Guest Post by Willis Eschenbach
The National Wildlife Federation (NWF) has issued a new report (PDF) asserting that the Early Asian Immigrants (incorrectly referred to as “Native” Americans) are hit the hardest by “climate-induced weather extremes”. I’ll leave aside the obvious problems with that fanciful claim, and the oddity of the idea of “climate-induced weather” whatever that means, to look at the NWF’s proposed solution to their imaginary problem.
Their solution? Well, their brilliant plan is that everyone but the Immigrants should pony up some money to give to the Immigrants.
Now, the history of the Early Asian Immigrants is a sad and tragic one. They were cheated, lied to, killed indiscriminately, and their culture and ways were denigrated and often destroyed.
The response of the US Government, after many years, was to give the remaining tribes of Immigrants their own nations. These are sovereign areas with their own leaders, where many US laws do not apply. Me, I’d give just about anything to be able to write my own laws, and not have to obey some US laws. But I don’t get to.
Now, however, the NWF wants to change the rules. They want to alter the laws so that the separate Immigrant nations can not only be sovereign and independent and run casinos and not be subject to various state laws, but they can also suck up tax money paid by people who live in my nation. As an example of what they want to change, they say:
Indian [sic] Tribes are also excluded —– because of statutes, regulations, or practice —– from dozens of federal natural resource programs that provide assistance to states, local governments, and other entities.
Well … yes indeed, they are excluded from using my tax money for a host of things, and for very good reasons. That’s the price they pay for independence and sovereignty, that they don’t get treated the same as other US citizens, or like a State, or like a local government—because they aren’t any of those things, they are a sovereign nation with all that implies. For example, I can’t go on the reservation and do what I want, that’s the Immigrant national land. Immigrants don’t have to follow a variety of laws, and rightly so. And I don’t get any money from tribal funds that they are getting from Immigrant casinos, casinos that are illegal for me to operate.
So while I definitely feel for the Immigrants, who historically have suffered unimaginably, they can’t have it both ways. If they want to be full participants in the American rush to have the US government reimburse them for every imaginary problem, they can’t also be exempt from various laws and State taxes and some even from Federal taxes and get to have their own nations. If they want the full panoply of dubious benefits that the rest of the citizens get, sorry, they’ve got to become just like me, subject to all of the nonsense which us Late European Immigrants have to put up with.
Or they could just pay for the things that they need from their casino takings … which were $7,300,000,000 ($7.3 billion with a “b”) just in California alone in 2009, and $26,400,000,000 nationally, and on which in many states they paid no state taxes. I say they should use their own money for that kind of quixotic quest. If they want to use my taxes to fight imaginary menaces, well, they should have to pay taxes just like I do and be subject to the same idiotic rules that constrain me.
In any case, if the Immigrants are entitled to my tax money, it seems only fair that in return I should be able to open my own casino. But I don’t need to make billions. If I can only make a few million dollars from my casino, I assure you that I can protect myself against the worst that man-made warming can do, and save the Government a pile of money in the process … plus I’ll pay all applicable taxes on my takings.
It’s a win-win kind of deal.
w.
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UPDATE:
Willis has free reign to publish here, however this is not an article (in its present form) I would have published if consulted. Once published, I can’t put the cat back in the bag. – Anthony
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A note from the author. Anthony has most graciously given me the room to write here without censorship or interference or suggestions of any type,and has my great thanks for the freedom. As such, I ask that everyone be clear that what I write is mine, and what Anthony writes is his. He is passionate about his causes, as am I about mine. I thought long and hard about this before I posted it, as I do with all of my posts, but even more so because it is a touchy subject. I re-wrote it several times to try to make it clearer and clearer.
Now, I could have just said “Ooooh, too hot to handle” and picked a less controversial subject … but if Anthony and I and all the guest posters did that, this would be the most boring blog on the planet.
All I ask is that people quote my words when they object, because most people are treating this subject like a web-based Rorschach test, and reading into it all of their hopes, fears, and prejudices.
Again, my thanks to Anthony for his marvelous blog,
w.
“climate induced weather” is pretty close to literally the tail wagging the dog. Last time I checked, the individual values determine the mean, not the other way around…
Lol, Willis, I like the way you don’t shy from any hornets nest. I haven’t read all of the comments, but many. First, holy crap! We pay them already. A quote from a comment….
