A Social Studies Lesson For The Border Angels

I was on youtube the other day, looking for a Lou Dobbs video clip about the NAFTA Superhighway (which might be the subject of a future blog - Does it exist or is it a myth?). I came across this clip of Dobbs being confronted by a group that calls itself the Border Angels (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HU7bsefBAmQ). These people pass themselves off as protectors of those who cross our southern border illegally. Anyway, they asked Dobbs two questions that were not only insulting, but plainly stupid: "Why didn't your ancestors assimilate into this country?" & "Why didn't you fix your own (European) countries?" It absolutely made my blood boil.

First off, how do they know where Lou Dobbs' ancestors came from, or when they came to America? It may be safe to assume that his ancestors came from Europe, but do the Border Angels know this for a fact? How do they know his ancestors didn't come from North Africa or the Middle East? What if Dobbs' ancestors arrived 100 - 130 years ago & changed their name to something more American sounding? This was a common practice before multiculturalism took hold. The Border Angles also seem to be saying that all Europeans are the same, despite the vastly different languages & cultures that exist on the continent (& I suppose all Europeans look alike too).

So the Border Angels want to know why the Europeans who started coming to the Americas 500 years ago didn't assimilate into the "native" cultures they encountered. The answer to that question is, Why would they? The Europeans built ships that were capable of traveling the world's oceans. They possessed sophisticated architectural techniques that allowed them to build the great gothic cathedrals, castles & housing. The Europeans had Christianity, modern writing techniques, books & clothing. They had firearms. Why would people who possessed these things assimilate into cultures that had very few, if any, of these things? Should the Spaniards who encountered the Aztecs have abandoned Christianity & embraced the ritual of human sacrifice? Should Henry Hudson have tried to explore the Hudson River in a canoe? Should the Europeans have thrown away their firearms & picked up bows, arrows & clubs? Memo to the Border Angels: People from advanced cultures don't assimilate into more primitive ones. Should I be angry at the Romans for conquering my ancestors roughly 2,000 years ago? Well, I'm not. The Romans had an advanced culture (although not without its flaws). My ancestors were barbarians. The Romans never said to themselves, "Ya know, even though we just conquered these people, we need abandon our ways & assimilate into their culture. To Hell with the Senate, the Coliseum, the aqueducts, the Pantheon & bathing!!!"

It's pretty clear that the Border Angels don't have the understanding of history that they think they do. If they did, they'd know that Christopher Columbus didn't set out across the Atlantic Ocean 516 years ago because Europe needed to be fixed. He was looking for a new trade route to Asia. When Columbus arrived in the Americas, he initially thought that he had landed in Asia. He had no idea the "New World" was here. Hell, Europeans thought the world was flat & Columbus' ships would fall of the edge. It's also worth pointing out that even after discovering the Americas, Columbus made subsequent voyages in an attempt to find that new trade route to Asia. (He failed. It was Magellan who discovered that you had to sail around the tip of South America to get to the Pacific Ocean & then, ultimately, Asia). The only thing that needed to be "fixed" was an event that Europeans could do nothing about. It was called the Little Ice Age, which lasted from roughly 1300 - 1850. The Little Ice Age caused massive crop failures. There were over 100 famines in Europe during this period. The Little Ice Age also played a role in spreading the Bubonic Plague, which wiped out one-third of Europe's population. It was so cold throughout 1816 that it was referred to as, "The Year Without A Summer." The Irish Potato Famine of the 1840s can be blamed on the Little Ice Age (& explains why so many Irish came to America during this time). It's worth mentioning the Little Ice Age because we're terrified of climate change today, even with all of our modern technology. What were Europeans supposed to do about a changing climate between 150 & 700 years ago?

Here's a question for the members of the Border Angels who descend from the "native" peoples of the Americas: How many of you are Christians? If you are, I hope you realize you're worshiping the god that Europeans brought to the New World. It's interesting that so many of those who claim to reject Eurocentrism embrace one of its most fundamental aspects. What religious beliefs do you suppose you'd have if Europeans had never come here?