Lay nets threaten Hawaii sea life
- Thread starter The Chairman
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Thanks for the link NetDoc. I have a Yahoo Local News web page with 5 headlines each from many newspapers and TV stations across the State, including the Honolulu Advertiser, but this story did not make that list.
There was an editorial in the Maui News yesterday on the Attack Mode of Politics where the Editor "blames" a 1971 book titled "Rules For Radicals" for much of the twisted nature of our system.
The gist of the Editorial is that a guide book for the far left has been adopted by the far right and many ignorant people have been swept along and whipped into a frenzy of fear and loathing.
Selfish people have learned that loud public whining about cultural rights and feeding the family will easily defeat any logical, scientific attempt at reasonable conservation. My biggest example of this is when "Hawaiian Leaders" such as Charles Maxwell use statements about sharks being Amakua to whip up a frenzy of prohibition with regards to non-existent shark cage tours off Maui, and even going so far as to say leading divers at Molokini and swimming in the direction of sharks is disrespectful of the Hawaiian culture.
As I understand Amakua, family elders who passed away take on various terrestrial forms to stay near and help their descendants (or in some cases punish their enemies). Some of these Amakua could be tiki, turtles, streams, trees, birds, winds and yes sharks. The thing that Mr Maxwell and many others do that really irks me is not speaking about the individual nature of these Amakua. Yes, there are a few Hawaiian families who have a shark or maybe a couple sharks as Amakua, but not every Hawaiian revers all sharks as Amakua! I have even heard that Kamehameha's family used to sport fish for sharks!
I have strayed far from the topic of lay gill nets, but these same ignorant locals are all up in a frenzy about having their cultural freedoms regulated, even though most of the most vocal are not Hawaiian blood. The true Hawaiian existence was sustainable and respectful of the whole ahupua'a, the related ecosystem from mountain to sea. With specific regard to fishing, fish were conserved by not taking them during the breeding and birthing seasons as well as allowing them to mature to adulthood before harvest and letting areas rest when numbers are low. They also made their nets by hand from natural fibers and valued them so highly that they would take the time to remove them gently when snagged on reef, both respecting the coral which nurtures the fish and the net which was a significant investment in labor and materials.
Unfortunately the Hawaiian leaders who could make a difference in such discussions have either not read the "Rules For Radicals" or they have chosen to take the higher road, which seems to be well over the heads of most legislative bodies.
There was an editorial in the Maui News yesterday on the Attack Mode of Politics where the Editor "blames" a 1971 book titled "Rules For Radicals" for much of the twisted nature of our system.
Maui News:
The gist of the Editorial is that a guide book for the far left has been adopted by the far right and many ignorant people have been swept along and whipped into a frenzy of fear and loathing.
Selfish people have learned that loud public whining about cultural rights and feeding the family will easily defeat any logical, scientific attempt at reasonable conservation. My biggest example of this is when "Hawaiian Leaders" such as Charles Maxwell use statements about sharks being Amakua to whip up a frenzy of prohibition with regards to non-existent shark cage tours off Maui, and even going so far as to say leading divers at Molokini and swimming in the direction of sharks is disrespectful of the Hawaiian culture.
As I understand Amakua, family elders who passed away take on various terrestrial forms to stay near and help their descendants (or in some cases punish their enemies). Some of these Amakua could be tiki, turtles, streams, trees, birds, winds and yes sharks. The thing that Mr Maxwell and many others do that really irks me is not speaking about the individual nature of these Amakua. Yes, there are a few Hawaiian families who have a shark or maybe a couple sharks as Amakua, but not every Hawaiian revers all sharks as Amakua! I have even heard that Kamehameha's family used to sport fish for sharks!
I have strayed far from the topic of lay gill nets, but these same ignorant locals are all up in a frenzy about having their cultural freedoms regulated, even though most of the most vocal are not Hawaiian blood. The true Hawaiian existence was sustainable and respectful of the whole ahupua'a, the related ecosystem from mountain to sea. With specific regard to fishing, fish were conserved by not taking them during the breeding and birthing seasons as well as allowing them to mature to adulthood before harvest and letting areas rest when numbers are low. They also made their nets by hand from natural fibers and valued them so highly that they would take the time to remove them gently when snagged on reef, both respecting the coral which nurtures the fish and the net which was a significant investment in labor and materials.
Unfortunately the Hawaiian leaders who could make a difference in such discussions have either not read the "Rules For Radicals" or they have chosen to take the higher road, which seems to be well over the heads of most legislative bodies.
vinegarbiscuit
Contributor
So, the fishing regulations in force in American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas, Fiji and many other Pacific island nations and territories are more evolved than ours here in the US? We supposedly have more money and more resources to devote to research that should determine the most enlightened and sustainable fishing practices, and yet, we somehow manage to lag behind the policies of other Pacific Rim countries - who of course have indigenous populations with their own long-established fishing traditions and practices, just as Hawaii does. They have obviously recognized that while there are lots of folk out there fishing responsibily, the sheer number of inexperienced amateurs who weren't taught correctly - and their attendant impact on our ecosystems - is virtually negating the impact of those making the effort to do it properly. If the good people inhabiting the islands of the Pacific can identify the problems and take steps to remedy them in the name of sustainability, why can't we?
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