I enjoyed your piece very much. Could you please share the reference of the interview to Gabor Maté that you are referring to? I would like to read/hear it if it is available. Thanks!
I put this aside to read and then missed it until it resurfaced, and that court decision is enraging if not terribly surprising. The right for powerful men to profit shall not be infringed, and is the first and utmost right considered by law.
Thanks, as always, Nia. I suspect you've already written on this, but I wonder about the nexus of capitalism and the Doctrine of Discovery. I guess we could say that they're symbiotic or subservient partners to one another. I do wonder whether exploitation of land and people, owing to the incredible ascendency and versatility of capitalism, might have happened anyway even without the doctrine. Of course the doctrine set the table. But I wonder whether the doctrine have withered or weakened (like slavery in some parts) without capitalism and its own concomitant partners (science, the state, and most recently transnational corporations). Or maybe it did indeed yield to capitalism. Yeah, that could be it. (But we'll talk about it next month!)
Just when I’ve decided I wasn’t born with original sin after all, I learn about the real original sin. And it’s a doozie. Hard to wash our hands of this one. Thanks for this. I’ll follow up the links.
Unfortunately, I’m not sure that we’ve changed much over the past several hundred years. If we’re good at one thing, it’s how we can justify just about anything.
Thank you for this repost. I came to the party a little late and had not seen it before. This is very well written (of course), and so very important.
These are the lines that most resonated with me:
"They’re one of the bases for nearly every claim of absolute land ownership or property rights. […] The doctrine carries within it a hunger for profit and a near-obsession with the right to wring dry every drop of life itself in the pursuit of wealth. […] It defines how humans are allowed to survive in and relate with our world."
I see this dynamic at play in the real estate and development industries (the new conquistadors). Speculators and investors swoop into “underdeveloped” communities, no matter how happy and content the residents may be, and pillage those communities for every dollar of profit that can be bled out of them. No square foot of land is left unravaged. Nothing is sacred…except, of course, the almighty dollar. All land, all of nature, is mere prostitute for profit. And in many cases that profit is considered proof of God’s blessing, dontcha know. The long-time residents whose lives are unsettled, uprooted, and made more difficult, do not matter a whit. After all, they weren’t making the most of things. And the god I created in my own image wants me to make the most of things, dontcha know.
We're wussies! Although we deal with the occasional hurricane 😜
It's been unusually rainy. 60s-70s we whine if we don't get sun after 48 hours. I hear Catherine Hepburn's voice in my head saying something like, " it's positively dreary" my Dad's in Estes Park so he'll get it as well!
Just saw "Killers of the Flower Moon," and I like your essay better!
I guess now that there's nothing more to discover on this earth (especially with GPS), the Doctrine of Discovery has been updated to mean: The Doctrine of Whatever Already Happened.
Nia I am so glad you reposted this essay. It’s rightly aligned with my current research of what happened in the Nilgiris with british ‘discovery’ of the region. I was learning the concept of ‘terraforming’ in context of colonisation of America and how it often involves the concept of subjugation and cleansing of the land of its ethnicities rather than just discovering and occupying. ‘discovery of land was equivalent to ownership of it’ this hit me like a bus in terms of understanding what I might be missing in my research. Although Indian territories and Americas are two very different places that underwent the waves of colonialism, I cannot help but see deeply entrenched mechanisms that are controlling the way land was owned by force.
I audibly gasped at the part about RBG 😣 you are so knowledgeable and I appreciate all that I’m learning from you & look forward to your book! Going to watch that Ted talk too!
Thank you! ;)
I enjoyed your piece very much. Could you please share the reference of the interview to Gabor Maté that you are referring to? I would like to read/hear it if it is available. Thanks!
I put this aside to read and then missed it until it resurfaced, and that court decision is enraging if not terribly surprising. The right for powerful men to profit shall not be infringed, and is the first and utmost right considered by law.
