Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Musings: CFS Steps Up Attack on Water Board Nominee

The mainland-based Center for Food Safety has intensified its efforts to build opposition to Beth Tokioka's nomination to the Kauai Board of Water Supply.

The anti-GMO advocacy group sent out an email blast to its list yesterday, urging people to submit testimony against Beth's nomination prior to Wednesday's Council vote. CFS is opposing Beth solely because she works for Syngenta.
The blast generated more than 300 emails -- update: it's now over 500 -- against Beth, many of them by people who live on other islands and the mainland.

Each email was identical, though the first batch misspelled Council Chair Mel Rapozo's last name.

Meanwhile, in a spontaneous show of support, Kauai residents were sending in emails endorsing Beth's appointment to the Board, which is charged with drilling wells, running pumps, purifying water and operating a distribution system.

The attack on Beth raises two key questions: Does one lose the right to engage in public service — the position is unpaid — simply because one works for a seed company? And should that overshadow all of the other experience and skills one can bring to service?

The campaign also underscores the cozy relationship between CFS and Civil Beat, which yesterday printed an article highlighting concerns that CFS and Earthjustice had about the appointment. Prior to the article, the Council had received no comments against Beth, and 18 in her favor — more than had been submitted on behalf of any other candidate for a county board or commission.

This is the second time that a Civil Beat article or editorial has appeared just hours before CFS launched a direct action. Previously, CB published an editorial endorsing the recommendations of the Joint Fact Finding Group on pesticides the same day that CFS had scheduled a press conference and meeting with the governor.

The editorial board includes Civil Beat founder and benefactor Pierre Omidyar, who has donated money to CFS.

Meanwhile, CFS is also picking up its advocacy efforts on behalf of a slate of candidates it endorses, including Fern Rosenstiel, a candidate for the state House. CFS has been organizing phone banks to call voters on all islands, though its tactics alienated at least one resident.

A North Shore woman reported receiving a call from an unidentified man who asked if she supported sustainable food supplies. When she said she did, the caller said there was one candidate running for State House in our area who supported sustainable food supplies and that was Fern. The woman replied that what the caller was saying was untrue, as the other candidate, Nadine Nakamura, also supports sustainable food supplies and he shouldn't misrepresent the facts. The caller then laughed and hung up.

It's not surprising that CFS is employing a disinformation strategy, since that's long been the group's stock in trade. It has characterized its entire approach to GMOs, and most especially its efforts to pass anti-GMO legislation in Hawaii.

Still, it is rather ironic that CFS has been pushing anti-GMO legislation in Hawaii under the call for “home rule.” Given its recent actions, it seems CFS defines home rule as meaning a Washington, D.C.-based group should be able to meddle in local politics and dictate who serves on county boards and commissions thousands of miles from its headquarters.

29 comments:

  1. I hope the council resists these outsider pressure tactics.

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  2. I live on Kauai and I got the email and signed it. Beth is another pawn in the chemical companies game. She has been bought and paid for.

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  3. That's such an odd perspective to have, 12:53. So if someone works for a company, any company, then suddenly all their ethics and values go out the window and they become an automation that blindly does their employer's bidding in every aspect of their life? Are you speaking from your own experience? Is that how you behave? Because I've certainly never felt that sort unquestioning loyalty to anyone I've ever worked for.

    And if we follow your logic, does that mean Fern is bought and paid for by Tahiti Nui, and Hooser by real estate interests?

    Or is it all just asinine jingoism you picked up on Facebook and now parrot?

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  4. @12:53 and Joan - Is everything the Water Board does public record? If Beth's appointment goes through, there will be an easy way to look for this 'bought and paid for' aspect of the argument. Beth's public record as a non-Syngenta employee is also available, right? Did anything she did while in the public sector 'scream' of being bought off by anyone?

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  5. Ahh, once again- The Kimbrell Gnomes and their handmaiden Lukens chumming for more cash since their wins have been winnowed of late. Tell President Obama to veto the "Dark Bill" and "tell the Kauai County Council not to approve Beth Tokioka for the Board of Water"? Why don't you CFS cons just stick to fleecing your sheep and leave the rest of us alone? You are tiresome one trick nags and are really testing civility with your constant, arrogant tedious whingeing.