“Native Americans is NOT an incorrect reference. If Native Americans aren’t “native” after 14 thousand years or more, then the word “native” has NO meaning.” It doesn’t. What’s the time frame in which I will be afforded the luxury of claiming “native” status? For those sympathetic to their plight, I share the sympathy. However, there comes a point in time when one should realize this is the way it was suppose to be. Cultures die. Other peoples and cultures fill the vacuum. Do the people of England pay reparations to the people they replaced? Germany? Egypt? What of the Byzantines? This status that we do and many advocate we afford “native Americans” seems to afford them a status which no other failed culture or society has enjoyed throughout the history of the world. (There are a couple of recent exceptions in other similar western cultures.)
The various histories and cultures of the “native Americans” should be preserved and celebrated….. as in an historical view. Given my observations of various native reservations and areas where they gather, it seems rather obvious to me that we cause much more harm by affording a special status to them, rather than encouraging assimilation into the greater melting pot of this nation. I know this will anger many who read this, but it is the way it is. I make no judgement as to whether it is right or wrong, but, simply address the reality of the situation. Disclaimer!! I’ve much Osage blood running through my veins, but I’ve never used it to claim any special status. But, using the same line of thinking, and rationale, I think the Iroquois, Cherokee, and Choctaw owe me some special status and monies they’ve gained by taking the land of my ancestors. But, then, don’t ask about the Caddo tribes. Its a ridiculous bit of rationalization to believe any justice can be made from that type of logic.
My thoughts,
James
‘We hold these truths to be self evident; that all men are created equal….’ (and women).
Though the time that must elapse before Mr Eschenbach considers someone as “Native” seem absurd at first glance “Native” has nothing to do with time of residence and everything to do with “fitting in” (speaking the language, obeying the laws, paying the taxes and enjoying the benefits). If you want to be a part of it, be a part of it – if not, you’re not.
On the substance of his piece; NWF is just another organisation looking to make a fast buck out of being offended on behalf of others – who are very rarely offended in fact but are smart enough to take a share of the cash. “Sins of the fathers” is just an attempt to make a “right” out of two wrongs.
David says:
August 8, 2011 at 7:23 am
Read what I wrote again, I am not demeaning anyone except the NWF. I have the same respect for Early Asian Immigrants that I have for everyone else, which is to say, the respect that they have earned. So for some Immigrants I have great respect, and for other Immigrants I have no respect at all.
Unlike you, I guess, I don’t “respect” groups or tribes because of who they are. I respect groups or tribes for what they have done.
w.
mojo says:
August 8, 2011 at 9:11 am
Now that I could get behind. Historically the BIA (Bureau of Indian Affairs, or as I would have it, “Bureau of Immigrant Affairs”) is one of the larger groups of crooks and thieves on the planet. They have lied to, cheated, and stolen from the Immigrants without end.
w.
I’ve been reading some more comments…… I’m gobsmacked by the ignorance displayed. For those that don’t know, the history of American Indians (seeing that “native” is a controversial attribute) is quite similar to the rest of the world’s. It was a continuous history of wars, violence, interloping, alliances and broken alliances, usurpation of lands and people! Apparently, in the view of some here, might made right, but only when applying to Indian on Indian violence.(This almost makes sense.) I should be made to feel guilty because of my European ancestors’ unfair advantage of mastering metallurgy and the wheel and displaced my Indian ancestors as land owners of the Americas.
Gareth Phillips says:
August 8, 2011 at 10:25 am
Well, like many others your post is much more heat than light. What is it that you object to in my post?
I say again (and again, and will no doubt say again), QUOTE MY WORDS when you are discussing my ideas. You seem rabidly upset by something I said, but I haven’t a clue which of my ideas you are objecting to.
Oh, and I’m very aware what “life is like in such areas” for the Immigrants, I’ve lived and worked next to them.
Finally, as someone pointed out above, modern scholarship indicates that what you are calling the “First Nations” are likely some combination of Second and Third Nations who stole the land they are living on from the previous inhabitants. Your assumption of their nobility is badly flawed. They are just like the rest of us, simply fools whose intentions are good that are trying to make it in a difficult universe.
w.
Phil’s Dad says:
August 8, 2011 at 10:29 am
‘“Native” has nothing to do with time of residence and everything to do with “fitting in” (speaking the language, obeying the laws, paying the taxes and enjoying the benefits). If you want to be a part of it, be a part of it – if not, you’re not.”
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Absolutely, and to the point! It isn’t logical to expect to reap the benefits of a society while claiming not to be part of it.
