Wolf Spirit. newsletter March 2011
Metis/District 14
Connecticut
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I don't know about you but I am patiently waiting for Spring!!! Soon!!! Warm weather, sun and birds singing...my kind of weather. I hope the new season finds you all well.
Everything is waking up from its long sleep.
Happy Spring everyone!!
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Navajo is new Native link at White House
By Noel Lyn Smith
Navajo Times
Being nervous on your first day at work is normal, but imagine if your boss is President Barack Obama and your new office is in the West Wing of the White House.
When Charlie Galbraith arrived to begin his new job in the White House Office of Public Engagement on Feb. 8, it just happened to be on a day when the president dropped in for a visit.
Galbraith shook Obama's hand and renewed their acquaintance - he had worked on Obama's presidential campaign - before opening his portfolio and getting down to business as an associate director of the Office of Public Engagement and deputy associate director of the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs.
The Office of Public Engagement, along with the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, serves as the avenue through which both ordinary Americans and government officials - from local to tribal - can participate in and inform the work of the president.
In essence, Galbraith, 31, serves as the front door to the White House for Indian Country.
He grew up in Phoenix and is Áshiihí (Salt Clan), born for Dághá Lichíí (Irish). His chei is Kinyaa'áanii (Towering House Clan).
He has a bachelor's degree from the University of Chicago and a law degree from Arizona State University.
During law school, Galbraith served as vice president of the Native American Law Students Association and clerked for the Native American Rights Fund in Washington, D.C.
He also previously worked as an assistant U.S. attorney for the District of Arizona with a focus on white-collar crime and immigration cases. "Instead of talking to a judge every day I'm talking to tribal leaders," he said.
He also worked as a legislative assistant to Sen. Tim Johnson, D-S.D., for three years.
The transition from the Senate to the White House began after Galbraith was approached by a staff member of then Sen. Obama, who wanted to talk about Native American issues. Obama was considering a presidential run and he wanted to focus on groups that traditionally do not have a strong voice in the federal government.
Galbraith went on to serve in Obama's campaign as an organizer of the Native American Domestic Policy Committee, which was a nationwide group of tribal leaders and activists.
He understands that each of the 565 federally recognized tribes has different issues and is looking forward to learning about their cultures.
"They're going to keep me busy," he said of his mission to keep the president current on their issues.
Galbraith is taking over the position from Jodi Gillette, Standing Rock Sioux, who is now deputy assistant secretary for policy and economic development at the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
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Child Burial Provides Rare Glimpse of Early Americans
by Michael Balter
24 February 2011, 2:02 PM
Credit: Ben A. Potter/Universtiy of Alaska, FairbanksAbout 11,500 years ago, at a seasonal base camp in central Alaska, a 3-year-old child died. Its family burned the small body, perhaps ceremonially, in the house's central hearth, and then they moved on, never to use the home again.
Last year, archaeologists discovered the remains of the house and burial, providing a rare slice of life of the first Americans. Some aspects of the burial resemble those in both Siberia and North America, but in other respects the new find is completely unique. And it may ultimately reveal any genetic links between these early Alaskans and other so-called Paleoindians in North America.
At least 14,000 years ago, humans began moving from Siberia into Alaska, crossing a land bridge over what is now the Bering Sea and then colonizing both North and South America. But the bones and burials of these ancient Alaskans are vanishingly rare, as are the remains of their houses. While excavating at the site of Upward Sun River, near the Tanama River in central Alaska, archaeologist Ben Potter of the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, and his colleagues discovered the outlines of the foundation of a circular house, including a scattering of stone tools and animal bones on the floor and traces of posts that may have held up the walls and roof. As the team reports in this week's issue of Science, the center of the house was taken up with a large circular pit containing the fragmented, partially burnt bones of the child.
Underneath the human burial, the team found the charred remains of fish including salmon, small mammals such as ground squirrels, and birds such as grouse—all apparently cooked in the hearth before the child was buried in it. Radiocarbon dating of charcoal puts the pit at about 11,500 years old; the eruption of the child's teeth suggests that it was about 3 years old when it died. The burial contained no grave goods, but two small pieces of ochre may have been part of a ritual burial ceremony.
