UPDATE-2: The road to good intentions is paved with racist tendencies (at least in Canada)

Oh those poor uneducated First Nations! To think that before our superior scurvy filled boats arrived here to share our good fortunes with the simple natives that they were basically just wandering in circles banging animal pelts. Now, we've "modernized" them a bit, but they need to come into the 21st century and shop at Wal Mart and get jobs and stuff. I mean seriously, look at the sourced article's laundry list of "facts":

. Never "discovered" the wheel
. Never had a written language
. Never discovered astronomy
. Had no science or scientific discoveries
. Had no mathematics
. Made no medical discoveries
. Never had written music
. Only "figured out" a drum and a rattle for musical instruments
. Had no metallurgy
. Had no sails for boats (only had canoes)
. Created virtually no mechanical devices
. Possessed almost nothing that required hard manual labour over a period of time, i.e.: building with or carving out of stone
. Made almost no inventions
. Are just in the last 200 years getting caught-up to most of the rest of the world
. Have a history that is notable only for underachievement Are these people in trouble? Yes.
.Do they need help? Yes.

Why he's "quoting" strange words like "discovered" I don't know, perhaps I'm not modern enough to understand. However, right here you have a nice bite sized list of why everything FN says is wrong and why everything us "Canadians" say is right. The author has "figured it all out" boy am I glad he's on the job! So what should they do about it?

The only way to fix this situation is to bring them into society as equals. They should be getting jobs and paying taxes like the rest of us because in reality, they are no more special than any of the other hundred or more cultures that call Canada home.

Turn off the taps. Do away with this "traditional use" and "cultural" nonsense. Educate their children to become modern citizens.

Instead of finding their identity and source of pride in some folks who occupied the land 15,000 years ago. Let them stand or fall on their own account.

Just like the rest of us have to do.

Yes, stupid culture, that's replaceable with McDonalds and I'm paying so much god-damned interest to private banks through our public debt that why the hell should the natives be getting off easy? They should want to join us! This is the modern society, one where we have IPhones and TVs, GMO foods, and remote slaves in China. I mean, come on, who would not want remote slaves in China? They're like our own frickin' set of minions, I mean they are slowly taking ownership of everything we have as we drown in debt but meh.. that's because they're becoming "modern" too.


I want to focus on one very specific point: "Are just in the last 200 years getting caught-up to most of the rest of the world". Mr. Olson, in the last 100 years we've become a "modern economy" that is unsustainable. You sir are telling a people who managed to live in balance with their surroundings for thousands of years not subject to "boom" and "bust" or underground cities of poverty stricken people that you know better. That's the modern world right there as it sits, is it any wonder they don't want to be a part?. Are you sure they never discovered the wheel? In all that time living amongst nature never saw a log roll huh? Maybe their lifestyle just didn't require the wheel, just like people survived and lived and were happy before they knew they "needed" the cellular phones they have now.

I'm not crapping on technology, but Mr. Olson, they had solved some of the basic challenges to life which we can't right now nor ever have. Do you think you need to "Educate" First Power? State of the art independent renewable energy run by a pure FN company and they didn't even have to reject their culture to do it! They don't require you to be tied to the grid like most of our "modern" power producers. Maybe bring back residential schools while we're at it?

Mr. Olson, maybe it's time we allow FN to "modernize" us, because the canaries in our "modern world" coal mine are dying and we have no more lands to colonize.

Update-1

Nanaimo Daily News has removed the letter an issued an apology.

In the Wednesday edition of the Nanaimo Daily News, a letter to the editor ran from Mr. Don Olsen, which has caused considerable concern among some of our readers.

While we would defend Mr. Olsen's right to hold and express his opinion, the sentiments expressed were entirely his own and in no way reflect the views of the newspaper.

The letter should not have run.

We apologize for any distress this may have caused our readers.


Hugh Nicholson
Division Manager
VING

I've written a lot of "letters to the editor" (back when I thought that actually could make a difference). Ones that were factual with sourced articles to backup my claims. They were never printed. It's one thing to have your own opinion, it's another to print blatantly racist and wrong "facts". Let's try not to confuse the two.

Update-2

Because this blog is about future trends and not current events or history the approach I decided to take in my argument is one that I truly believe which is that at this junction the FN have a lot more to teach us than we have to teach them. In any case, another blogger has done a good job of clearing up the historical facts, please check that out.

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Richard Fantin is a self-taught software developer who has mostly throughout his career focused on financial applications and high frequency trading. He currently works for CenturyLink

Nazayh Zanidean is a Project Coordinator for a mid-sized construction contractor in Calgary, Alberta. He enjoys writing as a hobby on topics that include foreign policy, international human rights, security and systemic media bias.