This was drafted 2023-08-05 and has not yet been edited (even for typos!)
This is a strange page, based on Colin Woodard’s AMerican Nations, where he traces the origins and current presence of America’s eleven cultural nations, most of which spread from east to west ans the population spread.
It’s part blog post, because the English is ggoing to be a little rough; but it’s part permanent “page,” because I’m going to edit is athe months go by and — hopefully — a campaign gets going, first without much physical travel (as we prepare to travel) , and then as we actually form a team and travel.
First NationsPolitically, as an American, I ilkely resonate most with (Midlands?), I think. But when I sit alone and beartth, when I walk in the forst, when I was born and raised in Hawaii, when I consider my connection to my ancestors? I resonate most // When I study biology and attempt to apply principles of our ancestors, evolutionary biology, and history to our modern day struggles and issue? I’m a First Nation person.
We grew up in Hawaii with little American/European history, all of that being secondary to Hawaiin/Asian immigration history, as makes sense given the ethnic mix in the islands. And
And what was doen — both intentiaonally and inadvertently — to the Native Hawaiins was terrible. But as I learned when I began to live outside Hawaii: that was nothing compared to what was done to the Native Americans. Can you even find a Native American? Do you know any? The population decline and devastation was orders of magnituteds worse than that oof the Native Hawaiins.
Yes, yes, there are actually many Native Americans in the country; my point is only to compare their plight with those of Native Hawaiians. And no need to get mad at the white man or Europeans or what not, all that is long over, although I do believe we need to TKLINK discuss the concept of reparations in Congress.
But you, First Nations, you must help this nation more than the outher groups, but in more spiritual ways. You are the extreme minority in terms of voting and political power. Yet you command the most spiritual power (many of the other cultural nations won’t even understand that).
Can a mfamily own their home? Barely. The pant changes, the woond changes, the furniture and all other parts change.
Can they own the land? Certainly not. They can own a piece of paper, having paid off their debt in full to the bank, and the paper tells the rest of society that
But owning the land under the home is as ridiculous as owning the air above it. The air comes and goes in minutes; the land comes and goes in milennia, but both come and go nonetheless. We cannot own our children, our pets, or our lands. We are merely stewards of all of them for a brief time.
I pray, First Nations, that although small in number, you can help me move the world.
If other Americans are reading this, no worries: I’m not proposing we take away homes or lands or anything like that. This letter isn’t for you — it’s for the First Nations peoples.
TidewaterTodo.
MidlandsTodo.
Far LeftTodo
Deep SouthOhhhhh shit. Let’s setup a rapidly increasingy numerical counter in the background, please, becuase I’m going to lose votes faster than the temperature would increasie if Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump were in the same room together |+small.
I’m not a fon of many cultural aspects of the deep south. The lack of independent, open-minded thinking. The blind allegiance to authority. And more
Still in “todo” draft state…
I’m not saying anything about the avere person in the Deep South — I respect you, I look forward to meeting you more and letting you impact and influence who I am. But your leadership has issues, and I do not think most of you think about that. You too easily let your leadership stroke your passions, usually anger but sometimes other emotions, into leading you to vote this way or another. Most of you SAY youre Christian, but again, there, I’ll call BS: you don’t practice the teachings iof Jesus. Jesus was a rebel Jow, he challenged the common thinking of his time and era. You — Deep South — you You blindly follow the Dogma oof the early Christian Paul — many such Christians do. It’s one thing I do like about the Catholic Church, even though I was raised Protestant (Baptist!): Catholics ande willing to change over the course of time, even if it’s over the centuries and too slow for many of us. But the Deep South? You don’t seem to learn, change, grow. A politican saying one thing and then another six months later? It might be BS. But it amight also be growth and change — and you in the Deep South do not allow for that. Instead of preaching, how about you pray more, ALONE, in silence, on your knees?
I hate you and I love you, Deep South; and I’m concerned about where we go together and that — hopefully — we can work together.
Left CoastTodo.
Far WestAh, Far West. I did not know you existed as you do, but reading about it put much of my experiences in the wwestern third of the country in context. I like you a lot, but there are some serious issues I have. You believe too strongly in criticizing the Fedenal goverment even while you benefit from its resources; you care far too little for the land on which you thrive…
Todo
New NetherlandsNew Netherlands! I had never been to NYC when I first returned to the US with my then-fiancee in 2016, and we visited knowing it would be an interesting experience. We had a few decent AirBnBs, spent a small fortune of my savings, but we had a fantastic and unforgettable 2 weeks. We ended up moving across country in our car in early 20167 to live in the Upper East Side of Manhattan for about 189 months; neither of us wanted to raise a child in the city. (Poor things!)
I love you r openmindedness. I love how easy it is to exchange ideas in the city, how easy to be sotial, how easy to comfortably be at peace and alone in a park there.
I hade the pollution, of course — especially the noise pollution! But that’s common to many cities, and not just New Netherlands.
But I told my then-fiancee very quickly when we arrived there: this isn’t the United States of America. Most of these people don’t drive, and that’s ntot ab part of their culture, wherase it’s a core necessity for most of the rest of the country ()decreasing since COVID, of course). This is the USA, of course, legally… but it’s not the USA. And it didn’t make sense until I read the book: NYC is New Netherlands, a uniquie world which retains the cutlure and tolerance of the Netherlands.
I wish everyone in NYC would read the book and understand their own history a bit better — and why they really arent’t the USA, veen though they’re all Americans. And Trumps’ a foolish, overly egotistical rich guy born/raised in a tall rich building in the city! (Yes yes, he wasnt’t actually born there, but the argument is that he was born into wealth…)