LEGENDS OF OLD:
Climbing the Mountain
Cahuillan Indians, California
Here in the dry desert, of the southwestern part of
our country, there lived the Cahuillan Indian Tribe, and just to the north of
them, off in the distance, was the very high range of mountains we today call
the San Bernardino Mountains. It was considered a great and important
achievement to be able to climb this mountain, and so all the young boys of the
village looked forward to the day when they were old enough that they could try
it on their own.
One
night, during the Fall season of the year, the Chief called all the boys
together and said to them, "Now, boys, you are of the proper age to accept this
challenge, and you may now all go out tomorrow and seek to climb that mountain
with my blessings. Start right after breakfast, and each of you, go as far as
you can, and, when you are tired, come back, but you must bring back a twig from
the place where you turned."
The boys were so excited they could
hardly sleep that night.
The next morning, away they all went, full of hope and dreams, each feeling that
he could surely reach the top.
Soon a fat, pudgy boy come slowly
back, puffing and sweating all the way. As he stood before his Chief, he showed
in his hand, that he held a piece of green Beavertail Cactus. "My boy," the
Chief smiled in disbelief, "I can see you did not reach the foot of the
mountain. In fact you did not get across the desert to even start the climb."
An hour passed. Then another boy returned carrying a twig of Black Sagebrush.
"Well," said the Chief, "I can see you did reach the mountain's foot, but you
did not start to climb."
Another hour passed, and a third boy returned. He held a young Cottonwood
sapling. "Good work," said the Chief, "you got up as far as the springs!
Very good!"
A bit of a longer wait, and there came a boy with a part of some Buckthorn. The
Chief smiled when he saw it, and said, "You were actually climbing! I can see
you were up to that first rockslide. You are a hard working boy."
Later in the afternoon, one arrived
with an Incense Cedar frond. "Well done, my boy," said the Chief. "You made it
half way up! You have seen the heart of the mountain. Very good job."
An hour after that, one came with a branch of Ponderosa Pine, and to him the
Chief said, "Good job. You went to the third life zone. It looks like you made
it three quarters of the way. I bet if you keep trying, next year you will
undoubtedly reach the top!"
The sun was low, and even the Chief was starting to worry a bit. There were many
pitfalls on that mountain to overcome, and the last of his boys was still
outside of camp. Could a Grizzly Bear have ambushed him? Or maybe he fell off a
tall rock facing somewhere, never to be heard from again ? Maybe he had lost his
way, or ran out of water.
As
it happened, just when the Chief was to send out a search party to look for the
boy, he was at last returned. He was a tall, splendid boy of noble character,
everyone already knew he was marked to be successful in life. He approached the
Chief and held out his hand. It was empty, but his face was glowing with
happiness when the boy said, "My Chief, there were no trees where I came from. I
saw no twigs, no living thing up on that peak. And far away I could see the
glorious sight of the sun shining off the sea."
Now the old man's face started to glow too! He turned around, and said aloud
with an almost musical tone in his voice, "I knew it! I just knew it when I
looked upon your face. You have been all the way to the top! It was written in
your eyes! It rings in your voice! And it is alive in the way you carry your
body! My boy, you need no twigs for token. You have felt the uplift in your
spirit because you have seen the glory of the mountain!"
Dearest Scouts, keep this in mind, that the badges that are offered you for your
achievements, are not "prizes" to be "won". For prizes are things of value,
taken by force or contest from their rightful owners. These badges, are then,
just tokens, of what you have done, and where you have been. Remember this that
as fun as these badges are to earn, they are just twigs collected from the
trail, to show how far you got, during your climb to manhood.
~Submitted by Blue Panther Keeper of Stories
FEATURE STORY
The Manataka
Summer Gathering 2006
By Linda
VanBibber, Missouri
You
can smell the smoke from the campfires as soon as you turn into Hot Springs
National Park. It’s around five-thirty in the evening and we’ve been on the
road since a little after 9 this morning. Even so, the anticipation of
meeting old friends and making new friends at the Manataka Summer Gathering
is enough to perk up everyone in the car.
Just a little
further and we’re turning into Gulpha Gorge. “Are we here?” asks my excited
nine-year-old granddaughter, Imani, starting to bounce around in the back
seat. Before we even stop the car, Imani’s friend, Randy, has called her
name and she’s got the seat belt off. She’s out the door and I still have
to park the car.
My daughter,
Lisa, who shares my love of the Manataka Mountain and the people who have
gathered around it, gets out of the car and stretches.
The Manataka
teepee is already up. Walking towards it, we hear Becky Flaming Owl Moore
call out to us, pleased to recognize us from a distance without her glasses
on. Hugs are all around. I ask if my dear friend, Becky’s husband Lee
Standing Bear, is around. I am informed that he has gone home to rest for
awhile. After more hugs and hellos we find Imani and head out to find a
hotel room. I want to get settled in and get back to the gorge in time to
climb up to Goat Rock before sundown.
Nowhere on the
planet do I feel more balanced and complete than when I come back down the
trail from Goat Rock. It is as if the energy of the mountain, Rainbow
Woman’s energy, aligns my energy to itself and rebalances, refreshes and
rejuvenates my being. It happens every time. I look forward to my next
visit as soon as I’m on the road back to my home in Independence Missouri.