The team surmises that the site served as a summer residence for a small social group, in contrast to more temporary hunting camps typical of many other Paleoindian sites. The pit probably served as both a cooking hearth and a place to dispose of food scraps. But once the child died and its body was cremated there, the people apparently abandoned this house and hearth.
From this era, archaeologists know of only one other burial in Alaska and also only one in Siberia. Two children were buried, one with ochre, in separate houses at the 13,000-year-old Siberian site of Ushki, although those bodies were not cremated. Cremations are known from two North American sites slightly later than Upward Sun River, Marmes in Washington state and Spirit Cave in Nevada, but they were not in houses. Upward Sun River is the only known site with a cremation inside a house, Potter says. "The constellation of behaviors is thus far unique in North America."
Archaeologist John Hoffecker of the University of Colorado, Boulder, agrees. "It's a tremendously interesting find," Hoffecker says. "This is the first time we've seen anything like this so early."
Thanks to good cooperation with local Native peoples, who in some other cases have been wary of scientific analysis of ancient remains, Potter and his team are now analyzing ancient DNA from the child's bones, about 20% of which were not burned. (The local Healy Lake Tribe named the site Upward Sun River, or Xaasaa Na' in the local Athabascan language, and Potter changed his own name for the site to reflect theirs.) If scientists succeed in getting DNA from the child's bones, they might be able to compare it with other Paleoindian bones found farther south. That could give more detailed clues about the routes that the earliest Americans used as they spread down through North America and how closely related these early Alaskans were to ancient humans of the lower 48. "That would be a bombshell," Hoffecker says.
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Federal eagle repository deals with backlog of 6000 requests
Friday, February 25, 2011
The National Eagle Repository in Colorado responded to more than 3,000 requests for eagle feathers and eagle parts last year.
But that still wasn't enough to reduce the backlog. The repository, which is part of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, has more than 6,000 order to fill, meaning it could take years to secure feathers or parts.
Only members of federally recognized tribes can request eagle feathers or parts from the repository.
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Original BIA records dumped in trash at National Archives in DC
Thursday, February 24, 2011
In September 2005, the National Archives and Records Administration launched an investigation to determine how original Bureau of Indian Affairs documents ended up in a trash can.
It doesn't appear any progress has been made in over four years, however. The Washington Post reports that NARA still doesn't know whether the records were dumped intentionally or whether it was an accident.
The records were discovered in a trash can at the National Archives headquarters in Washington, D.C. The BIA at the time said it wasn't responsible because the documents weren't in its custody.
As part of the Indian trust fund lawsuit, the BIA was under a court order to preserve all documents.
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Today in history
Feb. 11, 1805 – Sacagawea, Shoshone interpreter and guide on the Lewis and Clark expedition, gave birth to her first child, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, while the expedition was camped on the Upper Missouri River. She was the wife of a French trapper and daughter of a Shoshone chief whose territory was near the Continental Divide (in parts of Montana and Idaho). She was assisted in the birth by Meriweather Lewis, who often acted as the expedition’s doctor. Lewis worried because her labor was long and the painful, so he mixed a small amount of rattlesnake rattle with water and gave it to Sacagawea because he heard it speeded the process.
“She had not taken [the mixture] more than ten minutes before she brought forth,” Lewis happily reported. The baby, nicknamed “Pomp and Pompey” by Clark, accompanied his mother on every step of their epic journey to the Pacific and back. Jean Baptiste Charbonneau led a colorful life. At one point, he accompanied a German prince to Europe.
