Musings: Common Narcissism

Proving once again that he's oblivious to irony, and knows nothing about agriculture, Kauai Councilman Gary Hooser — cheerleader of the anti-GMO/anti-ag movement in Hawaii — is whining about the speaker line-up at the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) annual gathering, now under way at Kailua-Kona.

Gary writes:

Where is the balance? Where is the respect for views and opinions and science that support a more sustainable approach to agriculture? Where is the perspective that says local governance at the County level is a valuable participant in the decision making process? Where is the common sense business approach that says Hawaii should go after niche organic markets?

Gee, Gary. Where was the respect for views and opinions and science that support biotechnology while you've been waging your ongoing witch hunt against the seed industry? Where was the perspective that says local government has one role, and state and federal another? Who, pray tell, is stopping any farmer in Hawaii from going after niche organic markets?

And why in the world have you bought into the trope that biotechnology is at odds with a sustainable approach to agriculture, when in fact it's part and parcel, as in reducing pesticide use, and the tilling that results in top soil loss and runoff?

Gary, meanwhile, is trying to organize an international gathering of anti-GMO folks in Hawaii. Do you suppose he'll broaden the speaker line up to include seed company and industry reps, to ensure balance and a wide range of perspectives? 

Uh, don't count on it. He's king of the “do as I say, not as I do” mindset.

Gary is especially irked by one speaker in particular — former state Attorney General Margery Bronster. Her law firm has represented farmers and seed companies who succeeded in striking down two flawed county bills — including one written by Gary (well, actually written by his handlers at Earthjustice and Center for Food Safety, but introduced by Gary) — that tried to subvert state and federal regulatory authority over pesticides and GMOs. He writes:

I thought this invitation faux pas was bad enough but it gets worse.

To have Ms Bronster speak without inviting a contrary opinion is offensive both to the elected County officials who worked and voted on these issues, but more importantly to the citizens who supported those votes.  On Maui over 50% of the voters supported County regulation and their voices and perspective deserves also to be represented.

Yet Gary thought nothing of crashing a Syngenta shareholders' meeting in Switzerland, where he made like he was speaking for the entire Kauai County, and much of the state, in criticizing that company's policies, while ignoring the citizens who clearly oppose his stance, given his poor showing in the past election.

As I've noted repeatedly, the guy is totally devoid of any introspection.

In a previous post bashing Margery, Gary repeats again one of his most bold-faced lies:

[T]he largest chemical companies in the world are suing Kauai County for the right to spray poisonous chemicals next to schools, hospitals and homes.  The court action also prevents Kauai residents from knowing exactly what chemicals are being used in their neighborhoods (disclosure).

Now Gary knows darn well that none of the companies are spraying poisons next to schools, hospitals and homes. He also knows they're disclosing their restricted pesticide use to the general public and to nearby residents. What's more, the companies have voluntarily imposed the buffer zones his bill sought. 

So why does Gary Hooser keep lying? Is he afraid the money will stop flowing to his causes if he tells people the truth?

What really bugs Gary is that agriculture in Hawaii, and elsewhere, is chugging along without him or the equally misinformed and irrelevant Babes Against Biotech, which is planning a protest — yawn — at the meeting today.

The message is clear: They aren't players in this arena, nor should they be. The folks attending this conference want to hear from people who know WTF they're talking about, not people parroting Natural News, the Food Babe and Mercola.

Oh, and btw, Gary, if you're going to keep raising a fit about pesticides, you might want to drop the Frontline flea and tick control ad on your blog. It simply serves to underscore your hypocrisy as you grovel for a few cents from an ad click.

Speaking of the misinformed stirring up ill will and trouble, North Shore Kauai marine life know-it-all Terry Lilley is again making outrageous claims about military microwaves, which the gullible lap up as kittens do cream. Terry is now claiming:

The Kokee Air Force and Navy microwave towers beam out over 30 million watts of pulsed microwaves at night. We have this info from a NASA data bank.

Once again, I checked in with Capt. Bruce Hay, commander of Pacific Missile Range Facility, who replied:

As I have previously mentioned, I only turn on radars when absolutely necessary due to the high cost of electricity.  The last night missions that would have required the radars at Kokee were in late July.  Those four radars located at Kokee are rated for 2.665 megawatts total at maximum power.  A good analogy is your car.  The manufacturer lists the maximum horsepower at maximum load when in reality your engine rarely if ever achieves that load.  The radars are rated and operated similarly.  I am at a loss to understand where 30MW nightly comes from as Mr. Lilley suggests.  

NASA does operate equipment at Kokee.  In conjunction with the Naval Observatory, measurements of the earth's rotation are taken and then transmitted for use in the global positioning satellite system.  We are aware of the frequency and power because of possible electromagnetic interference during tests.  The signal is extremely low power.

On a brighter note, 468 green sea turtles hatched along the PMRF shoreline this year — a success story that only makes the Air Force's impact on endangered birds at Kokee — 126 rare Newell's and Bonins have gone down, killing 10 — look all the worse. 

Come on, guys. This lighting fiasco, and your inability to correct the problem quickly, is inexcusable. The adults that went down were all tending nests, imperiling the fledglings and making the problem all the more serious.

But kudos to the U.S. Pacific Fleet for agreeing, albeit under legal pressure, to curb its use of radar and explosives during training exercises around Hawaii and Southern California.

Of course, Terry Lilley was right there to grab credit, claiming he's been providing Earthjustice with "information supporting the damaging effects of sonar use on Kauai’s North Shore." Mmm, like the bogus 30 million watts of microwaves? I'm sure Earthjustice attorney David Henkin is much smarter than that.

Still, the repeated cries for attentionfrom certain members of the community, such as Hooser, Terry Lilley and KKCR talk show hostess Felicia Cowden, prompted one reader to write:

Do we have this among us? Lilley and Felicia Cowden strike the match, fan the flames of fear and then shout, "I have a hose!"
Is this common narcissism or something more sinister or possibly Maunchausens?

I don't know, but something's not right.