— from Sadie Bailey —

Dear Madrona Voices:

I appreciate your taking the time to survey us on how Covid-19 is affecting us. That said, as with your airport survey, I take issue with some of the “either/or,” and questions that rate things on a scale, because the questions and issues we face are many-layered and nuanced, not “either/or.” That’s my issue with these types of questions on a survey; unless people take the time to read the comments where you’ve allowed for them, they will only see the “numbers” and not the thought and nuance.

I would like our county officials to make a stand for the safety of its year-round residents and workers first and foremost, and put the environment first from now on. This involves what I talk about later in this letter. The commissioners are pressured, even threatened with lawsuits or sued by property rights advocates, which puts them between a rock and a hard place, regarding decisions made that don’t represent the majority of us.

Just as parasites weaken and can eventually kill their host, the tourism industry (not the tourists but the industry that makes them a commodity) is weakening and damaging the host – this archipelago. The effects are undeniable in Eastsound UGA, where we have lost and degraded our most important wetland and much of forests all around it and up-slope. Now, Covid-19 brings a ‘host’ of new worries – all valid and worth weighty consideration.

At THIS time during the beginning stages of a pandemic, we have the opportunity to completely change direction – probably the last we will have for many reasons – including that we’re in the midst of the 6th mass extinction and climate change due to fossil fuel extraction and export, mining, big agribusiness, and deforestation. So it’s about a lot more than protecting the tourism economy vs protecting the health of residents during Covid-19. This pandemic is an unprecedented opportunity for us to take a long look at ourselves and our way of life.

A solely tourism-driven economy is unsustainable economically, environmentally, and in quality of life – UNLESS it educates and incentivizes people to take care of a place. Even then, I’m skeptical because… gentrification. In my many years of living here, I haven’t seen any real reform in the growth model – unless a lawsuit forces some after-the-fact compromise . This is discouraging and disheartening. It gives the wrong message to our youth – that we are not behind them; that solving the huge problems we face is not a priority because, “we’ve got ours,” and any
good capitalist can “get theirs” too – which is misleading at best – because many of the most wealthy inherit their wealth, and have for generations. The deck is stacked.

The problem with this growth mindset is that, in a large economic collapse coupled with a deadly pandemic- both of which we are experiencing in the beginning stages this will affect everyone. Things will likely get worse before they get better. Only a few will come out relatively unscathed.; all the more reason to stop, think, and change direction. Any economy based on a single industry doesn’t allow for creative solutions both economically or environmentally. Tourism/real estate/development economy is all about unlimited growth – i.e., parasitic.

This entreaty may not seem to put enough weight on the pandemic and its effects – but it’s all One Inseparable Affect. Our actions lead to consequences. Science is telling us that when we gobble up natural ecosystems, we ourselves are the cause of pandemics and plagues, due to deforestation and industrialization. This pattern has repeated itself throughout history – usually war-caused – only now, the environmental destruction is global and extremely rapid, due to mass air travel, military globalism, and giant corporations destroying ecosystems worldwide. We
would be remiss in not bringing to light the immense profits that the
pharmaceutical industry has to gain from this tragedy by developing and pushing an untested vaccine. When it’s all about profit, it’s antithesis to Life.

Our community and the global community could thrive in a different way. There are many different aspects to prosperity besides money and real estate – we can focus our efforts on THESE – for instance: Environmental & time wealth (the two most important aspects, IMO, that should drive everything else), resilience, skills and resourcefulness, knowledge, emotional-spiritual wisdom, material and resources wealth, social/cultural/community, and the barter and sharing of these aspects of
wealth. This would move us out of free market unlimited-growth capitalism where few profit at the expense of the many, to a paradigm where everyone can benefit in ways that count – even in the hardest of times.

We are seeing, in the generous and unselfish response to Covid-19 by so many in this community, what is possible when we all share and give – even a little. We already have all of this in our fantastic community. Now is the time to rethink “economics” and ask ourselves in our deepest hearts, which way we want to go – and not settle for any system that puts a few at the top and the many at the bottom, but rather choose a wide rich field of unlimited possibilities within a finite archipelago and planet. I hope we will work tirelessly and joyfully with trust, to go in this direction however and wherever possible.

We are all magnificent creative beings, as Nelson Mandela so wisely noted in his famous speech. We have the opportunity to find out who we really are. Hardships bring us together – and wouldn’t it be great if we could keep up this same spirit and intention in “better” times – if/when we are fortunate enough to see those again?

We are so much more than we can think or imagine. The crux is opening our hearts and minds and trusting that when we take care of the earth right where we live – and each other – Things Work Out.

LINK TO SURVEY

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