But most of his adult life he hunted, guided and trapped throughout the American West. He died of unknown cause in 1866 as he travelled from Auburn, Cali., where he spent years mining gold, to an unknown destination in Montana. Read more about his life here
Jean Baptiste Charbonneau was born at Fort Mandan, North Dakota, on the Missouri River. His father was Toussaint Charbonneau, a French trapper, and his mother was Sacagawea, a Shoshoni woman who had been kidnapped by the Hidatsa a few years before. It was said that Charbonneau “won” her on a wager. Perhaps not, but it is a fact that she became his second Native American wife.
Such unions between white “mountain men” and trappers with Indian women was fairly common. In the normal course of events, Jean Baptiste would have lived out his life in obscurity. But that changed when the Lewis and Clark expedition arrived at Fort Mandan to stop for the winter of 1804-1805. Co-leaders Meriwether Lewis and William Clark were exploring the west, hoping to make it to the Pacific Ocean. Toussaint was hired as an interpreter, and Sacagawea was allowed to come along, because the explorers knew they would have to get horses from her people at the headwaters of the Missouri.
“Pompy” and the Lewis and Clark Expedition
Jean Baptiste was born on February 11, 1805. Lewis notes the event in his journal, saying that “one of the wives of Chabono” (sic) delivered a fine boy. It seems the labor was long and painful, since it was her first child. To ease the delivery Sacagawea was given some rattlesnake rattle broken up in water. Some ten minutes later Jean Baptiste came into the world. In spite of the timing, Lewis remained understandably skeptical of the “medicine.”
Lewis seems to have had little liking for Indians, but Clark was different. He was delighted with the baby boy, who he nicknamed “Pomp” or “Pompey.” On his return from the Pacific, Clark named an unusual sandstone pillar in Montana "Pompey's Tower" (later Pillar) in the boy’s honor
Jean Baptiste’s Youth and Early Manhood
William Clark took the boy under his wing, paying for his education at the St Louis Academy. When his parents went back west, young Charbonneau stayed behind in St Louis to complete his education. Clark became a kind of foster father to the lad. His mother Sacagawea probably died in 1812. There is some controversy about when his father Toussaint died, but it was probably in the 1840s.
When Jean Baptiste was 18 he met Prince Paul Wilhelm von Wurttemburg, The German royal was something of a naturalist, and he was on a study tour of the American west. Prince Paul took a liking to Jean Baptiste, and took him back to Europe. The young American lived in Europe for six years, in the process learned Spanish, German, and French.
The Fur Trade and Mountain Men
Jean Baptiste returned home and began trapping for the American Fur Company in Idaho and Utah. He was not only fluent in Spanish and French, but also knew several Native American tongues. This made him invaluable as an army scout and guide. Jean Baptiste became one of the “mountain men,” trappers, explorers, and guides to helped open the west. It is know he associated with fellow mountain men, legendary figures like Jim Bridger.
The Mexican War and California Gold Rush
Jean Baptiste Charbonneau was one of two guides selected to lead the Mormon Battalion from New Mexico to San Diego, California during the Mexican War. He stayed on for the California Gold Rush, but apparently did not strike it rich. Most “49ers” got little to show for their efforts. It was the merchants who supplied the miners, not miners themselves, who usually got wealthy. Jean Baptist ended up a clerk at the Orleans Hotel in Auburn, California. Given his background, he must have hated the job.
In 1866 there was another gold strike in Montana, and the end of the Bozeman Trail. Jean Baptiste left California and joined the new “rush,” probably in hopes of recouping his fortunes. Maybe he just sought adventure. But Jean Baptiste Chabonneau never made it. He contracted pneumonia and died en route at the age of sixty-one.
Sources:
Dan L. Trapp, “Jean Baptiste Charbonneau,” Encyclopedia of Frontier Biography Vol 1, A-L (University of Nebraska Press, 1988)
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Choctaw Nation to rebury 124 ancestral remains in Mississippi
Thursday, February 24, 2011
The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma signed an agreement to repatriate 124 ancestors that were removed from their resting place in Mississippi.
The remains were uncovered along the Natchez Trace Parkway in the 1950s and 1960s. They will finally be reburied in Mississippi.