It’s been perishing cold in my bit of the southern hemisphere this winter. A little bit of “climate-induced weather extremes” would be most welcome just now, as long as it is the warm extreme that we are talking about.
Willis, the NWF deserves a bigger stick in their eye than this one in relation to Native Americans or whoever one wishes to call them. Shame on you for not knowing that the way things work here is that having introduced the issue of Native Americans in this way, that your point would be corrupted into a rant about pesky freeloaders who don’t pay taxes, etc… If you think many here in this kind venue didn’t get your real point, wait until the rest of the blogosphere gloms onto this. You and WUWT will get a black eye on your ‘insensitive’, blah, blah, even though you weren’t guilty of this. The CAGW folks are badly wounded (they’ve never hesitated to twist and misrepresent people, data or whatever before the wounds) and they are starving for this kind of opportunity. This was a bad idea for so little profit.
Willis, by denying them native status, you disrespect them. They are NOT “Immigrants” like everyone else. Whether they have done things that earn your respect or not, there are common issues that befall every indigenous population that has been overrun by European values. And in the fact that just “assimilating into the culture of today” is not easy, or an option at all for some despite trying, they show the fact that they are NOT immigrants like you and I. Assimilation policies have failed in the US, in Australian, and in other places, for exactly that reason.
Interesting post Willis, one never knows what to expect from you. I enjoy the diversity of thought. My granny was a squaw from wyoming and saw no glory in it. She really liked indoor plumbing and electricity. From my own observation, I deduce there are very few if any ( full blooded ) ( early Asian immigrants ) left among us.
Why do we call ’em “Indians”? Columbus must surely have been a good enough navigator to have known he wasn’t in “India” (no?). But he’d promised Queen Isabella that he was going to India, so that’s what he claimed to have done. Been pretty much all downhill from there…
Best,
Frank
Willis says: “..simply fools whose intentions are good…”
Oh, Lord please don’t let me misunderstood.
Where have I heard that before?
oh, willis. it’s time for some education when you start ranting like sunday drunk.
1) “paid by people who live in my nation”
willis, you do not own any nation.
2)”they are excluded from using my tax money”
tax money is like virginity, willis – once you give it up, you gave it up. it’s not yours once you do that. don’t whine about what you gave up and is no longer yours. upgrow and unwhine.
3)”they can’t have it both ways”
yes, willis, they will take it any way you give it up. what you say has no relationship with reality. ‘they can’t do that’? disney quote? do you even know what ‘can’ means?
4) “If they want the full panoply of dubious benefits that the rest of the citizens get, sorry, they’ve got to become just like me, subject to all of the nonsense”
nobody has to be like you, willis. nobody has to suffer impotently and whine like you are doing. nobody has to match your witless moaning. nobody has to be subject to nonsense just because you can’t find a way to deal with it and burn with butthurt.
oh, this was by far the worst thing i’ve ever seen written by you. doesn’t even sound like the willis i admire for his cogent perceptions and logical thought processes. maybe you are typing under the influence? it’s pretty archie.bunker kind of crap.
the ‘ancient immigrant’ meme is pretty good, but not in service of a squabble over that special recycled soup from the publick kafeteria.
Willis said:
“Thank, Jason. No, you are not a native American, you are not one more whit native to this continent than I am, and I am quite tired of people like you pretending that you are native to this continent. Your ancestors immigrated to American from Asia just as surely as mine immigrated to America from Europe.”
Okay, if that’s how you see it then we all came from Africa. Period. It makes no difference what route you came or the timing of your ancestors migration.
That still doesn’t change the fact that the US government and the early African/Asian/land bridge immigrants both voluntarily entered into treaties. The US is bound to those treaties like it or not. Not upholding those treaties and their subsequent agreements would be like Japan reneging on the Japanese Instrument of Surrender to end WWII and suddenly starting up the war a few years later. It’s a legal issue. It’s not a racial issue or genetic issue or immigration issue.
mkelly says:
August 8, 2011 at 11:26 am
Willis says: “..simply fools whose intentions are good…”
Oh, Lord please don’t let me misunderstood.
Where have I heard that before?
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Great song!! While I prefer their House of the Rising Sun, this one is up there, too!!!
“Early Asian Immigrants”
So are Europeans now called early African immigrants?
In fact should we not call Early Asian immigrants early African immigrants as well?
I have to say some of the crazy garbage Eschenbach comes up with is mind blowing.