After
my quick trip up the mountain I again inquire about Standing Bear. This time
I am told that someone has been asked to go and get oxygen for Bear. I
don’t see Becky, so we head back to get some supper and rest before the
gathering starts in the morning.
The Roadway Inn
sits right at the foot of the south side of Manataka Mountain, ‘officially’
known as Hot Springs Mountain. I usually stay there if I’m not camping.
There is a trail that goes from the back of the hotel up the mountain.
Standing Bear had told me about it last fall, indicating that the ceremonies
were likely once performed about where the parking lot is now.
At 6 am I am
awake and headed up the mountain, leaving my daughter and granddaughter
sleeping in the hotel room. While cooler than the previous night, the air
is heavy and humid. The mountain is quiet and still. Dead Chief’s trail
undulates along the south side of the mountain gradually elevating to the
point where it joins the trail up to Goat Rock where it gets increasingly
steep. I have my staff with me. I started this staff at the Fall Gathering
last October. It is covered with spirals, animals and spirits which were
discovered in the wood as it was carved. It also has a vulture feather
which was gifted to me last fall and which I used for cleansing and healing
my brother who had been badly burned. I would gift this staff to Rainbow
Woman to request my spirit name. But now I just took it up the mountain
with me, along with white sage and water to offer as gifts to the Mountain
and to the seven directions.
When I return to
the hotel, I wake up my sleepy roommates and we go to Phil’s Restaurant for
a country breakfast that will keep us going most of the day. Imani is
meeting her friend at 11:00 in the Gorge and the Gathering will commence –
sometime. We’re on Indian time now, so we just hang out and see what
happens next.
Being back in
Gulpha Gorge for the Gathering is special. Due to a misunderstanding with
the Parks Department the necessary permit was not granted and the Gatherings
were held at Bald Mountain Park last year. I was not able to attend the
Summer Gathering, but I was there in the Fall. It was still wonderful; the
respect and love of the people of Manataka make all the Gatherings
fulfilling. But being in the Gorge at the foot of Mantaka Mountain – on
sacred ground – it’s just not the same anywhere else.
We soon learn,
however, that we still don’t have a permit to use the fire circle. We will
be gathering in an open area of the campground. A young couple have
reserved the fire circle for a wedding later in the day. And since they are
members of Manataka, they will graciously allow the use of the fire circle
after the wedding for the performance of the sacred ceremonies for the
Mountain.
Manataka
Mountain and the Valley of Vapors (now Gulpha Gorge) have a unique and
wonderful history. Before ‘civilization’ capped off all the hot springs and
rerouted them to bath houses where they could bring profit to the greedy,
the mists from the springs created rainbows over the Mountain. It was said
that Rainbow Woman guarded the Mountain and the Valley below.
Manataka means
‘place of peace.’ According to legend, all the tribes of the Americas
visited Manataka. No weapons were allowed in the Valley. It was a place
held sacred as far away as South America. Mayan artifacts have been found
on the Mountain. At previous gatherings I have heard this story related by
Lee Standing Bear. But Bear will not be telling the story at this
gathering. I learn when I arrive that he was taken to the emergency room in
Little Rock the night before and is in intensive care. This will be the
first Gathering he has missed since the Manataka American Indian Council was
formed in 1997.
Now people are
beginning to gather, bringing their chairs and blankets to an open area. A
line has formed for smudging. The smell of white sage permeates the air.
Each individual is smudged with great care and attention. The sense of
entering the dimension of sacred space becomes stronger. Ceremonies are
being led this year by David Quiet Wind. A circle of hands is created and
the ceremonies are opened.
The
drummers lead several songs, calling the Creator to join us and be among us.
Manataka has an all-woman drum circle, which is unusual. I am reminded of
an article I read by a Native American grandmother which stated that the
drums were given to the men by the women to allow them to become closer to
Mother Earth. The drums are the heartbeat of Mother Earth. However, the
men have not been faithful to the drums. So the women are taking them
back. Being a member of an all female Afro-Brazilian drum group, I like
this story. It feels very right to me.
It is hot. And
humid. We do not need a lodge to sweat at this gathering. But just as Quiet
Wind is beginning the ceremonies, a cooling rain refreshes and cools us, the
raindrops offering gentle blessing. My granddaughter is excited. Maybe
there will be a rainbow above the Mountain like there used to be. Maybe she
will see Rainbow Woman.
Two basic
ceremonies have been a part of every gathering I have attended: the Making
of a Relative Ceremony, for new members, and the Naming Ceremony. While
there are many ways in which a spirit name is received, it is the custom at
Manataka for the Seeker of a Name to offer a gift which they have made
themselves and prayed over during the making. If an Elder of Manataka is
so moved, they take the gift to the Mountain and ask for the Vision that
gives the name. The name is sacred and tells something about the Path of the
person who receives it. It is not known when a name will be received.
Some have waited years. During the ceremony the story of the Vision is
given as well as the name.
Several names
were given at this gathering. Among the stories were those of a Great
White Healing Bear, of a Red Bird’s Song and the Two Feathers of an Eagle.
Everyone present at a Gathering is joyous over the names received. The name
received describes each person’s personal Gifts and all Gifts belong to the
community. It is the sharing of who we are that makes us all strong.
We do not see
Rainbow Woman. But we feel Her Presence. The rain has left us in time for
the wedding. The air is cooler and the trees sparkle. The sacred fire is
lit. The young couple are handsome. He is tall and stands proud. She is
beautiful and the sun shining from behind her lights her face. This couple
is a blessing.
