HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0271.321 2012-2014 Page 1 of 1
Murashige, Laura COUNTY CLERK
COUNTY (77 HAWAII
From: Maggie Gordon [maggabot @yahoo.com]
Sent: Monday, July 01, 2013 8:02 AM 2013 ,ll.fl. " I AN I0 39
To: counciltestimony @co.hawaii.hi.us
Subject: Bill 79 Testimony
Dear Council Members,
Thank you for your time. My name is Maggie Gordon. I am testifying in favor of bill 79 on
behalf of myself. Three months ago, I came to the big island in search of a slower, more
sustainable way of life than the fast-paced, urban one that I had been living in Tokyo, Japan, for
the past nine years. Like most people who come to Hawaii, I was attracted to Hawaii's diverse
ecosystems and temperate climate. It can go without questioning, Hawaii is one of the first places
that come to mind when people hear the word "paradise". It's an ideal place for those seeking the
sustainable life that the island's fertile land is quite capable of providing.
Unfortunately, as easily as Hawaii's ecosystem appeals to people with peaceful intentions,
it also has the potential to attract those who come riding a tsunami of power and greed that leaves
nature depleted and people demoralized once the wave recedes. Hawaii has already lived through
the initial promise and harsh downfall of both the sugar cane and pineapple industries. So, is the
current supposed economic promise of GMO's with an emphasis on the papaya industry a
continuance of this vicious cycle? Soon after arriving on the island, I learned that 85% of
Hawaii's food was imported, and that much of it contained GMO's. With one of the world's most
ideal climates for growing and raising food in abundance year-round, this baffled me. Why must
the people of Hawaii continue to fall victim to this double-edged sword of commodity control on
such commercial goods that fundamentally serve no purpose in an agricultural utopia like Hawaii?
I plan to live on Hawaii for many years to come. I don't want to live on an island that is a
genetic and chemical testing ground for the creator of poisonous chemicals like DDT, PCB, and
Agent Orange. I don't want to live on an island that will be sucked dry over a span of time, then
left abandoned like the industrial ghost towns of the mainland's Midwest. I don't want to live on
an island that imports a diminished quality of life for its' people in lieu of the one that it has been
naturally blessed with. I want to live on the island that every optimistic dreamer in the world
famously thinks of as "paradise".
Thank You,
Maggie Gordon
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Ref. Date JUL 0 2 2013
7/1/2013