"Our graves to be sacred--our ancestors burial spots to be sacred and part of that is to protect them and because native people were taken off of our land, we can't do that always," tribal archaeologist Ian Thompson said at a ceremony yesterday, KTEN-TV reported.
The tribe reclaimed its ancestors through the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.
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Wiyot Tribe holding annual candlelight vigil for Indian Island
The Times-Standard
Posted: 02/25/2011 01:27:22 AM PST
As the community gathers to remember the Indian Island tragedy this weekend, the Wiyot Tribe is making progress on restoring the land.
The 20th annual Indian Island Candlelight Vigil will be held Saturday on Woodley Island. The event attracts hundred of people each year, rain or shine, and ends with a potluck at Runeberg Hall, located at Wabash Avenue and Union Street in Eureka.
The vigil starts at 5 p.m., and the potluck starts at 7 p.m. According to the tribe, attendees should bring a candle.
Indian Island was once a site for the tribe's World Renewal Ceremony, a dance ceremony lasting seven to 10 days. After a ceremony in 1860, a group of local Eureka men went to the island and killed sleeping men, women and children.
Partially contaminated by toxins -- wood preservatives used by a boat repair facility that once occupied the area -- the original ceremonial grounds need to be restored before the tribe can use the land again.
In 2000, the tribe began efforts to restore the area. When the decontamination project, called the Tuluwat Restoration Project after the village that once stood there, is finished there will be housing structures, a new dock and bulkhead to allow for better access, and restoration measures to improve the area's natural habitat.
Stephen Kullmann, the tribe's environmental director, said the tribe began working on the bulkhead reconstruction this month.
The California Coastal Commission approved the first phase of the project in July 2008. According to a commission staff report, the first phase consists of repairing the bulkhead, removing debris and demolishing various dilapidated structures on the site, excavating contaminated soil, and installing a protective soil and geotextile cap over a majority of the parcel.
In August 2008, the tribe was able to remove contaminated soil and begin work on the installation of fiberglass pilings for the cap, but issues with funding slowed the project down.
Kullmann said the completion of the bulkhead will allow for a staging area for the rest of the work. He expects to be finished with the bulkhead in a few weeks -- weather permitting -- before moving on to pilings, which address erosion, and the cap.
Kullmann said the tribe is in discussions with various agencies about securing additional funds for the project.
”Everyone's strapped for money these days, but there are some positive things,” he said.
For more information on Saturday's event, call 733-5055.
Donna Tam can be reached at 441-0532 or dtam@times-standard.com.
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There need be no trouble.
Treat all men alike.
Give them all the same law.
Give them all an even chance
to live and grow.
All men were made
by the same Great Spirit Chief.
They are all brothers.
The earth is the mother of all people
and all people should have equal rights upon it.
Chief Joseph (Nez Perce) 1879
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Bamm Brewer: Some memories of the annual Crazy Horse Ride
Thursday, February 24, 2011
The following article by Bamm Brewer, a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, first appeared in the Lakota Country Times.
As smoke drifted thru the tipi poles and the warm sun rays shined, the camp was slowly coming to life. There was only a few riders moving around early, after two days of a long ride it was great to know it was a day of rest. The night was a long one. There was a low fog and everything was soaked, but the first person I saw was a smiley faced kid looking for his horse and that is what we were all about.
I rolled over and remember wishing for just a couple more hours of sleep. I was never a late sleeper but this was one time I wish I was. If I never felt age I was feeling it now. I hoped we had a dry ride ahead, but rain was always a part of our journey.
Next someone came over to see if we had any coffee, we didn’t even stand up yet. Then I heard someone talking they had a tough night .They were talking and the tone of their voice made me listen closer. They were talking in Indian, and I could make out some of it. As it seemed, they were saying some of the horses got out last night and in the dark some of the boys went after them.
