Thursday, January 28, 2016

Musings: Compromised

Upon news that HC&S would be ending sugar cane on 36,000 acres this year, I was heartened to see farming experts express reserved optimism about the future of ag on Maui, while cautioning the need for reasonable expectations and compromise.

I love the concept of compromise, the idea of thoughtful, intelligent, engaged persons working out a mutually acceptable plan of action.

Unfortunately, the reality of seeking compromise is quite a bit different, especially when some players have neither the inclination, nor the education/experience, to seek middle ground. Shoots, they don't even know WTF that is.

Consider this Facebook post by Kalassu Swami, aka Geoff Morris, aka the masked Grim Reaper at statewide anti-GMO protests:

Aloha

Just a thought or an idea...

Everyone here on Maui is fully aware of what's going on with the sugar industry, that thousands of acres might become vacant and turn into a dust bowl or worse, we are all praying the land will not become accessible to mega-corporations like the evils of Monsanto spreading more of their poisons around our beautiful Island. So a silly idea flowed, What if every Maui resident who wished to become part of keeping our island safe and beautiful, donated, contributed or invested $100 or even $300.00 for all of that property.

Then contract it out to the people, Organic farmers, section it off and give it to whoever wished to cultivate it Organically, and the produce cultivated from these crops can be sold around the world, or we can utilize all of the land and factory, and instead of making toxic cancerous white processed sugar we can make organic naturally dehydrated healthy sugar. Or we can legalize marijuana on the island and plant it, we are all aware of the substantial health benefits this herb has to offer and how it can benefit all of mankind and the planet.

All those (us, the Maui residents) who participated and contributed in the ownership of this property would be issued slip vouchers weekly monthly or yearly, for a percentage off or free, all produce that was produced on those lands and that would be there, our , investment return. And the family organic farmers, or small businesses that would be contracted out to farm the land would receive a substantial percentage of their produce sold.

I'm not rich but I would invest in it knowing it would go to healthy food on my table and keeping my Island safe from a mega corporation buying the land, their greed and destruction is what we have all been feeling throughout our planet.

It's bad enough that our government, & military industrial complex are poisoning the air, water and land around us, all of the toxic chemicals they're spraying in our sky at least if we are eating healthy our bodies can combat some of these toxins that they're spraying worldwide.

We can call it maybe, co op Organic "Rainbow Maui" produce made with love.

Well it's just an idea, it might be silly but if anyone wants to go with it I'm in so Go !

Yeah, go! I mean, heck, why not? Even though HC&S, with more than a century of experience, couldn't make cane a viable crop, surely non-farmers can pull if off simply by switching to “organic naturally dehydrated healthy sugar.”

Once you use those $100 and $300 donations simply to purchase the land, don't worry about the lack of start-up capital, equipment or training for the organic farmers. All they need is the land. And love. The rest flows like magic from there. This is paradise, ya know, where things just grow on their own. 

Once marijuana is legal, they'll be sitting pretty, anyway, because none of the other islands would be growing it, and 36,000 acres of pot would barely touch the demand for product. No need worry about flooding the market.

And yes, go ahead and export those organic crops around the world, even though you don't have any grading, production, refrigeration or packaging operations, and no identified markets. With the Hawaii label, they'll sell themselves. 

Of course, it's hard to know how much produce will actually be left to sell once the initial investors claim all the free produce they want. But the farmers don't need to make money, much less a profit. That's just an old, evil concept. Their reward comes in knowing they're keeping Maui “safe from a mega corporation.” (Shhh, don't mention Hyatt, Sheraton, Costco, Shell, Budget and etc. Only ag corporations are bad.)

Gosh, Utopia is right within our grasp. I wonder why A&B didn't get there. Must be because they're blinded by their desire for corporate profits over the good of all.

Now where's my lifetime supply of fresh organic produce? I gotta eat hearty to ward off the poisons dripping from those chem trails in the sky. No, they're not just clouds or jet exhaust. They're a government plot to weaken us so we have to buy pharmaceuticals.

And gimme some of that organic “Rainbow Maui” — the cloned (but GMO-free) 21st Century version of Maui Wowie.

Heck, I invested $100. I'm entitled.

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

You sure got it, Joan!

If I didn't live here to see it myself, I'd think you were making this shit up. I don't understand how adults can have this type of naive thought process. Sure, we were all young, idealistic, and stupid as teenagers, but these aren't teenagers talking. How have they survived in the real world, thinking that utopia will just manifest itself?

Gosh, if it were that easy, why would any of us work as hard as we do to make ends meet and support our families? All we need to do is take a toke and dream away; the rest will take care of itself.

Anonymous said...

Utopia: The views and habits of mind of a visionary or idealist, sometimes beyond realization. The key phrase here is "beyond realization".

Must be fun to be a trust fund baby, thinking all these utopian themes up, and then telling the rest of us working slobs to fork over even more money to help realize their vision of a utopian society.