Thanks, as always, Nia. I suspect you've already written on this, but I wonder about the nexus of capitalism and the Doctrine of Discovery. I guess we could say that they're symbiotic or subservient partners to one another. I do wonder whether exploitation of land and people, owing to the incredible ascendency and versatility of capitalism, might have happened anyway even without the doctrine. Of course the doctrine set the table. But I wonder whether the doctrine have withered or weakened (like slavery in some parts) without capitalism and its own concomitant partners (science, the state, and most recently transnational corporations). Or maybe it did indeed yield to capitalism. Yeah, that could be it. (But we'll talk about it next month!)
Also, there are some thoughtful, well-considered comments here. You cave a friendly and supportive community.
Just when I’ve decided I wasn’t born with original sin after all, I learn about the real original sin. And it’s a doozie. Hard to wash our hands of this one. Thanks for this. I’ll follow up the links.
Unfortunately, I’m not sure that we’ve changed much over the past several hundred years. If we’re good at one thing, it’s how we can justify just about anything.
Thank you for this repost. I came to the party a little late and had not seen it before. This is very well written (of course), and so very important.
These are the lines that most resonated with me:
"They’re one of the bases for nearly every claim of absolute land ownership or property rights. […] The doctrine carries within it a hunger for profit and a near-obsession with the right to wring dry every drop of life itself in the pursuit of wealth. […] It defines how humans are allowed to survive in and relate with our world."
I see this dynamic at play in the real estate and development industries (the new conquistadors). Speculators and investors swoop into “underdeveloped” communities, no matter how happy and content the residents may be, and pillage those communities for every dollar of profit that can be bled out of them. No square foot of land is left unravaged. Nothing is sacred…except, of course, the almighty dollar. All land, all of nature, is mere prostitute for profit. And in many cases that profit is considered proof of God’s blessing, dontcha know. The long-time residents whose lives are unsettled, uprooted, and made more difficult, do not matter a whit. After all, they weren’t making the most of things. And the god I created in my own image wants me to make the most of things, dontcha know.
This is WILD 🤯
While I’m all about historical perspectives, it is important not to lose sight that the future is created from the present moment.
Natural Asset Companies (NACs), which would buy up land rights throughout America.
Blackrock wants to CONTROL the national parks and all the public assets in the BLM.
https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/state-ags-blast-biden-wall-street-plan-to-sell-rights-to-americas-public-lands-5562665?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=ZeroHedge&src_src=partner&src_cmp=ZeroHedge
Terrific work and a reminder that events of 500 years ago still matter today
We're wussies! Although we deal with the occasional hurricane 😜
It's been unusually rainy. 60s-70s we whine if we don't get sun after 48 hours. I hear Catherine Hepburn's voice in my head saying something like, " it's positively dreary" my Dad's in Estes Park so he'll get it as well!
Take good care 🌻💪
Just saw "Killers of the Flower Moon," and I like your essay better!
I guess now that there's nothing more to discover on this earth (especially with GPS), the Doctrine of Discovery has been updated to mean: The Doctrine of Whatever Already Happened.
Nia I am so glad you reposted this essay. It’s rightly aligned with my current research of what happened in the Nilgiris with british ‘discovery’ of the region. I was learning the concept of ‘terraforming’ in context of colonisation of America and how it often involves the concept of subjugation and cleansing of the land of its ethnicities rather than just discovering and occupying. ‘discovery of land was equivalent to ownership of it’ this hit me like a bus in terms of understanding what I might be missing in my research. Although Indian territories and Americas are two very different places that underwent the waves of colonialism, I cannot help but see deeply entrenched mechanisms that are controlling the way land was owned by force.
Antonia, I am so impressed with the work you do. Thank you for this important information and for your passion on this subject.
I audibly gasped at the part about RBG 😣 you are so knowledgeable and I appreciate all that I’m learning from you & look forward to your book! Going to watch that Ted talk too!
https://landreport.com/land-report-100
Cheers! (sarcasm intended)