My granddaughter
has had an upset stomach, so we leave early to get her into bed. Tomorrow
is our last day and I plan to drive over to Little Rock to see Bear in the
morning.
The next morning
I am already headed up the mountain by 6:30. This time I am joined on Goat
Rock by a young woman. This has happened the past two times I have come to
Manataka. The first morning I am undisturbed and rejuvenated. The second
morning I am joined by a young woman and find myself sharing the story of
Manataka.
This young woman
shares a story of getting angry and throwing a can of Sprite at her husband
when her son was only four years old; she is shamed that he still remembers
this now at eight years old. I give her the story of the heart berries and
explain that we react in such unexplainable ways when we do not know how to
share what is really in our heart. I tell her to share this with her son
and assure her that he will understand. Her name is Kathrin.
The walk down
the Mountain is slow and quiet this morning. I no longer have my staff. It
has been entrusted to Quiet Wind. I feel the reluctance to leave that I
always feel. Someday I will be able to come here every day. But not now.
Now I have responsibilities at home and have to return.
Lisa and Imani
will stay at the Gathering while I drive to the VA Hospital in Little Rock.
Becky tells me they only allow visitors on the hour for 15 minutes. It is
after 10 o’clock now, and the hospital is an hour away, so the best I can
hope for is to get there for the noon visiting time.
It is 11:35 when
I arrive at the hospital, just enough time to find the room and catch my
breath. Standing Bear looks good. His ‘numbers’ are good on the monitors,
once I figure out how to read them. He does not say so, but I can tell he
is proud that Becky is taking care of things at the Gathering. He asks
about the gathering and seems pleased that everything went well. He tells
me that when we go up on the Mountain with our hearts we are awakening the
Spirit of Rainbow Woman. I tell him that She awakens my Spirit. We talk of
love; I say take care of yourself, love yourself. He says learn to love the
enemies far away and you will learn to love those close to you that have
more power to irritate you. We agree that Love is One. It is the same Love
no matter where it starts or ends. It is time to go. He wants someone to
bring contraband – chocolate ice cream. I agree to pass along the request.
Back at the
Gorge, a crystal is being charged with prayer. I am immediately drawn into
the group, my energy added to theirs. A few minutes later, Quiet Wind calls
the group back together. There is one more Name to give. Then people are
given the opportunity to speak. Becky shares a chant for Owl Medicine; a
Warrior speaks of protecting the Mountain. Gayle Texas Wind shares Prayers
that she has been Gifted. Thunder rumbles. A prayer is said to close the
ceremony and a summer storm dumps a torrent of rain as the People rush for
tents and vehicles.
The Summer
Gathering has ended. We are cleansed and refreshed. Somewhere there is a
Rainbow.
Aho.
EDITORIAL
The Shame of the Cherokee Nation
Many
members of Congress were rightly outraged by the Cherokee Nation’s
decision earlier this year to revoke the tribal citizenship of about
2,800 descendants of slaves once owned by the tribe. The tribe’s
leaders have since tried to avoid any punishment by restoring
partial rights to some black members.
Congress
should disregard that ruse and move ahead with legislation that
would force the Cherokee to comply with their treaty obligations and
court decisions that guarantee black members full citizenship
rights, including the right to vote and hold tribal office.
This
dispute dates back to the 19th century, when Cherokee, Seminole and
Creek signed treaties with the federal government that required them
to accept their freedmen — many of whom had mixed black and Indian
parentage — as full tribal members in return for recognition as
sovereign nations. The tribes have repeatedly sought to abridge
black Indian rights, but the treaties have been repeatedly upheld in
federal court.
Black
tribal rights were also upheld last year in the Cherokee tribe’s own
supreme court. Then the tribe voted to expel black members. This
could potentially deprive them of their cherished tribal identities,
along with access to medical, housing and tribal benefits.
Representative Diane Watson, Democrat of California, is circulating
a draft of a bill that would strip the Cherokee of hundreds of
millions of dollars in federal aid, and suspend the tribe’s gaming
rights, until it returns black members to full citizenship. The bill
would also require the Department of the Interior — which has
dragged its feet on this issue — to report to Congress on the status
of freedmen’s rights in all tribes.
It is
shameful that the Cherokee have to be pressured into restoring the
rights of their own black citizens. But that clearly is what is
needed.
~Submitted by
Flag Dancer
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR...
Manataka receives dozens of letters each week. Space does not allow us to
publish all letters but we make a concerted effort to
print letters that are representative of a majority. Let us know if there is a
topic you feel needs to be addressed.
Dear Manataka,
These
are photo's of regalia stolen from Darrell Goodwin's sister and
brother-in-law Melinda and Rick Whitecloud while they attended the Gathering
of the Nations Powwow in Albuquerque, NM in April. Please be on the
lookout for these items and spread the word.
website@Gatheringofnations.com
~Submitted by Helen RedWing Vinson
|
|
|
|
I never fit in with white culture
Manataka,
My mother
always said that I am the "white sheep" of the family. My great
grandma was Cherokee. She always wanted me to visit with her and
learn tradition. But you know how kids are - too busy growing up
and doing things with there friends - then it's too late and
great grandma has gone to the other side of the river.
