Excerpts from the US History site:

Over 127,000 United States citizens were imprisoned during World War II. Their crime? Being of Japanese ancestry.

Despite the lack of any concrete evidence, Japanese Americans were suspected of remaining loyal to their ancestral land. ANTI-JAPANESE PARANOIA increased because of a large Japanese presence on the West Coast. In the event of a Japanese invasion of the American mainland, Japanese Americans were feared as a security risk.

Succumbing to bad advice and popular opinion, President Roosevelt signed an executive order in February 1942 ordering the RELOCATION of all Americans of Japanese ancestry to CONCENTRATION CAMPS in the interior of the United States.

Evacuation orders were posted in JAPANESE-AMERICAN communities giving instructions on how to comply with the executive order. Many families sold their homes, their stores, and most of their assets. They could not be certain their homes and livelihoods would still be there upon their return. Because of the mad rush to sell, properties and inventories were often sold at a fraction of their true value.

When the order was repealed, many found they could not return to their hometowns. Hostility against Japanese Americans remained high across the West Coast into the postwar years as many villages displayed signs demanding that the evacuees never return. As a result, the interns scattered across the country.

Note some key terms in what happened to the Japanese Americans in this excerpt that a politician succumbed to popular opinion and bad advice when enacting this order.  It was based on no evidence and paranoia against a made up perception of an enemy.  This so called enemy created hostility against it that continued for years and resulted in discrimination and prejudice for years after that.

As I read this, I’ve come to realize that there are many parallels here to what is happening in Hawaii with Bills 113 on the Big Island and Bill 2491 on Kauai, as well as last year’s labeling bill.  The same events are happening here in our islands.  There is no evidence to base these laws on and a whole lot of paranoia being spread by the organic industry’s tactics to misinform the public.  All kinds of propaganda is being spread against this perceived evil technology that is based in fear but no evidence.

Then we have irresponsible politicians like Gary Hooser, Tim Bynum, Brenda Ford, and Margaret Wille, seeking the bad advice from propaganda spreaders like Jeffery Smith, Andrew Kimbrell, Ronnie Cummins, Vandana Shiva, and Bill Freese.  These people are not scientists nor have any background to make the claims that they do but are believed by these politicians and their activists.

Despite the fact that this perceived evil could provide that environmentally friendly, sustainable world that they want, it will never be able to be accepted into mainstream until many years down in to the future, when the propaganda dies down and we no other options left.  The scientific evidence tells us that this technology is safe yet it is rejected by the popular opinion that has been bombarded in fear and misinformation and nothing else.  (Our ancient societies recognized this phenomenon well and coined the phrase, “They condemn what they do not understand.”)

The Japanese people suffered years of discrimination and prejudice because of what was the popular opinion at the time.  They carried on and despite the hardships, eventually became powerful figures in the communities.  The biggest example of this persevering spirit is Dan Inouye.  In agriculture, it is the papaya that is the shining example of this technology.  The corn, soy, and other plants are still facing this discrimination but is still toiling on and producing our food and textiles.  They are being continually touted as evil but have become necessary tools for the farmers that produce the things we need.  The farmers who use these tools have become the perceived enemy of the moment which they should not be.  I say respect their wishes to use this technology and the research and science that supports it.

The word pono is always mentioned in these divisive conversations.  Do what is right!  What is right here to begin with?  The pono thing is to use the evidence built over the years and base decisions on that, not on the popular opinion of the moment.  Our politicians are succumbing to bad advice and the bandwagon of the moment protests of ignorance.  Do we want to repeat the same mistakes in history by outrightly rejecting this tool that so many have minuscule understanding about?  Where is the science and technology leading us to?  The future is in genetics and genetic engineering but so few here have no clue about it.  That does not mean that we automatically disqualify it out of their ignorance.

If only politicians could instantly get a research and science degree and then take a look into a crystal ball of the future.  It would change their shortsighted thinking in an instant to know the possibilities.  Right now, these popular politicians are blinded with Monsanto glasses like their ignorant followers too.  That is not what we need in Hawaii.  Slamming the door on technology does not do any of us favors to address our future needs of sustainability.

Do the right thing for once Gary Hooser, Tim Bynum, Brenda Ford, Margaret Wille, Tulsi Gabbard, Mike Gabbard, Jessica Wooley, and Russell Ruderman. When it comes down to setting the standards to make those laws, use the evidence presented.  That is your responsibility to the people and farmers and ranchers of Hawaii…  Laws should not be based on popular opinion and bad advice of your loudest activist.