Nope. Not me and not the vast majority of people in Hawaii...otherwise, we'd be all forking over monies, and then taking delivery of our unicorns that fart rainbows.

Anonymous said...

They're easy to identify. They tend to wear Vote For Bernie t-shirts.

Anonymous said...

LOL dreamers dream on.. I hope he intends to hire a security force to guard his pakalolo plants...wow he would need a army for 24/7 protection...Gay and Robinson went up with the fences and are now raising grass fed beef and loving the market....I am sure A&B will do that also they have been here for many many years, and I am sure the people who are building the dispensaries there would also love to lease land for their production....so dream big fella because thats all it is one big dream

Anonymous said...

Your right 9:10 poison is the answer... let me guess, your one of those sprayers who stand in your yard and let the roundup blow back in to your face to prove how cool you are. I don't want to fart rainbows but I don't want cancer either.

Flood the market with pot? Like the market isn't flooded with GMO food? corn syrup seems to be doing just fine.

Anonymous said...

I always want to say this. now it's as good of a time to do it.

Goofy (AKA Geoff) Morris. all these years wearing that plastic mask. wouldn't you think breeding plastic for that long of a time could be toxic to you and your health. Talking about double standards.

Nah, couldn't be. it's got to be an organic plastic mask.

I always thought Goofy was an idiot thinking he's funny sending mixed messages. Stop chemicals, but there's no shame in wearing a chemical by product mask.

Freaking Amazing!

Thanks for the post Joan. History to repeat itself. First Kauai A&B and now Maui A&B. I don't see organics on the Lawai lands, I see coffee and cattle, and a failed attempt to place farmers on this lands.

Hopefully they can fill 36K acres with organic lavendjuana to soothe the souls of anti everything people on Maui.

Aloha all, it's Thursday, we are on a slippery slope to a great weekend.

Anonymous said...

Face reality http://www.techinsider.io/spreads-robot-farm-will-open-soon-2016-1

Robin said...

Geez, and I always thought sugar was sugar, being extracted from cane, sugar beets, etc, processed and purified. But now I learn that what has been produced all these years in Hawaii is "toxic, cancerous, white processed sugar." Please tell me where I can get this new "organic, naturally dehydrated, healthy sugar." Maybe they also have "organic, GMO-free, low-sodium salt" (aka sodium chloride).

Anonymous said...

Actually 10:46...A&B has the largest Organic farm on the Island in their Kukuiula project..but you know there are lots of monies there to support that farm...and yes we on Kauai have the Largest coffee farm in Kauai coffee...surely A&B will try all that in Maui..The Anti's are really happy wait and see what A&B does now....I just cant wait.There is sooo much they can do with all that open land...

Anonymous said...

Joan- I think you should study the Kauai North Shore farms.
There are lots of trees and fruits and stuff. Mostly organic. Doing Ag on Ag land.
It is a beautiful thing. And much of this paradise was old Kilauea Sugar land.
This is proof positive that it can be done.

All it takes is some millions for the land and some more millions for the farm dwelling.

So Joan, you are mistaken. Farming is easy. As long as you don't have to pay for it. Or work the fields.

Anonymous said...

Stupidity runs deep in this group. I hate these people.

Anonymous said...

Truth hurts. 5:49.
1:52 name the organic operation.
I'm not asking in a negative context, but more curious than anything else.

Anonymous said...

Those who have been farming for a while know what's going on and what will happen to that land on Maui but as Joan has pointed out in previous post's no one is asking them.

Anonymous said...

Wow, Joan, isn't it just SO satisfying to ridicule other people's ideas? Sure, you could have taken a constructive approach with these naive people -treated this writer with respect, explained, in a nice way, why she is wrong. She isn't, after all, an evil person. But the world is filled with good people who have naive or foolish ideas. But the issue is, why do you get so much satisfaction -and have such a great need, day in and day out, to ridicule people? To say nothing of why so many of your readers feel to get get so much emotional satisfaction out of seeing you do so.

Joan Conrow said...

Dear 7:35 -- First, the writer is a man, not a woman, even though he does like to wear a dress with his mask. Second, I've done a lot of constructive educating and frankly, the naive folks don't want to hear it. They can't possibly believe they're wrong. All that's left is to poke fun.

Anonymous said...

7:35 you're so naïve too! these people split this island up. making friends and family pick sides. they speak without any evidence supporting their claims. LIE! and they still keep on doing it after all these years, without any signs of stopping.

Joan is speaking out for what her readers believe in (silent majority). you don't believe in what she writes, don't read her blog! if she's wrong, prove it with your supporting data showing her she's wrong.

GOOFY MORRIS! what a joke for a businessman / farmer.

HEY! Aloha Friday! Have a great weekend, in Paradise!

Anonymous said...

Joan is entitled to ridicule people. After-all everyone else is stupid and has been snookered.

Joan Conrow said...

No, not everyone. Just those who still follow Hooser and loudly assert they are 100% right and anyone who disagrees is either a corporate shill or crazy or both.