Since my
own mother passed I have become close to my aunt, her sister,
and she has invited me to gatherings, and I am slowly and alot
on my own learning tradition, and understanding what the Red
Road means. I read your smoke signal and it also helps me on my
path. I have a family photo with all of my aunts, grand parents,
and cousins--they all look native and I stand out like a sore
thumb--blond and blue eyes--where did that come from everyone
says! I had a dream that my relatives that have crossed were
standing on the other side of the river smiling and waving at me
to let me know that they are there for me.
Now I
finally understand why I never fit in with white culture, mainly
church and social philosophy, but couldn'tfigure out what was
"wrong" with me. I am so relieved to have found my path, and it
seems so natural. Thanks to the Creator that there is a place
for all of us - we just have to pay attention to what our heart
is telling us, even if our packaging is different. Love to you,
-Renae
|
|
Heath
Freedom Jeopardized
Manataka,
Big Pharma and the FDA want to shut us up for good: Details of a
new FDA "final solution" plan to utterly destroy natural medicine by
regulating herbs, supplements, vitamins and even massage oils as
drugs while criminalizing anyone who sells such products.
If the FDA has its way, even vegetable juices will be regulated as
"drugs." Massage props and hot rocks will be classified as "medical
devices," and the entire nutritional supplements industry will be
destroyed, wiped off the slate, and replaced by a stronger-than-ever
pharmaceutical monopoly that has already taken over virtually the
entire U.S. government.
This is an urgent action item. You still have until April 30 to
post comments with the FDA or write your representatives, and you
can join hundreds of thousands of other readers who are taking a
stand right now to stop this medical tyranny in its tracks. Contact
details and web links are printed in the story below. Click the
headline to read...
Health freedom
action alert: FDA attempting to regulate supplements, herbs and
juices as "drugs"
When it comes to health freedom, this is the FDA's end game. A new
FDA "guidance" document, published on the FDA's website, reveals
plans to reclassify virtually all vitamins, supplements, herbs and
even vegetable juices as FDA-regulated drugs. Massage...
The FDA and Big Pharma-funded criminal gangs have declared war on
the American people.
You see, they not only want to eliminate your access to vitamins and
supplements, they also want to eliminate your access to INFORMATION
about vitamins and supplements! You, the consumer, were never
supposed to find out about this. When you read this story, you are
reading information that will likely soon be OUTLAWED or CENSORED.
Read it while you still can.
To your health and freedom,
- Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
|
|
Cherokee
Nation Bureaucrats Attempt to Change History
Hello Editor,
Hello and Greetings to the
board of the Tahlequah Chamber of Commerce. My name is Paul Thomas
Vickers, I am the Author of the book : Chiefs of Nations : The
Cherokee Nation 1730 to 1839 109 Years of Political Dialogue and
Treaties 0-595-36984-7 iuniverse publishers Oct. 2005. My research
is derived from first class sources and is the only book that
correlates the official dialogue and the treaties with U.S.
government and the Cherokee Nation. The purpose for the email
regards recent public announcements by the United Keetoowah Band of
Cherokee on their website and the plans to meet with your Chamber.
Although they were granted
permission to use my book and have done so, and have used my
research for
their projects, like the Cherokee Nation of Tahlequah, they have
chosen to continue to espouse false accounts of this history; lately
it is the erroneous assumption that ALL ARKANSAS CHEROKEES removed
into present Oklahoma following this alleged treaty in 1828.
This is almost totally
untrue, as this treaty or alleged treaty was not given sanction by
the Arkansas Cherokee National Council; it also defies our beloved
Chiefs of this point and time who in 1825 passed a national resolve
not to sell or exchange lands in Arkansas. Out of some 40 Chiefs of
the Arkansas National Council and some 6,000 Cherokee citizens, only
1 Chief { John Jolly } and his sub-chiefs and approx. 300 Cherokee
agreed to this treaty. By doing so they were hence insurgents.
Moreover they soon began
communicating with the John Ross faction in the east, of whom the
real Arkansas Chiefs and the real Chiefs and people of the eastern
Cherokee ( 75% to 80 % ) did not recognize as a government of the
Cherokee Nation. The books have made this man and his
following martyrs of the Cherokee people and this is also a farce,
as nothing could be further from the truth.
Note: The town of New Echota
created 1825 was not ever a town in the Cherokee Nation prior to
this parties existence; like its so-called leaders-it simply had no
right to exist as a capitol town.
The fact that the United
Keetoowah band has decided to follow in the footsteps of Chief
Chad Smith and his rendition as well as Author Robert Conley, is
appalling and a true dishonor to all the Cherokee people and
chiefs who vowed to remain on the lands that were the only lands
agreed to by the authentic Cherokee National Council in 1817.[ This
was the very last treaty executed by the true Cherokee National
Council ]
You can learn more truth by reading the book or going to my website
at
www.arkansascherokees.com
Yours Truly, Paul T.
Vickers
|
POLITICS WATCH:
Not Quite A Papal Mea Culpa (apology)
The pope's half-hearted apology to indigenous groups in the
Americas shows he has a long way to go in understanding history.
Pope Benedict XVI has apparently, sort of, admitted the truth
about the forced religious conversions of the native peoples of the New World.
On May 23, he acknowledged that "unjustifiable crimes" were committed during
colonial-era evangelization in the New World. But he did not repudiate the
statements he made on this subject during his visit to South America earlier
this month, as was demanded by indigenous groups and by Venezuelan President
Hugo Chavez. Chavez even accused the pope of ignoring the "holocaust" that
followed Columbus' "discovery" of the New World in 1492.
