On Average Intelligence

Hanh mitakuyapi. Hello my relatives.
The scary thing about being of average intelligence is, it's so low. Neither you nor I is likely to be of average intelligence. We fly somewhat higher than that. Unfortunately, people of average intelligence are in the majority if you believe in bell curves. And we are coming up on a Presidential election in less than 2 weeks. That's where the 'really scary' part comes in.
This morning, I was eating in a local cafe' & there was a group of a dozen or so elderly people sitting not too far from me - discussing, of course, politics. The remarks I heard were enough to make my Indn hair stand. on. end.
Predictably, there were many remarks about Sarah the Bimbo & whether she could 'take over & run the country if McCain dropped dead'. As if the President runs the country. Last I heard, this is still a Constitutional democratic republic, ongoing efforts to gut the Constitution to the contrary. The reality is, a variety of governmental entities run the country, from village boards to county boards to city councils to Congress. But in no way does the President run this country, and (s)he never has.
When FDRoosevelt was felled by a stroke, his wife Eleanor did much of his decision-making, not the then Vice-President.. but Congress & the various municipal entities ran the country. And that has not changed.
But the best/worst of the incredibly stupid remarks I heard this morning from that group of retirees was, "Obama isn't ready to run the Presidency because he's black & you know they can't run things.. They all live in ghettos & wear funny clothes & talk funny." And the rest of this group nodded & said, "yep. yep."
I nearly threw up. Instead, I fixed one of them with my best beady-eyed stare until she blushed & looked away. Whereupon, she whispered to the rest of the group that "there's an Indian sitting over there, listening in & staring at us in an unfriendly way". (Yep.yep.) And like a school of fish, they changed the subject of their talk as if they were one entity, & got off on.... the weather. I just thought you might like to know about these things. Let's pray there's some sanity after this election, & we aren't subjected to another 4 years of Bush-n-Karl-Rove-ism. I don't think we can take it. Hm.. Maybe they're black after all. Sure as hell they can't run things worth spit, unless you count "into the ground".

Talk About NERVE!

I got an email the other day that claims that Wal-Mart has been holding "mandatory" meetings for their employees, both management & 'staff', in which Wal-Mart has told them they "are not to vote for Barack Obama & Joe Biden or any other employee-friendly or union-friendly candidates for political office".
I asked a couple of people I know who work at Wal-Mart, and they said it's true.
As a sometime employer, I am appalled that any company's senior management would try to pull a stunt like this. I'm not particularly surprised, but I am definitely appalled.
(a), it's no one's business who any of us vote for; bumper stickers notwithstanding. Under law, an individual's vote is automatically taken to be private. That means it is off-limits to anyone to try to influence another's vote.
(b), the intimation here is that if Wal-Mart senior management "finds out" that any of their employees voted "for the Obama-Biden ticket, or any other employee-friendly or union-friendly candidates for political office", those employees are ripe for retaliation or "discipline" of some kind. NOT ACCEPTABLE!
And, I suspect, illegal. But even if it's not clearly illegal, it's definitely unethical.
If you want to raise stink about this to Wal-Mart, you can go online & email under their "contact" list, OR you can call 1-800-WAL-MART & tell them by phone. I've done both, and I hope you will, too.
And remind them that they are nothing without you, the customer, and that you will be boycotting Wal-Mart - maybe permanently. I don't go to Wal-Mart any more unless I absolutely can't find what I need somewhere else, & that includes online. My purchase dollars at Wal-Mart have gone from about $3,000 annually to less than $500, & that is dropping fast.
I complain to local store managers when I can't find something & point out to them that I really don't want to go to Wal-Mart, but if they refuse to stock a thing, they force the loss in sales.. it isn't about simple preference.
That gets management attention & it gets results in that they stock whatever I'm after.
Please join me now - there are only 16 days left to voting day.

Obama, Elitists, and Jeremiah Wrong

Hanh mitakuyapi. I got an email from a political site recently asking for comments on Obama, elitists and elitism, and Jeremiah "Wright"s comments. Let's discuss JW first.
Jeremiah "Wright" is well & truly Wrong. About nearly everything I've heard him comment on. That said, we come to some Traditional Lakota Teachings about such: (1) Bad words are like the wind blowing around you. Ignore them and keep to your trail. (2) Some statements are so stupid, they don't deserve the dignity of further response. This proves that lack of response does not mean you thought the speaker was right.. Remember "the silent majority".. They subscribe to this Teaching.
Reconsider (1) and ignore the noisy mouths such as J Wrong. If all else fails or you need reinforcement for (1) and (2) above, there's (3) Consider the source (of the remarks) and rise above it. Is sometimes harder to do than it sounds, but is well worth the effort. It's about dignity and keeping your self-respect.
On to elitists and elitism. My perspective on them is, elitists are people of small souls, small minds, and small views. They 'think' others "suck up" to them.
Since I Walk with a Holy Pipe, there is no one for me to "suck up" to, so I don't..
In our Lakota Way, the Teaching about that for 'everyone else' is, "As the Keeper of a Pipe lives, so live the People who come close to Them." So now there's no "sucking up" for you, either. So much for elitists and elitism. And with luck, Obama. And Hilary. And John McC. I plan to write in either "None of the above. Give us some REAL choices for a change!" or vote for my dog. His name is Chakli, if you want to join me.. (It means "coal" in my language.)
On Obama.. I haven't liked the man since he first began to run, and it has taken awhile for me to figure out why. He's what we ITI call "a salesman". He's an elitist, he's slick, and while he seems to believe he's telling us the truth, I don't hear the ring of it when he speaks. My gut reaction is to tune him out and look elsewhere for a candidate for President. My gut reactions have never been wrong, and I'm a great grandmother now..
When GWB first ran for President, I asked myself my standard question for determining if I should vote for him - "would I buy a used vehicle from this person knowing no more about him/her than I do right now?" My gut reaction was a screaming, "No! No way!" History has proven my gut reaction right, hmm?
I'll talk about Hilary and John McC separately. Back to Obama..
He doesn't seem to be part of the mainstream black 'tribe'. He strikes me as some kind of sellout, from whatever "black tribe mindset" may exist, to what I call "white middle-class blahness". He has made disparaging remarks about "blackness" in America. He and his wife made $4.6 million in 2007, which definitely puts him apart from mainstream blacks in the U.S. He just doesn't seem real.
What he reminds me of most is Bill Clinton without the dick-think problem. He wants what he wants, and to heck with what we want. Or need. He 'thinks' he knows better than the rest of us what we most need. I'm always leery of people like that.
Obama reaches out, but he doesn't make contact. Not with this Indn, anyway. And to heck with what "the tribes" have decided. Tribal councils have almost never been in line with the wants and needs of their People since some time in the 1850's, and more so since IRA 1934. So don't be fooled that most ITI want Obama just because some tribal councils have said they think he's the best choice. The majority of us ITI don't necessarily agree.