Why even get into this debate when you don’t even need to?
“In any case, if the Immigrants are entitled to my tax money,… ”
They are because we evil white men got our riches from colonialism.
Sustainable Development, which a UN site says is the successor in many ways to the New International Economic Order (NIEO) will facilitate this redistribution of wealth from us evil white men to the rightful owners we stole it from.
By your standards I guess we are all Africans, as that is where we evolved.
Whoa! WTFUWT? There is so much bang-on accurate criticism of the fallacies of AGW in this blog – or so it seemed – and then a piece of vitriol like this turns up. Have I missed something and I’m in bed with right-wing hate-mongers?
Hey, I’m a Native American – I was born here.
“Early Asian Immigrants”
I always say “Aboriginal Americans.” You know, like the aboriginal Australians and the aboriginal Japanese (that no one’s ever heard of) in northern Japan. I’ll bet there are other countries with aboriginals, too – at least, those that haven’t just killed them all. I think the Basques are aboriginals of some kind; if I understand correctly, their language isn’t French- or Spanish-related.
Ok, I’m a native Pangeamerican. How many millions or billions of years do we have to go back to claim nativity? I was born in the USA. I’m a native Amercian, and an African american via our common african ancestor. Nobody is going back to their “native” land whatever that is.
Native: belonging to a particular place by birth.
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/native
Do we all have to get labeled by our mitochondrial DNA alleles to establish special status or blame? Multi-generational grievances plague other places in the world. Why should we try so hard to make the same mistakes? There were different expectations and different standards at work in the past that we reject today. (Can we all get along? – R. King.)
Here’s a pretty good conventional description of human migration. They leave out the sea route of migration, which could include aboriginals to South America perhaps 20,000 years ago, and Europeans to North America possibly 12,000 years ago. http://essayweb.net/history/ancient/prehistory.shtml
And there is the complicated tale of Kennewick Man. Some people think he was of european ancestry, dying 9000 years ago on the banks of the Columbia River in Washington. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennewick_Man
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/meet-kennewick-man.html
http://www.nps.gov/archeology/kennewick/index.htm
Looks like the molecular biologists did the PC thing and assumed the sample possessed asian aboriginal mtDNA alleles (A, B, C, D). They also mentioned the X haplogroup, but didn’t test for it (see below). No PCR amplification was observed. Several positive and negative controls were reported, but I didn’t see any mtDNA amplification positive controls. They concluded no useful DNA was extracted from bone samples. Hmmm. Really? Perhaps Kennewick man really was an ancient European.
The X haplogroup is found in North America and Europe. It could indicate an ancient link betwen Europeans and aboriginal Americans from Asia.
http://www.kerchner.com/haplogroups-mtdna.htm
Some suggest Kennewick man was Ainu. Apparently, Ainu genetic analysis doesn’t indicate caucasian origin; however, I have not determined whether an extensive haplotype analysis of chromosomal DNA has been performed. Chromosomal crossovers increase variability in offspring and is the basis of ‘genetic distance’. “Caucasian” sequences might be present in Ainu, while mtDNA haplogroup analysis would not support the conclusion.
Barry Fell thought Europeans and Africans came to the Americas long before Columbus. Maybe. At least it’s interesting. Although his work is criticized, there is some recognition of a pre-columbian European presence in North America.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barry_Fell
What I often find interesting, kind of a doublethink or blackwhite thing, with many on the left who support this kind of wealth redistribution and victimhood is that they are by and large the same people who hold up their belief in Evolution as some kind of proof of their pro science superiority, often resorting to calling more religious right leaning people anti-science, creationist spewing knuckle draggers. Odd isn’t it that they are by and large the same people who get the most upset by evolution, social or Darwinian biological, when it’s at work? Move mountains, divert water from people, to save the bait fish snail darter from extinction! They can’t abide it when evolution actually is in process, when species that are incapable of changing to adapt to the environment get eliminated as they should be. Same for social Darwinism, the rule of history has always been that societies that are weaker get replaced by ones that are stronger, and an awful lot of history has been driven by those with the weapons and the will to use them being the stronger ones that make all the rules and survive. It’s upleasant for the losers, and it’ll be our turn soon enough if we don’t adapt, but that’s the way the world operates and always has. And it’ll be our turn if we surrender to the kind of weak and muddle headed thinking that places a premium on victimhood and weakness over strength and success sooner rather than later I think.