“The audience is led to believe that Ed was fathered by a priest.” Yet in reality there was no villain outside of a Native philanderer who had 17 kids with 5 women. Michelle Stirling challenges another fabrication in our nation’s delirious attempt to impugn past Christian teachers.
These people are nothing if not clever about getting their lies circulating unchallenged in the mainstream. Last week I read about a board game that seeks to further indoctrinate children (https://schoolhouseteachingsupplies.com/lists/LRuOhuoORRTk). I'm always struck by how professional, polished, and expensive looking are aboriginal publications. But it shouldn't be surprising, given the seemingly endless funding provided from taxpayers by governments to finance racist propaganda.
Janice, you can see the "Truth in Truth and Reconciliation" board game demonstrated and explained here: https://fb.watch/u3vJDbWjMQ/ Brace yourself. I mentioned it in a comment on Woke Watch yesterday, with a bit of a summary.
What did he say early in the video? Doesn't want to do more damage? What does he think is accomplished by creating a toy to inculcate lies while denying the capacity to know the truth? And they argue little kids playing cowboys and Indians is hateful. I totally fail to get how this stuff is not hate. Disgusting! Something like this from a European descent would be all over the news branded as "hate speech". How is this allowed?
There's definitely been controversy about the "darkness" of this, um, game. (Actually, no one is calling it a "toy," but they're also NOT calling it what it IS: a propaganda/indoctrination tool.) Corbiere, the artist who created it, has been working on it for years, and he had trouble finding a publisher initially, because he wasn't willing to dispense with the Shame Cards.
Both of those articles are from December 2022. At that point he was planning to raise money through GoFundMe to cover the production costs and then he was going to GIVE the games away to school boards. I wonder what the plan is now; I imagine they're hoping to SELL these into schools to recoup some of the production costs, but who knows. If Medicine Wheel receives government funding (support for the arts, you know), maybe covering costs isn't a major worry. Getting the game into schools is job one.
It is inconceivable that this exceptional documentary is inauthentic in any way. To claim that the survivor’s stories are contrived or made up is a slap in the face to them and their community. Whatever the writer’s personal and political views are, they have no place in this harsh and untrue critique. The facts were painstakingly researched by two highly ethical journalists and filmmakers. At the very least, the making of this film healed a community of survivors to heal. This is not “wokeness”. This film was the most compelling and important one that I have seen in many years. The filmmakers handled the emotional content with great care and sensitivity. They are very deserving of the recognition that the writer complains about.
Brilliant article, Michelle. Enjoyed reading it immensely. I realize this narrative is not intended to be humorous, but in fact there were several times the outrageous mendacity of this so called documentary, left me in uncontrollable stiches of laughter. It seems to have all the authenticity of Stephen Kings Pet Cemetery, which comparatively, we must now refer to as a biopic. Such fallacious claims reveal the white elephant of alcoholism lurking in the shadows trying to avoid detection but clearly a major player in this stage craft charade. The question that always arises in my mind when exposed to such tangible falsehoods is, "how can people be stupid enough to believe such nonsense.
"The history of our race, and each individual’s experience, are sown thick with evidence that a truth is not hard to kill and that a lie told well is immortal." ~ Mark Twain
Well done, Michelle. This is quite astounding, though in many ways not surprising. I have only seen the trailer for *Sugarcane* on IMDB, but even from that it was clear that this was meant to be, as you say, a shockumentary. (For example, the trailer shows the investigators finding initials carved into the walls of an old hayloft. Possibly the initials of children. Gasp! . . . the score gets even more sombre . . .).
Sounds like National Geographic has gone the way of NPR in the US.
And “ambiguous losses” has a companion concept that is clearly in evidence here: “alternative explanations.” Explanations that are perhaps more palatable, more "acceptable" (in the current zeitgeist) for personal trauma. The trauma is real, and demands our compassion. The alternative explanations, though, are not necessarily real, and demand the kind of scrutiny you’ve provided here. Thank you, Michelle.
I want to share a comment made a couple of years back on Substack by a reader whose father was indigenous:
"Would you want to come from people who produce this number of abused and neglected children and have had the power to change it all along? Or would you want to come from a mythologized Culture that got genocided so badly they can't even look after their children anymore and it might take another 100 years to recover?" – Donna Cat
(BTW, we miss you, Donna Cat, if you're still reading here.)
Why so much alcoholism? My theory: all humans were originally susceptible to alcoholism. But in the old world alcohol was discovered centuries ago: from fermentation of sugary juice of grapes in the Mediterranean climate. Gradually those most affected died young and alcoholism declined.