The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-miller24may24,0,1589347.story?coll=la-news-comment-opinions
Submitted by Robert J. Miller, a professor at Lewis & Clark Law School, the
chief justice of the Grand Ronde Tribe and an Eastern Shawnee. He is the author
of the new book "Native America: Discovered and
Conquered."
mea culpa (n) An acknowledgment of a personal error or fault
 |
|
ALERT OF THE MONTH:
MONSANTO & BIG FOOD ATTACK LOCAL RIGHTS TO REGULATE FOOD AND CROPS
Since 1998, the biotech industry and industrial food corporations
have unsuccessfully tried to take away local and states' rights to
ban or regulate genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and other
controversial foods and crops. For example, OCA and other public
interest groups successfully generated a mass outcry in 2006 that
blocked the passage of the National Uniformity for Food Act.
This highly unpopular bill would have nullified 200 food safety and
food labeling laws across the U.S. Failing to suppress grassroots
control over food safety laws and labels in the last session of
Congress, industry has now called on their friends in the House
Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry to slip a similar
poison pill into an obscure section of the voluminous 2007-2012 Farm
Bill. The provision would give the White House appointed Secretary
of Agriculture the power to eliminate local or state food and
farming laws, such as those in four California counties banning
genetically engineered crops, and set an an ominous precedent
undermining states' rights.
Tell Congress to repeal this provision before it
becomes law:
http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_5424.cfm
GOOD NEWS OF THE
MONTH:
VENEZUELA MOVES TO BAN FRANKENCROPS
Monsanto's plans to grow 500,000 acres of genetically engineered
crops in Venezuela have been thwarted by the nation's popular
President, Hugo Chavez. According to Chavez, when he learned about
Monsanto's Plans, "I ordered an end to the project. This project is
terminated." Chavez is now encouraging Venezuela's national
legislature to pass some of the most sweeping restrictions on
genetically modified organisms in the entire Western Hemisphere.
Learn more:
http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_5353.cfm
PRODUCT PLUNDER
OF THE MONTH:
CANCER-CAUSING BENZENE IN SODA DRINKS
The problem of cancer causing benzene turning up in sodas seems
to pop up in the U.S. with alarming regularity. Last week, the FDA
reported that it tested 100 sodas and found unacceptable levels of
the known carcinogen in five of the drinks. Some of these drinks had
benzene levels nearly 100 times that which is considered safe by the
EPA for drinking water. The toxin is formed when a soda manufacturer
uses two ingredients that can react to form benzene: ascorbic acid
and sodium benzoate or potassium benzoate. Soda companies found to
have dangerous levels of benzene have vowed to reformulate their
drinks. In the meantime, boycott the following beverages and
consider avoiding any soda with the "toxic two" ingredients, found
in an astoundingly high number of popular drinks. (As a note,
beverages labeled as "organic" cannot contain these ingredients.)
Learn more:
http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_5422.cfm
Sodas
Found to Contain Carcinogenic Benzene:
-
Safeway Select Diet Orange
-
AquaCal Strawberry Flavored Water Beverage
-
Crystal Light Sunrise Classic Orange
-
Giant Light Cranberry Juice Cocktail
-
Crush Pineapple
QUICK FACTS OF THE MONTH:
GREEN
CONSUMERS CAN'T FIND GREEN GOODS
A new Hartman Group survey indicates that consumers have
generated a greater demand for green and sustainably produced
products than the market is able to provide. While the vast majority
of consumers say they want to purchase a wide variety of products
from companies with sustainability ethics, relatively few consumers
actually know where to find those products.
-
Nearly 3 out of 4 U.S. consumers believe their purchases have
significant impact on society.
-
71%
say they would pay more for sustainably made products.
-
Only
5% of consumers can name companies that they know have values
based on sustainability.
-
Only
one in ten consumers know where they can buy sustainably made
products.
Source:
http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_5400.cfm
TIP OF THE MONTH:
ONLINE SHOPPING FOR THE GREEN-MINDED
Although finding sustainably made products in your local
strip-mall may be difficult, there are an increasing number of
independently owned retailers, coops and online businesses where you
can research and/or buy green products from green companies. The
Organic Consumers Association has teamed up with GreenPeople.org to
bring you one of the world's largest directories of green and
organic businesses. Buy Green, Sell Green, Be Green
Find Green Products and Services in Your Area and
nationwide.
http://www.organicconsumers.org/btc/BuyingGuide.cfm
This article is brought to you by
ORGANIC BYTES, from
Organic Consumers Assoc.
http://www.organicconsumers.org/
|
ELDER'S MEDITATION
I don't think
that anybody anywhere can talk about the future of their people or
of an
organization
without talking about education. Whoever controls the education of
our children controls our future, the future of the Cherokee people
and of the Cherokee Nation."
-Wilma P. Mankiller,
Cherokee
The world has changed in
the last 50 years. It will change even more in the next 50 years,
and it will change even faster. We must educate ourselves to ensure
our future generations will maintain the language and the culture of
our people. We need to be
concerned about our land because when our land goes away, so will
our people. We need to be concerned about leadership, our families
and about alcoholism. We need to be concerned about
what's going on around the
world. We can only do this by being educated. Then we can control
our future.
