contain pesticides. GMO salmon and mosquitoes do not contain or require pesticides or herbicides. And I have no idea what you mean by "your" movement. I belong to no movement, neither do my children. We strive to learn and practice aloha 'aina but I would not call that a movement. It is a way of living and relating to the world. You say I make excuses. Let me be clear, I do not excuse the negative behavior you write about in relation to the "red shirts". And now that you have shown us the negativity that you claim is characteristic of a movement, when are you going to spend equal time showing us the negativity of the other side? Extend the same moral scrutiny to the chemical companies? I teach my children to seek information from both sides of an issue. And they are old enough to understand what you write. And we are not asking you to examine the "blue shirt" workers because we support them. We are asking you to give equal time to examining the companies that employ them. I have done my own research and do not need to belong to a "movement" to make my own decisions. Please, Joan, investigate the companies and share with us their history, approach, their morals, and what aloha 'aina means to them. Perhaps you could even write about the history of the so-called "movement" on Kaua'i leading up to the passage of the bill. What happened to get so many people upset at these companies. Kaua'i is a microcosm of the world. What has upset people here is the same thing that upsets people all over the world. Go for it Joan. Balance is the key to a blog that can help enlighten our community. Mahalo!

Joan Conrow said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Joan Conrow said...

I have written about all the things you mention, as well as about the history of the so-called movement on Kauai leading up to the passage of the bill. Did you just start reading yesterday?

As for what happened to get so many people upset at the companies on Kauai, I've also written about that: It was an intentional fear-mongering campaign launched by GMO Free Kauai/Hawaii Seed after it failed to find any evidence of pesticide drift. Before that, it was just a small group of people bitching, quite rightly, about dust.

I'm happy to reiterate some of this going forward, but in these weeks leading up to the election, I thought it most important to enlighten voters about the sleazy politicians who have manipulated the public and a movement that used fear, lies and mob rule to polarize the community, push a flawed bill and attempt to impose a mainland-based political/social agenda.

Anonymous said...

How about interviewing residents on the west side whose lives have been adversely affected by the neighboring chemical/seed companies? Would love to hear their stories. Real life stories from real life neighbors. Now that I would love to read.

Joan Conrow said...

What about interviewing westside residents whose lives have been positively affected by the chemical/seed companies? People who had been unemployed for a long time after the sugar plantations closed, and were glad to get good-paying jobs so they could save their homes from foreclosure, send their kids to college. Would you love to read those, too? Or do you just want tales of woe because that's what fits your belief system?

BorninHawaii said...

Why is that the red shirt supporters are now playing the "polarization" theme now that they are losing. This reminds me of the big bully getting beat down by the average Joe who had enough and gave the Bully back his own medicine. Listen Red Shirts, if you pick a fight don't try and back out after its not going your way, take your licks, then go home. Simple as that.

Anonymous said...

Joan, My belief system says to look at both sides. Not just tales of woe. Tales from both sides. It's all about balance. Every one knows about the benefits of having a job and income, but many have no idea about the other side. The stress caused by the companies actions in the community. The best companies do not have this kind of problem in their communities. Please give us positive stories of jobs and incomes if you wish, but do not forget the people who have suffered and are suffering in our community because of the actions of certain companies. By the way, this suffering is not found only on our island, but in communities all over the world. That is why the history of these companies is so important for the public to know. The Gulf of Mexico, Bhopal, West Virginia, Alabama. Companies earn or lose respect because of their histories. For me, the main issue is not jobs, but relationship with the environment. The main issue is aloha 'aina. The best jobs are with companies that value the health of the environment over profit and this is a major shift that is happening worldwide. Topics for future blog posts?





Dawson said...

Please give us positive stories of jobs and incomes if you wish, but do not forget the people who have suffered and are suffering in our community because of the actions of certain companies.

Please give us factual evidence documenting "the people who have suffered and are suffering in our community because of the actions of certain companies."

Oh, wait -- there isn't any. Just lies, innuendo and fear mongering.

Anonymous said...

Dawson, How about you go door to door in the Waimea neighborhood next to the Waimea River. Talk to the people who live there and get back to us? Let us know what you find.

Dawson said...

Dawson, How about you go door to door in the Waimea neighborhood next to the Waimea River. Talk to the people who live there and get back to us? Let us know what you find.

It's already been reported, from numerous credible sources cited by this blog for months, what there is to find.

If you have credible sources that say otherwise, please, do cite them.

Joan Conrow said...

10:26 am, I checked with Rep. Derek Kawakami and yes, he is still residing on Kawaihau Road, in his district. He and his wife did just complete construction of a house in Lihue on a lot they bought before he was appointed to the state House. HIs son might move in, but Derek has no plans to use it as his own permanent residence.

Anonymous said...

Hunky Derek gotta go next election cycle with I love myself Jimmy. Dee can stay. She is the betst of the two.