If you’ve done any reading at all about “indigenous people” you will surely have noticed some peculiarities. For one, indigenous people are generally presumed to be superior (albeit in a crude, brutish sort of way) than your typical urban dweller in a more technologically advanced society. A great many terms and phrases, whose meanings are murky at best, get tossed tossed around when describing indigenous people and their ways. These terms are meant to imply that indigenous people are nobler, gentler, purer and environmentally wiser than the rest of us.
This is pure horse shit!
Some of the large industrial projects for which I crafted the joint venture agreements and other key contracts were built in remote areas where allegedly indigenous people lived. I visited some of these sites and met many of them.
Indigenous people are nothing at all like what you’ve been led to believe. ( tuscl.net )
First, it’s never been clear to me which people are entitled to be considered “indigenous.” Is this term reserved exclusively for people who were the first to occupy a particular piece of real estate? If so, I doubt if there are any indigenous people left anywhere on the planet. Humans have a long tradition of showing up uninvited on their neighbors’ hunting grounds, murdering all the locals and then claiming the conquered territory as their own. Perhaps “indigenous” is a term we apply loosely to any group of people who, while not necessarily the first to occupy a patch of land, have at least been living there for a long, long and time and who successfully disposed of the prior residents, leaving no trace of them whatsoever.
But there is more to being “indigenous” than just being the earliest known residents of some god-forsaken, remote, mosquito and leach infested patch of real estate. There is an entire world view and ethos that must be adhered to and religiously maintained. Even if your father wore a bone through his nose, had six wives (each of them brightly painted in different colors) and 39 children (only 11 of whom survived long enough to reach puberty), you will lose the right to be considered “indigenous” if you went to college, got an MBA and now hang out at Starbucks tracking your stock portfolio’s performance on an iPad.
It is important to remain ignorant and naïve about the modern world.
New Age sociologists think indigenous people are far cuter if they stay that way.
Having visited remote areas full of “indigenous” people and after reading many books about them, I believe I am qualified to translate for your some of the bullshit that you may read about them.
Phrase: They live in harmony with nature. Translation: They are well adapted to a life rife with fleas and intestinal parasites.
Phrase: Their society has learned to live in a gentle, ecologically sustainable manner, in full balance with nature. Translation: They have no technology to speak of and their population levels are held mercilessly in check by malaria, measles, malnutrition and inter-tribal warfare.
Phrase: They have no interest in or need for money. Translation: They have a totally cashless economy and will happily give up their 12 year old daughter’s hand in marriage in exchange for a nice cow or two pigs and a sack of rice.
Phrase: They have a powerful sense of community. Translation: The villagers have all shared the same, single toothbrush for generations.
Phrase: All disputes are peacefully resolved by a council of the village elders. Translation: The local members of the “good old boys” club get to tell everyone else what to do. ( tuscl.net )
Phrase: They are an intensely spiritual people. Translation: These fools believe in ghosts!
Phrase: Their culture is rich in ancient traditions, symbolism and sacred rituals. Translation: It was a gas watching these idiots dancing around the campfire whooping and hollering, wearing only some face paint, beads and a few brightly colored feathers ( tuscl.net ), but it was also kind of spooky watching them tie a virgin onto an ox at the bottom of a deep pit and set them both on fire to ensure the monsoon rains would commence on schedule.
Phrase: They are very tolerant and permissive with their children. Translation: Their kids don’t go to school and can do whatever the fuck they want all day long while their parents forage in the jungle looking for edible fruits, nuts and insects. ( tuscl.net )
Phrase: They maintain great respect for their elders. Translation: The village chief gets first dibs on any young local woman. ( tuscl.net )
Phrase: Theirs is a holistic world view that embraces natural healing practices. Translation: They don’t know shit from Shinola. ( tuscl.net )
Phrase: They have a powerful and commanding presence. Translation: Wheweeeee! These motherfuckers really STINK!!! ( tuscl.net )
