Leatherback March San Jose, Costa Rica, Aug., 2009

[Stayaliveful1]

LOOK WHO IS TALKING!

As usual, according to what Jim Spotila had been doing since his years at Buffalo, the guys and dolls hired by him to do the basement jobs scream and yell to those who dare not to follow his martial law, learned when he was working for the Pentagon.

Are you one of those? I will think so. Why dont you tell the world whom you really are?

[randridley]

OK surfer dude who claims he worked with Jim Spotila. I'm Randall Arauz, who are YOU? If your strategy is to keep on with the lies and hiding behind a pseudonym, typical of cowards, then please don't respond, for everyone's sake and time.

[Stayaliveful1]

HO HO HO, now we know it: randridley and pretomacr are the same person. The one who says that 300! marched the day he look at the small group from very far away, considering the fiasco and the embarrassment. He whom many people knows is part of the Spotila group of interest, the paid puppets he uses as he wishes.

My name is Michael Mulligan, used to be at Drexel U and happily, after seeing what was going on around the turtles business, got away after graduation.

[randridley]

Michael Mulligan doesn't even exist. If so, why is your english so poor? Because you are either one of the Costa Ricans who wants to profit from illegal sales, or you are some sort of foreigner who just cant handle his own stupidity thinking you were going to profit from buying land in a National Park.

[randridley]

The State Attorney, the Constitutional Court, SENARA and Congress have all defended the park and the need to immediately expropriate the lands in question. Thus, claims that the Costa Rican people do not support the National Park hold no water.

Pretoma is committed to saving sea turtles, sharks, and marine biodiversity, following our legislation and the best scientific evidence available.

[pretomacr]

If we have been protecting nests for 20 years, we will soon see these first leatherback hatchlings return to Costa Rica to complete their life cycle. Intense negotiations must take place to reach an agreement over the true value for privately owned lands in the park. Nobody wants to bankrupt the country and there are many individuals and organizations willing to assist in this process.

[Stayaliveful1]

How can anyone say that a leatherback reaches maturity after 30 years instead of the known 7 10 years very well determined? The fall in the population of Pacific leatherbacks is also known around the world by scientific and popular communities; there are only a few hundred turtles left from the 100.000 estimated 20 years ago. Is not a matter of poaching of the eggs some years ago what is causing the deep decline.

[Stayaliveful1]

You have to think on destructive fishing activities and lack of food, as it was documented on the last May edition of National Geographic, compared to what is happening in the Caribbean where the number of leatherbacks are increasing to the thousands.

[Stayaliveful1]

In order to have a real picture of the situation we need to be serious, and this is not happening with you. Understand that Costa Rica is protecting the beaches and will keep that way with the new project of law. That what President Arias wants is to correct the Las Baulas National Park limits while, at the same time, creates a wildlife refuge behind the protected beaches.

[Stayaliveful1]

He is by no means, destroying the Park, as the James Spotila group says through the not so independent organizations like Pretoma. He is not killing hundreds of hatchlings by decapitation, as Spotila et al did some years ago (published in Ecology) whom, by the way, bought a mansion right there in playa Grande for The Leatherback Trust business activities.

[Stayaliveful1]

Last season arrived at the NP only 27 leatherbacks; no one knows how is it going to be the situation in 2 or 3 years, but only a miracle could bring the turtles back.

And the same time, the group from Drexel U. wants the CR government to invest US$700 million in order to add 113.000 acres, away from the beach and therefore not needed to conserve the marine turtles. Money that no one has or will have to buy that unnecessary piece of land further away from the protected beaches.

[randridley]

The National System of Underwaters and Irrigation (SENARA) says the lands can not be built on because of extreme vulnerability of the shallow acquifer. SENARA is a TECHNICAL institute of the executive branch, and issues binding resolutions. Of course, now Oscar Arias is attempting to squash the reports of his own technicians, to please folks like you. Not very democratic, as you can see.

[HeadSurferCR]

In which movie you see that SENARA resolution are binding for the Governement even the resolution of the General Attorney are not, just for the consulting administration

[randridley]

Man, are you ignorant of CR laws. So, according to yourself, the General Attorney resolution, seconded by the Constitutional Court isn't binding? If it wasn't, then the developers (I assume you too) wouldn't be trying to change the laws. BTW, recent Constitutional Court resolution 09-011327-0007-CO mandates the government to abide by the law and respect the technical validity of the SENARA report. If you like, I can send you the resolution.

[Stayaliveful1]

And finally, where were the 300 participants in the march that are not shown in the video, where you can hardly count 40 or 50. Another lie?

