Themes and Issues in American History 1492-1789
Themes and Issues in American History
September 27, 2006
1492-1789
The Indians were a hospitable and sharing race and sharing was part and parcel of their culture. They were not influenced by the frenzy of the day, capitalism and feudalism. Columbus was motivated by his quest for gold to pay his backers. Gold was the new currency of the day, better than land because it could buy anything. After the wholesale slaughter of the Indians with no gold to show for it, Columbus and the Spaniards sought slaves under the premise that it was Christian like to do so. Slave labor and cruelty allowed millions of Indians to die between 1494 and 1508. It is amazing how cruel the Spaniards were and how docile and civilized the Indians were. Yet, we honor Columbus as a hero and adventurer. Columbus Day is dripping in blood of an innocent peaceful people. The early English settlements were also rife with terrorism of the Indian population. They looked for any small infraction by the Indians in order to severely punish the entire population and then would confiscate land and treasure. It reminded me that war throughout all the ages from Columbus to the present has been fought for reasons far and above the inconsequential initial grievance. Hitler and Poland, Israel and Lebanon, US and Iraq are all examples. As in the Spanish conquest, all the gold and blood did not change Spain’s ranking in the world. The Indian civilization was in fact much greater developed than the European civilization of its day. They had peace, prosperity, and development. Had their people been left alone without the European influence of slaughter, enslavement, and disease it might well have been the utopian society of its day. Who were the real savages and why to this day are the “Indians” still portrayed as primitive beings? Were the Incas, Mayans, Iroquois, Mohawk and other descendants of the great Bering Sea trek any less celebrated than the great civilizations in history, the
September 27, 2006
1492-1789
The Indians were a hospitable and sharing race and sharing was part and parcel of their culture. They were not influenced by the frenzy of the day, capitalism and feudalism. Columbus was motivated by his quest for gold to pay his backers. Gold was the new currency of the day, better than land because it could buy anything. After the wholesale slaughter of the Indians with no gold to show for it, Columbus and the Spaniards sought slaves under the premise that it was Christian like to do so. Slave labor and cruelty allowed millions of Indians to die between 1494 and 1508. It is amazing how cruel the Spaniards were and how docile and civilized the Indians were. Yet, we honor Columbus as a hero and adventurer. Columbus Day is dripping in blood of an innocent peaceful people. The early English settlements were also rife with terrorism of the Indian population. They looked for any small infraction by the Indians in order to severely punish the entire population and then would confiscate land and treasure. It reminded me that war throughout all the ages from Columbus to the present has been fought for reasons far and above the inconsequential initial grievance. Hitler and Poland, Israel and Lebanon, US and Iraq are all examples. As in the Spanish conquest, all the gold and blood did not change Spain’s ranking in the world. The Indian civilization was in fact much greater developed than the European civilization of its day. They had peace, prosperity, and development. Had their people been left alone without the European influence of slaughter, enslavement, and disease it might well have been the utopian society of its day. Who were the real savages and why to this day are the “Indians” still portrayed as primitive beings? Were the Incas, Mayans, Iroquois, Mohawk and other descendants of the great Bering Sea trek any less celebrated than the great civilizations in history, the