Not completely: it lingered longer in colder Northern Europe where alcoholism still exists at some level.
But the American natives had zero prior exposure and are strongly affected.
Frau Katze, I think there’s likely something to that theory (or certainly, there WAS, in the early days of contact). It’s something that many have asked. A Woke Watch reader who called herself Donna Cat (and who seems to be no longer subscribing, though I hope she might still be reading under a different username) had some thoughts on this that related to alcohol metabolism. Those theories don’t seem to be borne out by the studies I’ve seen, though, and the continuation of alcohol-related problems in gene-diluted generations (mixed race descendants) seems to point more to cultural and sociological causes – though I hasten to say that I have NO expertise whatsoever in this area and I haven’t looked into it very far.
Here are a few studies I looked at more than a year ago now, from my notes:
https://www.verywellmind.com/alcohol-metabolism-key-to-alcohols-dangers-66524 (Feb. 19, 2020) which says, “In the United States, more Native Americans die of alcohol-related causes than any other ethnic group, but researchers found there is no difference in the enzyme patterns or alcohol metabolism rates of Native Americans and Caucasians, indicating that there are other factors at play in the development of alcohol-related problems.”
Willie "incinerator" Sellars and "grand chief" Stewart Phillip never saw a soapbox upon which they would not grandstand. I've been a Vancouver Canucks fan since day 1. my godfather was the "voice of the Canucks" for decades. I had to seriously reconsider my fan-ship after I saw the Canucks management had Sellars give a rah rah locker room session, accompanied no doubt by plenty of guilt-talk. The Aquilinis are pretty firmly entrenched in the truth and reconciliation bullshit, but having worked on a legal case involving that family, I think now there is an ulterior motive for their support, being money and real estate. I dunno. It's disappointing. I wonder if they give natives free or cheap tickets. It seems like if you identify as indigenous in BC most places will give free entrance. That seems kind of racist, no?
A terrific piece of investigative journalism about an undocumented documentary.
“The audience is led to believe that Ed was fathered by a priest.” Yet in reality there was no villain outside of a Native philanderer who had 17 kids with 5 women. Michelle Stirling challenges another fabrication in our nation’s delirious attempt to impugn past Christian teachers.
These people are nothing if not clever about getting their lies circulating unchallenged in the mainstream. Last week I read about a board game that seeks to further indoctrinate children (https://schoolhouseteachingsupplies.com/lists/LRuOhuoORRTk). I'm always struck by how professional, polished, and expensive looking are aboriginal publications. But it shouldn't be surprising, given the seemingly endless funding provided from taxpayers by governments to finance racist propaganda.
Janice, you can see the "Truth in Truth and Reconciliation" board game demonstrated and explained here: https://fb.watch/u3vJDbWjMQ/ Brace yourself. I mentioned it in a comment on Woke Watch yesterday, with a bit of a summary.
What did he say early in the video? Doesn't want to do more damage? What does he think is accomplished by creating a toy to inculcate lies while denying the capacity to know the truth? And they argue little kids playing cowboys and Indians is hateful. I totally fail to get how this stuff is not hate. Disgusting! Something like this from a European descent would be all over the news branded as "hate speech". How is this allowed?
Welcome to the "Post National State", Janice. It is the contemporary version of Orwell's 1984.
There's definitely been controversy about the "darkness" of this, um, game. (Actually, no one is calling it a "toy," but they're also NOT calling it what it IS: a propaganda/indoctrination tool.) Corbiere, the artist who created it, has been working on it for years, and he had trouble finding a publisher initially, because he wasn't willing to dispense with the Shame Cards.
https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2022/12/04/indigenous-board-game-controversy/
https://www.indigenousresurgenceproject.ca/post/james-darin-corbiere-speaking-our-truth
Both of those articles are from December 2022. At that point he was planning to raise money through GoFundMe to cover the production costs and then he was going to GIVE the games away to school boards. I wonder what the plan is now; I imagine they're hoping to SELL these into schools to recoup some of the production costs, but who knows. If Medicine Wheel receives government funding (support for the arts, you know), maybe covering costs isn't a major worry. Getting the game into schools is job one.
It is inconceivable that this exceptional documentary is inauthentic in any way. To claim that the survivor’s stories are contrived or made up is a slap in the face to them and their community. Whatever the writer’s personal and political views are, they have no place in this harsh and untrue critique. The facts were painstakingly researched by two highly ethical journalists and filmmakers. At the very least, the making of this film healed a community of survivors to heal. This is not “wokeness”. This film was the most compelling and important one that I have seen in many years. The filmmakers handled the emotional content with great care and sensitivity. They are very deserving of the recognition that the writer complains about.