[HeadSurferCR]

Maybe 80 people and 70% paid by the The Leaterback Trust and the submarine of the TLT in the PAC...

[randridley]

make some sense out of your comments, surfer dude.

[randridley]

It doenst take a rocket scientist to know this is Pacheco. Come on Pacheco, don't be a coward and stop hiding behind psuedonyms.

[randridley]

The limits of the park need no correction. This is why folks like you want to change the law: YOU HAVE BEEN DEFEATED IN ALL COSTA RICAN COURTS.

Fortunately, we live in a democracy with division of powers...otherwise you would have already destroyed the Park with the help of Oscar  Arias, and made an extra buck in the process.

[randridley]

BTW, this SENARA resolution means the property is NO WAY worth the claimed $700 or $800 million. If only the government listened to its own technicians....

[HeadSurferCR]

It's not SENARA resolution, it's a Carlos Romero from SENARA and everybody know for who is working...

[Stayaliveful1]

Working at Drexel close to Jim Spotila, I had also traveled to Costa Rica and stayed at the so called Goldring Lab (a very nice house with a beautiful swimming pool!) right in front of the protected beach. This is just to inform you that Ive never been defeated in any court by dont know who.

[Stayaliveful1]

What I know is that the beach has always been protected and that there is no need to buy houses, petit hotels and the rest of the land for nothing practical. The leatherbacks, which we kill in the US (near Hawaii and the west coast), are never going to get back to playa Grande. Only 27 came last nesting season and it will keep that way, no matter how many dollars are spent unnecessarily. The problem is not in Costa Rica, but in the whole Pacific Ocean.

Michael

Drexel

[randridley]

If you were a Drexel student, you would know that the leatherbacks that visit California and Hawaii are NOT the same ones that visit Playa Grande. Cut the BS and stop hiding behind a pseudonym.

[randridley]

Come on Drexel man who works close with Spotila. Tell us who you are. Lets see if you really exist.

[randridley]

I really think YOU should be serious, and should start respecting the binding resolutions of our democratic institutions.

[pretomacr]

The greatest threat to leatherbacks is egg poaching. In the 70s and 80s there was a poaching rate of 100% at Playa Grande. In 1991 the park was formed and nests have since been protected. It takes a female leatherback 30 years to reach sexual maturity. A national refuge does not provide enough protection from egg poachers. At nearby Tamarindo wildlife refuge, there is 100% poaching.

[pretomacr]

Let me present a few facts that will clarify this topic. There were 300 participants in the march at its halfway point; I counted them as they passed by my video camera. The march began at 1:00 pm on a Monday afternoon and ended at 4:00 pm. Most Costa Ricans have very few resources and cannot afford to leave work for a half day to participate in a protest march. They are concerned about the state of their National Park system but also need to work to make ends meet.

[bloodmary23]

Me siento muy orgullosa de que existan tantas personas que realmente se preocupan por estos seres vivos, que merecen vivir en su habitat natural. Los apoyo 200% y voy a unirme a su causa. APOYEMOS A LAS TORTUGAS!!

[DiegoBaulas]

This was a total fiasco, 82 people...

4 neighbors from playa Grande...

Randall please stop to try to broke our country with your expropiation and start to work really to protect the Leatherback and not for receiving grant and money from foreigner.

The gouvernement proposal will really protect the turtle and the nesting beach.

Diego

[pinkchica101]

Congratulations Andy and Randall! It looks like it was a huge success and I saw it on the front page of the Tico Times Online. I wish you all much luck in protecting and keeping Las Baulas Park from turing into a Refuge! All my love and support!

Nicole

Toronto

[Stayaliveful1]

How many people walked that day? It was noisy but with not many men and women present. Are Costa Rican really interested in the matter or just don't care about it. Was the mesage clear?

From the images it seem to be that "ticos" don't believe in what The Leatherback Trust is saying through Pretoma and others.

Michael

Drexel

[bloodmary23]

Michael: we do care about it, the problem is, OUR GOVERNMENT doesn't care...we are trying to push them so they can say no to that project. Hopefully we'll get it!

[Stayaliveful1]

OK, but from the images can guess that only few Ticos were involved in the fight against your government.

Here at Drexel, is hard to believe that The Leatherback Trust is not doing business with the marine turtles in Costa Rica and elsewhere, including China and its Global Cause Foundation.

Are the beaches protected? The answer is yes and that they will keep being that way with the new project. It may be a reason why not many people is following what prof. Spotila is promoting. Could be.