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  6. Definition of idiocy for Students
    1. the condition of being very stupid or foolish
    2. something very stupid or foolish

    Idiocy works well to describe this whole ludicrous uproar around Beth Tokioka being appointed to the water board. Those behind this need to take a lesson from Beth and spend time doing something productive and positive in our community instead of starting up such idiotic, waste of time, do-no-good antics. You folks holding that "shame on you" sign and sending these hundreds of emails really need a reality check on who is shameful.

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  7. Joan, could you post the appropriate email address so I can send my support of Beth's appointment in my own words? When people send copy/paste emails, it shows a lack of thought and commitment on their part and should be heavily discounted.

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  8. Certainly, Tom. it's counciltestimony@kauai.gov

    And I agree with your sentiments.

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  9. My two cents appoint someone who is or was an irrigation specialist for the plantations and who has actually dealt with and been responsible for water. Does it have to be a number crunching white collar paper pusher? (No offense to anyone)!

    PS I adore Beth she is great but to much needing to recuse I think. Her appointment will just give her un needed stress. Love Beth but I think its going to cause problems!

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  10. http://www.civilbeat.org/2016/07/should-a-syngenta-spokeswoman-serve-on-kauais-water-board/ ..... Here is a quote from this article which is worthy of consideration- "Paul Achitoff, an attorney at the nonprofit law firm Earthjustice, said the perception of a conflict is a problem.

    “I think it shows poor judgment to have a representative of any company who has a record of pollution serving on a board that’s supposed to be managing that,” he said. “I don’t see how that serves the public interest or gives the public confidence that they’re going to be properly dealing with situations, most obviously violations.”

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  11. Why not appoint kanaka maoli who understands traditional approach to water and water rights? Or anybody with expertise in environmental, water and water rights issues? What expertise on water issues does Beth have? Is she the best we can find with the most knowledge of these issues?

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  12. Achitoff's remarks (July 19, 2016 at 9:52 PM) are worthy of brief consideration and then can be filed in the folder for useless and baseless pronouncements from Earthjustice, a non-profit firm engaged in unjust enrichment at the expense of the taxpayer.

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  13. Funny, Earthjustice never said anything about Hooser's conflict with HAPA.

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  14. Beth is a fine person. She is smart and knows how things work.
    Everyone on the island is influenced by the big Land Owners, whether they know it or not.
    But we should all be aware ALL FUTURE housing, most of the roads and water is under Big Land control.
    So far Kauai is lucky. Our Big Land owners have kept their lands natural.
    There will be no Lihue Growth as expected by the Council unless GF cooperates.
    Why should they? This very County tried to put their important Ag lessees out of business.
    Love your Big Land Owner, he controls our future. It is only the land that matters.

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  15. I agree with 6:28---if Beth thought of the public and citizens of Kauai and her self interest in terms of stress, health and integrity, she would recuse herself. She is a very nice woman, but who needs all that publicity and scrutiny?!! Hope her ego will not guide her to taking a seat as a board member. Yes, the mayor should get someone who has expertise in the water and water rights issues, there are lots of people who work with the watersheds here on the west side----just my thoughts . . . . . . . . .

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  16. @7:16

    who needs all that publicity and scrutiny?!!

    Indeed. That, coupled with the demands of the unpaid work, and people screaming at you in public meetings, explains why so few residents, qualified or otherwise, are willing to serve on the county's many boards and commissions.

    You and others also seem to labor under the misperception that the mayor has a huge pool of eager applicants to choose from. He doesn't.

    Furthermore, I don't think there's much ego gratification to be found in serving on the BOW. Mostly it's just a lot of paperwork and tedium.

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  17. Surely, this couldn't be Syngenta insertiing one of their good soldiers to stack the deck in their favor.

