Descartes

Descartes. The French Philosopher Descartes is purported to have once said, "There is nothing so good that no bad may come of it and nothing so bad that no good may come of it." Since I first read this in my freshman college philosophy class I have noticed over the last 40 years or so that it was true.

Last night my wife and I were in Santa Cruz, California at a State and Federal Government question and answer forum concerning the spraying of a Checkmate pheromone insecticide product over Santa Cruz and that area. We went primarily to let people know that my wife was one of the 200 or more that became ill from the last spraying in September over populated areas on the Monterey County Coast from Carmel to Marina. As I listened to my wife speak to Mr. Kawamura who is head of the california dept. of Agriculture and appointed by our Governor I realized that even though I don't agree with his position because I don't want my wife or anyone else to get sick or to die because of the spraying that Mr. Kawamura believed in what he was doing and that this was better than malathion for what he perceives is an emergency. I guess I can understand that agribusiness is panicking now since food in the affected areas of the light brown apple moth is having difficulty being shipped beyond the affected counties infested with the light brown apple moth from Australia where it is a native species there.

However, I still can't understand why populated areas must be sprayed. I have no problem with this being sprayed over croplands wherever they may be. But it is a definite violation of the civil rights of all people and properties being sprayed by air. The majority of the people I know and have talked to about this are against being sprayed or having their property and possessions sprayed once a month for the next 3 years. I think even being sprayed once is insane and a very very very bad precedent not only for California but for the whole nation. If we don't trust what they are spraying now what will we be sprayed with in the future against our will? Most people feel about this a little like we would if all of us and our children were tied over a barrel and sodomized and then told it was okay and that there was nothing we could do about it. Think about it America you may be next!

I walked outside hearing the first twin engine sprayer plane fly over our home at 200 miles an hour at 500 feet elevation. I didn't stay to get the temporarily blinding mist in my eyes. That would just be stupid. (Though for critters of all sizes a direct hit in the eyes could cause permanent blindness if the critter can't wash it's eyes out with water.) I think we both can imagine the consequences of this for the nocturnal critters like raccoons, skunks, possums etc.
etc. etc. I failed to mention they are spraying 8 pm. to 5 am. If you've ever tried to sleep on a night after a pretty hot day with all your windows closed so you don't have to breathe the spray then you get the idea of what is happening right now to me and my family and everyone local. If you've ever tried to sleep with a loud twin engine aircraft making precision lawn mower like passes over where you live at 500 feet at 11:30 at night until 5 am you also get why people aren't happy including me.

Mr. Linburgh and his wife and child all got ill from the September Spraying on the Monterey Coast. He started a website for himself and others who wanted the spraying to stop. He spoke at the meeting about a Naval Post Graduate students 11 month old son who was exposed to the spraying and now has permanent lung damage from it. Mr. Linburgh asked Mr. Kawamura if doctors could prove that the boy had permanent lung damage from the spray if he would stop the spraying. Mr. Kawamura said, "Yes. He would stop the spraying if it could be proved."

When my wife mentioned at the meeting the research we did to find that one of the ingredients of the spray kills fish outright and interferes with zooplancton reproduction an expert told us that this chemical is a lot like clorine in that it is safe at a low dosage as in clorinated water through a tap. I don't know about you but I have never seen clorinated water as safe any time in my life and have chosen not to drink clorinated water if there was any other viable choice available for at least 30 years now.

Yes, Descartes, maybe something good will come from all this bad of being sprayed every month for the next 3 years or more but at least right now I can't see what it is. All I can see now is my rights and the rights of everyone between Santa Cruz and Carmel's rights being spit on and trampled and mutilated beyond recognition.