Brilliant article, Michelle. Enjoyed reading it immensely. I realize this narrative is not intended to be humorous, but in fact there were several times the outrageous mendacity of this so called documentary, left me in uncontrollable stiches of laughter. It seems to have all the authenticity of Stephen Kings Pet Cemetery, which comparatively, we must now refer to as a biopic. Such fallacious claims reveal the white elephant of alcoholism lurking in the shadows trying to avoid detection but clearly a major player in this stage craft charade. The question that always arises in my mind when exposed to such tangible falsehoods is, "how can people be stupid enough to believe such nonsense.
"The history of our race, and each individual’s experience, are sown thick with evidence that a truth is not hard to kill and that a lie told well is immortal." ~ Mark Twain
Well done, Michelle. This is quite astounding, though in many ways not surprising. I have only seen the trailer for *Sugarcane* on IMDB, but even from that it was clear that this was meant to be, as you say, a shockumentary. (For example, the trailer shows the investigators finding initials carved into the walls of an old hayloft. Possibly the initials of children. Gasp! . . . the score gets even more sombre . . .).
Sounds like National Geographic has gone the way of NPR in the US.
And “ambiguous losses” has a companion concept that is clearly in evidence here: “alternative explanations.” Explanations that are perhaps more palatable, more "acceptable" (in the current zeitgeist) for personal trauma. The trauma is real, and demands our compassion. The alternative explanations, though, are not necessarily real, and demand the kind of scrutiny you’ve provided here. Thank you, Michelle.
I want to share a comment made a couple of years back on Substack by a reader whose father was indigenous:
"Would you want to come from people who produce this number of abused and neglected children and have had the power to change it all along? Or would you want to come from a mythologized Culture that got genocided so badly they can't even look after their children anymore and it might take another 100 years to recover?" – Donna Cat
(BTW, we miss you, Donna Cat, if you're still reading here.)
I miss Donna Cat's posts to.
Why so much alcoholism? My theory: all humans were originally susceptible to alcoholism. But in the old world alcohol was discovered centuries ago: from fermentation of sugary juice of grapes in the Mediterranean climate. Gradually those most affected died young and alcoholism declined.
Not completely: it lingered longer in colder Northern Europe where alcoholism still exists at some level.
But the American natives had zero prior exposure and are strongly affected.
Just a theory.
Frau Katze, I think there’s likely something to that theory (or certainly, there WAS, in the early days of contact). It’s something that many have asked. A Woke Watch reader who called herself Donna Cat (and who seems to be no longer subscribing, though I hope she might still be reading under a different username) had some thoughts on this that related to alcohol metabolism. Those theories don’t seem to be borne out by the studies I’ve seen, though, and the continuation of alcohol-related problems in gene-diluted generations (mixed race descendants) seems to point more to cultural and sociological causes – though I hasten to say that I have NO expertise whatsoever in this area and I haven’t looked into it very far.
Here are a few studies I looked at more than a year ago now, from my notes:
https://www.verywellmind.com/alcohol-metabolism-key-to-alcohols-dangers-66524 (Feb. 19, 2020) which says, “In the United States, more Native Americans die of alcohol-related causes than any other ethnic group, but researchers found there is no difference in the enzyme patterns or alcohol metabolism rates of Native Americans and Caucasians, indicating that there are other factors at play in the development of alcohol-related problems.”
https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/990045?ecd=mkm_ret_230411_mscpmrk-OUS_GenMarketing_CA&uac=95232EK&impID=5315490&faf=1 (March 23, 2023)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s44220-023-00034-y (March 22, 2023)
Willie "incinerator" Sellars and "grand chief" Stewart Phillip never saw a soapbox upon which they would not grandstand. I've been a Vancouver Canucks fan since day 1. my godfather was the "voice of the Canucks" for decades. I had to seriously reconsider my fan-ship after I saw the Canucks management had Sellars give a rah rah locker room session, accompanied no doubt by plenty of guilt-talk. The Aquilinis are pretty firmly entrenched in the truth and reconciliation bullshit, but having worked on a legal case involving that family, I think now there is an ulterior motive for their support, being money and real estate. I dunno. It's disappointing. I wonder if they give natives free or cheap tickets. It seems like if you identify as indigenous in BC most places will give free entrance. That seems kind of racist, no?