Re: As to the stakes, casinos and all that, there are none, save maybe the hamstringing of science by such cultural and philosophical biases on the part of certain native groups. Isnt that what you are railing against Gustave? And you dont seem to get the point, it doesnt matter who was here "first" because the extant native american groups would collectively be descendent from any such group(s!). Reservations are founded on treaties made with groups that were extant 100 years ago, based on the fact that they were just that, HERE. Not because, "oh, they were the first people in America, we'll wait until we have better evidence to prove them wrong, and then take the reservations too."
You seem to grossly underestimate what's at stake as regards Indian gambling prerogatives. Therefore I recommend you to take a look at this:
indy4.fdl.cc.mn.us
Excerpt:
Gambling is big biz -- close to $400 billion a year and growing. Americans outspend all their other forms of entertainment and self-education put together on gambling.
It's my understanding that such an economic latitude to organize gaming businesses has been granted to US Native people on the basis that they were America's first nations..... Now, I'm not familiar with the issue but I suspect that such a big jackpot --$400 billion-- must arouse the greediest appetite among a lot of would-be casino entrepreneurs. If, by one way or another, these 'casino freaks' can litigate the very assumption of 'Indians as the only, genuine first nations of America', then I guess they'll just step into the breach by putting an end to Indians' exclusive right to operate gambling facilities in the U.S. After all, it's much more convenient --and more marketable to both US gamblers and the IRS-- for a Donald Trump to launch an online Tahaj Mahal in Frisco than, say, in the Cook Islands....
Re: And you havent answered my objections from the last post Gustave. Tell me, would you care to defend the Big Hunter theory of the populating of the New World? Would you care to defend the romantic Clovis theory, that theorizes Asian peoples crossed a narrow land and time window into N. America following migrating megafauna? That these people developed a lithic technology, in situ, without any trace of technological continuity from the primitive lithics of Siberia, in break neck speed? And these same people not only went from Siberia to the tip of South America in approximately 1500 years, but hunted the big game of N. America to extinction too! Wow. Then of course there are those evil conspirators who have been scheming for the past 30 years to undermine this wonderful theory with all their inconvenient evidence...
Derek
Actually, I have not looked into that issue yet. I guess that, like most laymen, I take the Big Hunter version for granted.... However, I know that the navigational skills of the Ancient World have been underestimated. For that matter, I seem to remember that, a couple of years ago, a team of anthropologists built a sailing ship using the same techniques as the Phoenicians, and successfully crossed the Atlantic.....
Gus. |
