Tribal leaders say 2020 should be about 'life or death' issues, not Warren's DNA

[mucifer]

Tribal leaders say it's a grave disappointment that the political focus on Native Americans these days can seem limited to their reaction to Sen. Elizabeth Warren's DNA test results or President Donald Trump calling her "Pocahontas" to disparage her fraught history of claiming Native American ancestry.

Attention, instead, should be paid to issues such as health care and suicide that for years have plagued Native Americans living both on and off reservations, tribal leaders and Native Americans from around the country told ABC News in a series of interviews.

“I mean, it doesn't do any good to, you know, have a U.S. senator or future president get up there and talk for 45 minutes about DNA. How does that help us with with our high suicide rate? How does that help us with the Keystone XL pipeline? How does that help us with our missing and murdered Indigenous women and children? It makes no sense to me,” Semans said.

Ultimately, although Warren chose to open her remarks at the forum with an apology for her “mistakes” and “any harm” she caused by claiming Native American ancestry over the years and taking a DNA test in 2018 — an action criticized by tribes who pointed out the difference between DNA and tribal citizenship — it wasn’t something she was asked about by any of the panelists on stage.

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/tribal-leaders-2020-life-death-issues-warrens-dna/story?id=65273516

[rampartc]

1. that wisdom explains their position as tribal leaders.

[KPN]

6. Doesn't it though? Good observation. It also

illuminates the relative wisdom of Native American leaders generally — a wisdom they have demonstrated consistently over time.

[DownriverDem]

2. For sure

Exactly why I support Biden. He has wide support.

[paleotn]

5. Like the Platte?

A mile wide and a foot deep? Hey, I'm just joking.

[Newest Reality]

3. Diffusion

If you pay attention to all the items that flow by on this forum, you might notice the amount of diffusion there is.

I am not criticizing the quality and quantity, the more the merrier and I enjoy diversity. However, that illustrates the point that we have, in our politics and otherwise, so much distraction and attention paid to non-essential issues that it almost seems like a contradiction in the sense of utilizing the information or politics for real change or solving problems.

In certain forms of Buddhism, they compare the mind to a drunk monkey; it is wild and untamed, unfocused and it wanders. I mention that because, like the article, we seem to be seeing somewhat of a reflection of that in a general sense. Of course, who can tame the drunk monkey of our collective, let alone take the bottle away? We can however take note of that and recognize that the individuals who form the society can tame theirs to some degree and get the critter sober.

Life in a complex, accelerating whirlwind of progress could be expected to be chaotic and overwhelming, but at least we can diagnose the problem of the diffusion and distraction that it brings and act from there. When we find ourselves frustrated and nonplussed by how it is going, it makes sense to think that if your attention and energy are spread out to much, (as an individual or a society) then it will rapidly dissipate and lose effectiveness.

Finally, that is what I think contributes to some of the glaring and persistent problems we face and, at the same time, it diffuses our ability to focus on them, come to a consensus and then to accomplish what is necessary to resolve them.

We see so much focus, (as this article points out) on some issues that seem to be non-essential and not enough on extremely critical ones that need to take the priority. There are times when banter about trivial matters is a way to pass time. If you were at a party, then you might talk about sundry topics, but if the house were on fire, that would the important matter at hand.

To sum that up: without focus and an intelligent prioritization of what matters most, we will miss the point that all the factors are interconnected and if some are not addressed, others won't matter anymore--it will be too late because the house burned down.

I agree with the Tribal leaders, in all important matters it is time to get our priorities straight and develop some laser focus on them. This is a time when ignoring that is a luxury indeed.

[Roy Rolling]

4. Propaganda

Those who publish right-wing political propaganda are the ones creating a controversy. They are telling Native Americans the most important thing for them is to be insulted by Warren’s DNA test.

Tribal leaders ain’t buying that. They know better than to trust the white man. 😁😳