Great Spirit,
please guide
our children;
let me know
how I can
help.
|
Manataka "Spirit Award"
for
exemplary volunteer service to the organization and community was awarded by unanimous decision of the Elder Council to the
following: |
|
|
HEALTH
WATCH...
Watch Out For
Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs
By Joseph Farah,
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com
WASHINGTON – Brandy Bridges
heard the claims of government officials, environmentalists and retailers
like Wal-Mart all pushing the idea of replacing incandescent light bulbs
with energy-saving and money-saving compact fluorescent lamps.
 |
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv |
|
Brandy
Bridges of Prospect, Maine, shows a newspaper insert promoting the
type of CFL (compact fluorescent lamp) bulbs she says have caused
elevated levels of mercury in her home upon breaking (photo
courtesy: Ellison American) |
|
So, the Prospect, Maine,
resident went out and bought two dozen CFLs and began installing them in her
home. One broke. A month later, her daughter's bedroom remains sealed off
with plastic like the site of a hazardous materials accident, while Bridges
works on a way to pay off a $2,000 estimate by a company specializing in
environmentally sound cleanups of the mercury inside the bulb.
With everyone from
Al Gore to Wal-Mart to the Environmental Protection Agency promoting
CFLs as the greatest thing since, well, the light bulb, consumers have been
left in the dark about a problem they will all face eventually – how to get
rid of the darn things when they burn out or, worse yet, break.
CFLs are all the rage. They
are the spirally shaped, long-lasting bulbs everyone is being urged, cajoled
and guilt-tripped into purchasing to replace Thomas Edison's incandescents,
which are being compared to sports utility vehicles for their impracticality
and energy inefficiency. However, there is no problem disposing of
incandescents when their life is over. You can throw them in the trash can
and they won't hurt the garbage collector. They won't leech deadly compounds
into the air or water. They won't kill people working in the landfills.
The same cannot be said about
the mercury-containing CFLs. They bear disposal warnings on the packaging.
But with limited recycling prospects and the problems experienced by Brandy
Bridges sure to be repeated millions of times, some think government, the
green community and industry are putting the cart before the horse marketing
the new technology so ferociously.
Consider her plight.
When the bulb she was
installing in a ceiling fixture of her 7-year-old daughter's bedroom crashed
to the floor and broke into the shag carpet, she wasn't sure what to do.
Knowing about the danger of mercury, she called Home Depot, the retail
outlet that sold her the bulbs.
READ MORE...
MORE HEALTH WATCH
BIOLOGICAL WAR-FEAR
Seafood imports from China raised in untreated sewage
Fish products consumed by Americans treated with dangerous drugs, chemicals
By Joseph Farah
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com
WASHINGTON –
China, the leading exporter of seafood to the U.S., is raising most of
its fish products in water contaminated with raw sewage and compensating by
using dangerous drugs and chemicals, many of which are banned by the Food
and Drug Administration.
The
stunning news follows World Net Daily's report last week that
FDA
inspectors report tainted food imports from China are being rejected with
increasing frequency because they are filthy, are contaminated with
pesticides and tainted with carcinogens, bacteria and banned drugs.
China has consistently topped
the list of countries whose products were refused by the FDA – and that list
includes many countries, including Mexico and Canada, who export far more
food products to the U.S. than China.
READ MORE...
HERB WATCH...
Amaranth: Food of the Gods
Three Excellent Articles on
Amaranth
Amaranth
is a tall plant with very broad leaves; it produces many thousands
of tiny seeds. The leaves and the seeds are edible. The amaranth is
closely related to pigweed, spinach, beets, and other plants in the
goosefoot family.
Although the amaranth is sometimes
classified in the goosefoot family, it is most commonly classified
in its own family, Amaranthaceae. The point of all this is that
persons who tolerate spinach and beets well may do very well on the
highly nutritious
seeds, leaves, and flour of
the amaranth. Special
Foods™ amaranth flour is
made from organic amaranth
seeds. Amaranth flour has a pleasant, nutty taste. It makes good
tasting bread,
muffins,
bagels, pasta, milk, imitation nut butter ,cookies, gravies, sauces,
pancakes, flatbreads, doughnuts, dumplings, and who knows what else.
(Recipes are supplied with the flours). ALL recipes are made without
wheat or other grains, without yeast, and without milk, eggs, or
sugar.
Amaranth pasta is light
brown in color;
when cooked, the pasta is the color of whole-wheat noodles and the
consistency of regular noodles.
Mexico's
Cooking with Amaranth
Karen Hursh Graber
What
food was considered so important to the diet of Mexico's
pre-Hispanic population that it was fashioned into images of the
gods and eaten as communion? What food was outlawed during the
conquest of Mexico, and the people of New Spain forbidden to
cultivate or consume? And finally, what food contains between 75%
and 87% of total human nutritional requirements? If you've answered
"amaranth" to all of the above, congratulations.
Further congratulations are in
order if, like a growing number of enthusiastic cooks and gardeners,
you have begun to incorporate amaranth into your favorite recipes,
and maybe even include it in the kitchen garden. It's English name
comes from the Greek amarantus, meaning "never fading", an apt
designation, given the varying degrees of esteem and loathing in
which this humble plant has been held.
Current interest in amaranth, while
well-deserved, gives no indication of the cultural conflict it once
caused during the sometimes painful birth of a new nation. As fully
as amaranth was appreciated by the indigenous population of what is
now Mexico, it was just as fully reviled by the Europeans, as one of
the foods they associated with "pagan practices."
