Trader Joe's, Washington D.C. logic

The hyper linked article below caught my eye because I had a chance recently to stock up on something from Trader Joe's in Eugene, Oregon.

Being a fisherman can feel especially lonely when fishermen's leaders don't stand up for them, ie. in the "processor quota" fight. That's why RSDAs are needed.

The people from Medford here that were heading to Portland, just had to stop in and do a little shopping at Trader Joe's. Check out the article. It may hold the clues to the future of the food business.

"That kind of passionate, focused attention to food is clearly sensed by Trader Joe's customers. "This sounds crazy, but you feel like the company likes food even more than they like money," said Marcy Benfiglio, who lives near the branch in Larchmont, N.Y. "You don't feel that at the supermarket.""

Check out this quote by James Connaughton, chairman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality on the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens FMCA. "Connaughton said the bill would be the best way to urge fishery conservation worldwide. "The only way we can make progress internationally [against overfishing] is to show them to we do it the best here," he said."

What I thought was a disconnect was, Administration rhetoric on showing the world how to conserve fish, and then on the other hand showing the world how to kill off fishermen by giving the fishing rights to huge companies. What kind of nonsense is this. About like making a sweetheart deal with a big Arab company to manage our most strategic port facilities back East. When you are in Washington D.C. you're numb to people's feelings about what it's like to live in the ports.

Alaskan's weren't able to stop the wholesale pillaging of Alaska from 1867 up until 1959. They haven't been able to stop the retail pillaging of Alaska even yet. If Alaska's Governor thought a small fraction like how pre-statehood Governor Ernest Gruening did, we wouldn't be seeing the give-away of fishermen's livelihoods to "processor quotas." I sure would like to know how a Governor can think Alaskans will stand for giving the fish back to the processors after finally getting it to Alaskan fishermen after 92 years of trying.

I don't think Alaskan's care what kind of sweetheart deals Governor Murkowski has made with the big fish companies. He's sure to go down for this, and I suspect a whole lot more than just two North Pacific Fisheries Management Council Members will be jumping ship too. I suppose you'll have to kick the Red Queen out of the State, not that she lives there anyway.