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  18. Despite the smear campaign, and Hooser's "not personal, but very personal" attacks, and Ross and Mel basically saying to Hooser and Joanne: stfu! Beth's appointment was approved by the councel. FU CFS, and all your cut and paste minions! Congrats to a long time public servant, and screw all of the people who have not spent an hour in their lifetimes as an unpaid Kauai county volunteer! And to Hooser: his spotty behind will not be in that chair for much longer...oh, and take the chair with you, Hooser!

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  19. Center For Food Safety is one of the most disingenuous groups on the planet. Here in Hawaii all they do is go after biotech companies claiming their pest control is illegal. First, this has nothing to do with food safety, since as they also like to point out, most of the biotech crops are not destined for the human food supply chain. Second, no one in the CFS group has any experience, academic or on the ground, in agronomy, pest control, or chemistry. They do not know what they are talking about. Not a single pesticide safety class has ever been graced by their presence. Third, there are real needs facing the majority of farmers in Hawaii who do grow the food we consume here. Many of them are immigrant farmers and need help--when they do not speak English as a second language you can be sure the regulations on a pesticide label, or any other laws, are difficult for them to read, interpret, and follow. Yet instead of addressing this very real issue, which would have an immediate impact on the food we eat, CFS spends a ton of money on trying to shut down biotech farms, putting at risk hundreds of local jobs and jobs in the agriculture support industry that would also be affected. Don't listen to CFS. They have done nothing to help the agriculture industry here and they will leave as soon as they have destroyed as much as possible and left us with nothing but higher unemployment and a bunch of people who have had the wool pulled over their eyes.

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  20. Excellent comments Lisa Z. I think that no one knows this subject more than you do and these small farmers will be the first to go out of business if CFS has their way. The disingenuous position that their proposals will not hurt small farmers is just that. Although it would be a monumental task I just wish there was a way that we could all be talking about this and not be talking at each other but talking with each other. Thanks for bringing your experience to the discussion and having the courage to identify yourself in sharing your thoughts!

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  21. Watched yesterday's council meeting last night. I think Hooser and Joann are suffering from severe mental illness. They were awful to Beth. They are an embarrassment to the Council, and to the people of Kauai. They need to go.

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  22. 8:18 The illness is called "knowing you're going to lose the next election syndrome"

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  23. I thought Hooser was pretty decent actually. While he shredded Syngenta (and rightfully so) he made it clear that he was not questioning Beth' integrity. I complimented her several times and made it clear it was not about her but about the conflicts and perception.

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  24. @8:49 p.m. GREAT WRITING!!!

    SECOND PERSON WRITING ABOUT HIS / HER OBSERVATION: "I thought Hooser was pretty decent actually. While he shredded Syngenta (and rightfully so) he made it clear that he was not questioning Beth' integrity."

    FIRST PERSON WRITING ABOUT WHAT HE / SHE SAID: "I complimented her several times and made it clear it was not about her but about the conflicts and perception."

    I hope someone else wrote this comment trying to make fun of a dumb ass county topic.
    If it's not. then the snake is speaking from both sides of his tongue (as usual).
    Our elders always say, keep on lying, pretty soon, you won't know the difference between lies and the truth.

    8:49 a.m. Good post!

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  25. Where does a "world view" litmus test for seating someone on a board come from and how is it defined? Gary Hooser's "world view" begins and ends with his careerism. "Perception" of conflicts? That could be applied by any number of interest groups to disqualify otherwise desirable candidates for a board. Hooser's performance was a shabby dissembling farce catering to his ringmasters at CFS and the anti-GMO bloc vote. Um,so was Joann's. And I think they deliberately attributed kuleana of the State Commission On Water Resource Management to the Kauai Board of Water to promote their feeble arguments against Beth. There is a huge difference in responsibilities, and it was a great disservice to the public to create this confusion. The former has broad regulatory powers over water in Hawaii and the latter pumps, stores, transmits, tests and provides water to its customers on Kauai.

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    Replies
    1. Keyword is TESTS. When you have someone who works for a company that could be contaminating soil and water and you serve on a board that is in charge of performing duties that could impact your judgement as well as carrying your duties, is a GREAT concern for the people of Kauai.

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  26. Th water board doesn't determine what tests are done That's decided by staff.

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