Amaranth, a plant used for both its
spinach-like leaves and for the grain gathered from the center
stalk, had tremendous ritual significance for the Aztecs. Many of
their ceremonies included the formation of an image of one of the
gods, made with a paste of amaranth grains mixed with honey. Tlaloc,
the rain god, Ome Acatl, the patron of banquets, and Xochipilli, the
god of youth, poetry and flowers, were all honored with amaranth
likenesses. The images, once formed, were worshipped, broken up and
distributed to eat. The birth of a male child was also an occasion
involving amaranth grains, this time made into a paste for the
formation of a replica shield, bow and arrows, symbolic of hunting
in particular and manly pursuits in general.
The leaves, too, had their place in
ceremonial meals, ground and used in the tamales offered to the fire
god Xiuhtecuhtli, and to the dead on the feast of
Huauquiltamalcualitztli, a mouthful to say as well as to eat,
meaning "the meal of the amaranth tamales." Amaranth was so
necessary to both the religion and nutrition of the Aztecs that it
was one of the four grains considered as acceptable tribute from
outlying parts of the empire, the other three being corn, beans and
chia.
The Mendocino Codex indicates that the equivalent of the modern
measure of 4,000 tons of amaranth a year arrived in Tenochtitlan.
When the Spaniards landed in the
New World, immediately undertaking the zealous, often forceful,
conversion of the inhabitants to Christianity, one of the first
things they did was to outlaw foods involved in indigenous religious
festivals. Diego Duran, in compiling this long list of forbidden
foods chronicled in the Book of the Gods, noted amaranth as
something to be particularly shunned, the consumption of amaranth
idols being considered a blasphemous parody of the Christian
communion. The friars were quick to issue a ban against its
cultivation.
READ MORE...
Mexico's Cooking with Amaranth
Amaranth
and Nutrition
~Submitted by Graybeard
Vinson
FLUORIDE WATCH...
From Crystal Harvey, MAIC Correspondent
Fluoride Action Network
Fluoridation linked to bone cancer:
Finding prompts calls
to halt practice
Young boys who drink fluoridated water are
at an increased risk of developing bone cancer, according to a
new study published in the May issue of the journal, Cancer
Causes and Control.
A team of
Harvard University scientists, led by Dr. Elise Bassin, found a
five fold increased risk of developing osteosarcoma in teenage
boys who drank fluoridated water at ages 6, 7, and 8. The
research, funded by the National Institute of Environmental
Health Studies, reinforces previous findings in both animals and
humans. Dr. William Mass, the head of oral health at the
Centers for Disease Control, told the Wall Street Journal
(July 23, 2005) that Bassin "did great shoe-leather
epidemiology" (1)
According to Fluoride Action Network (FAN) Executive Director,
Dr. Paul Connett, "Increasing a child's risk of contracting a
frequently fatal bone cancer is too high a price to pay for a
small reduction in tooth decay. The 60-year old gamble that
ingested fluoride could protect the tooth enamel without
damaging other tissues, has clearly been a bad one."
The new study is an extension of an analysis first completed by
Bassin as a Harvard PhD thesis in 2001. However, the thesis
adviser, Dr. Chester Douglass, was charged in 2005 by the
Environmental Working Group of withholding and misrepresenting
these findings to the public and scientific community (2). These
charges have been "under investigation" by Harvard for almost
nine months, but no report has yet been given on the results of
this investigation.
Douglass
has recently praised Bassin's work saying "She did a good job Š
it's a nice analysis" in an interview with Fox TV (Boston) News
(3).
According to FAN science research director Chris Neurath, "Bassin's
approach of investigating the risk of osteosarcoma as a function
of the year in which the child is exposed is a breakthrough in
understanding how fluoride may cause bone cancer. Bassin points
out that if studies which only look at lifetime fluoride
exposure or accumulated bone fluoride levels are re-examined
with her method, they too may reveal the same relationship."
This week, the director of a major British cancer study center
reported finding age-specific risk factors at play in many forms
of teenage cancers, including osteosarcoma (4). Dr. Jillian
Birch, head of the UK Pediatric and Familial Cancer Research
Group, said that childhood growth spurts and hormone variations
with age seem to trigger cancers that appear in the teenage
years, thus corroborating Bassin's research.
According to FAN director Connett: "The Bassin findings deal
another serious blow to the US fluoridation program. This paper
comes just two weeks after a major National Research Council
report on fluoride in drinking water which also raised serious
health questions about the dangers of fluoride exposure. We
stand firmly behind the recent call by eleven EPA professional
unions for an immediate halt to water fluoridation and a full
Congressional investigation of this outdated and risky program."
References:
http://www.fluoridealert.org/news/2323.html
http://ewg.org/issues/fluoride/20050627/index.php
http://fluoridealert.org/fox-transcript.html
http://tinyurl.com/pur3n
FUNNY
BONES
No offense intended for any individuals or tribes.
The Donkey
The pastor entered his donkey in a race and it won. The
pastor was so pleased with the donkey that he entered in
another race and it won again.
The local paper read: PASTOR'S ASS OUT FRONT.
The Bishop was so
upset with this kind of publicity that he ordered the
pastor not to enter the donkey in any more races.
The next day the local paper headline read: BISHOP
SCRATCHES THE PASTOR'S ASS.
This was too much for the Bishop, so he ordered the
pastor to get rid of the donkey.
The pastor decided to give it to a nun in a nearby
convent.
The local paper, hearing of the news, posted the
following headline: NUN HAS THE BEST ASS IN TOWN.
He
informed the nun that she would have to get rid of the
donkey so she sold it to a farmer for $10.
The next day the headlines read: NUN SELLS ASS FOR
$10.
This was too much for the Bishop, so he ordered the nun
to buy back the donkey and lead it to the high plains
where it could run free.
The next day the headlines read: NUN ANNOUNCES HER
ASS IS WILD AND FREE.
Alas ... the Bishop
was buried the next day.
ANIMAL
RIGHTS... AND WRONGS
Yellowstone Bison Action Alert
Newborn
bison calves and their families sentenced to death.
The Montana Board of
Livestock decided to capture and slaughter all Yellowstone bison in Montana.
TAKE ACTION,
because there is still time to save these bison from Montana's death sentence.
EMERGENCY ALERT! Slaughter of Buffalo Calves Planned by
Montana
SAVE THE HERD ~ SPREAD THE WORD!!
Please pass this alert on to everyone!
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/media/update0607/alert053007.html
Press Release- 05/29/07
Department of Livestock to Capture and Slaughter
Yellowstone Bison
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/media/press0607/pressreleases0607/052907.html
View
Slideshow of the Yellowstone Bison Sentenced to Slaughter
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/media/photos/bisonphotos0607maycalves.html
Video from
5/30/07
These newborn bison calves and their families have been sentenced to death. The
Montana Board of Livestock decided yesterday to capture and slaughter all
Yellowstone bison in Montana, including this herd that we filmed as they
frolicked on our National Forest lands. Take a look at this video and then TAKE
ACTION, because there is still time to save these bison from Montana's death
sentence.
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/media/video/bisonvideos0607.html
~ Submitted by Hardy Wright
~Submitted by
Sheri Awi Anida Waya Burnett
SACRED SITE WATCH:
Keep Bullets out of American Indian Sacred Sites
in the Los Padres National Forest
Support the The Coalition to Save Husahkiw-Chumash Wind Caves
The Husahkiw Wind Caves site, like Petroglyph National Monument, is qualified
for National Monument designation. It is an internationally recognized
archaeological site, known to be one of the most significant
in North America due to the unique polychrome images - Sacred Cave Paintings. It
is still utilized by Chumash People. This site has been constantly degraded by
the Winchester Gun Club.
Manataka feels there is ample evidence for the U.S. Forest Service to
deny the Winchester Gun Club access to the 140 acres of land adjacent to and
anywhere within hearing distance to the the Wind Caves sacred site -- regardless
of present or past lease for this purpose.
* The sound of gunfire seriously affects religious ceremonies
conducted at and near this site.
* The sound of gunfire also negatively impacts other visitors
to the National Forest.
* There is a clear and present danger to the public safety
from bullet ricochets and stray bullets.
* The soil, air, surface and ground water may be permanently
damaged from lead and toxic contamination
from hazardous
shooting debris and chemical residues created from target shooting that are a
definite
environmental risk.
* As a result of the negative impact on water and sound, local
wildlife and plants are damaged.
* There is no need for another shooting range when other
nearby ranges exist.
* There is a strong potential for wildfires anytime live
explosive materials are used in a forest.
* Sound vibrations from constant exploding gunfire could cause
the earth to move causing cave-ins.
According to Dr. Steven J. Waller, Ph.D., of La Mesa,
California and member of the American Rock Art Research Association:
"...Acoustic measurements are
presented that document the presence of strong echoes and reverberation at
the “Husahkiw” Chumash
Wind Caves rock art site (CA-SBA-509).
This observation is culturally
significant, since there are many myths from around the world that attest to
the belief that echoes were attributed to supernatural spirits. Thus the
presence of echoing at Husahkiw may have contributed to the belief that this
site is sacred, and may help explain the motivation for the rock art
placement there. These results are consistent with the observations of
unusual acoustics at over 300 rock sites on six continents.
Also documented at Husahkiw
was the presence of gunshot noise from the nearby Winchester Gun Club. It
was noted that the sound of these gunshots were not only significantly above
background level, but also have a greater than expected auditory impact
because of the amplification caused by the echoing and reverberation in the
rocky amphitheater-like site.
In light of the spiritual
significance of echoes and the need for a quiet background to experience and
practice religious rituals including those involving echoes, the disruptive
and intrusive noise from gunshots near Husahkiw should be discontinued.
Conservation of the natural acoustics at rock art sites including Husahkiw
is urged...."
From: "Acoustic Ecology at
Husahkiw Chumash
Wind Caves
(CA-SBA-509), 21 May 2004
http://www.geocities.com/capecanaveral/9461/Acoustic_Ecology_Wind_Caves
Immediate public pressure must be applied to Congressional representatives and
the U.S. Forest Service to stop this blatant abuse of an important American
Indian sacred site. Please contact
windcaves@hotmail.com
Sources:
http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/lospadres/projects/analysis/winchester-gun-club-ea12-6-2006.pdf
http://www.geocities.com/capecanaveral/9461/Acoustic_Ecology_Wind_Caves
Steven J. Waller, Ph.D., La Mesa, California