We always left the horses secure and it was the young warriors duty to watch them throughout the night. They said something that ran a chill down my back. It was said the young boys who went up there on foot to get the horses, they were having some trouble the horses ran farther away into the night. The boys continued after the horses. Then a rider showed up out there in the dark! They couldn’t see the rider it was too dark, but the rider was trying to help them .They kept saying there was someone out there helping them. Whoever it was turned those horses around and they don’t know which way they went after that, or who it was. That was the morning mystery; it was the talk around that morning coffee pot.
That camp is a special place to the Lakota. Most of those kinds of experiences we thought we were used to after 10 years, but that one was a good one. You kind of give it a whirl in your mind then let it settle, there's no way to shake off a mystical experience like that, especially when you know you’re at the Crazy Horse Camp. It’s the kind of feeling we try to hold onto as long as we can. In a camp where yesterday meets today and we are one with our ancestors.
It had been a long time ago that Crazy Horse camped in the Beaver Creek area, in 2011 the people will ride again on June 5 through June 9; coming into the camp on the afternoon of June 7. The area was rich with game and good water and it provided a sheltered place from the hardest winters. The surrounding hills were loaded with big bucks, turkey, rabbits, and to the north in the plains were the antelope and buffalo. If ever there was a warrior camp this was it. The Beaver valley grew ash trees providing good hard wood for the camp. The camp was known to be a favorite camp of Crazy Horse and the people; it was also a Sundance ground, today in the month of June the people return once again. The camp in all its beauty is still there today. A historical landmark preserved and protected by the Kadelchek family north of Hay Springs Nebraska.
In 2010 on the rest night the Thunder beings spoke for three straight hours and the sound of washing rain gave the riders a wide awake night. I mean the thunders rolled a constant rumble for three straight hours. I knew morning would come fast after a night like that. I remember a constant hard down pour, everything soaked and horses singing with the rain into the night. The only time I could see anything was when the lightning would flash. Everyone had to duck into tents when that rain started. I came outside of the tipi to check on the situation and all looked normal, just a soaking wet camp. It was the Crazy Horse Ride alright.
Everyone took shelter and the camp kitchen tent, courtesy of John Two Bulls, was providing shelter for those that didn’t want to go to tents. It was always fun staying up late and visiting around a camp fire and a pot of coffee even in the rain, but when it started to rain really hard later that night everyone vanished. There wasn’t anyone over at the cooks’ tent anymore and it looked like I was the only one up when that rain hit. I walked up on the hill above the camp and when the lightning flashed, I knew that even as deserted as the camp looked it was not so, this was the Crazy Horse Ride and in this camp there were over 200 Lakota riders.
The sun always shined more than the rains drenched us and as the people always said when it rained; “it is a cleansing of the earth and the people” The nights were always something to remember on the Crazy Horse Ride. There is always some great laughter sitting around those crackling camp fires.
When the drum group pulled out the drum on a starry night that always brought us closer to the grandfathers; a 49 song or original camp honor song always stopped you in your tracks and you could feel it in your heart. The Cheyenne creek singers were always there from the start, Bull, Tim, Rob and John and what was great they weren’t just the drum group they rode too.
They’d sing into the night and then start out the next day’s ride with a prayer song. These guys were always a ton of laughs, when there not under the arbor they are sitting atop a green broke bronc. Anyway as I would often walk around camp I would stop at their camp for our usual joker session. It was always fun to see who was riding what horse; Brian Dean always had someone on a bronc in that camp.
This part of the journey is always my favorite, the people really come together and learn to travel as one oyate.In the beginning we may travel a little spread out, but by the time we get to the Beaver Valley area the people are closer. I really admired them for that togetherness, as today I see that to be one of our many difficulties. A difficulty that can be overcome and this is one event that can teach togetherness and team work. Great team work and the togetherness of our people are the heart and soul of the Crazy Horse Ride. To all the sponsors, cooks and supporters we would not have been able to do this event without you. All the Oyate coming together has been a Crazy Horse Ride Tradition. A tradition that echoes through the Beaver Valley.
Many times as I rode along I looked at our people and I was overwhelmed with pride, as they all came to ride for Crazy Horse and our Veterans. This was the whole reason we done this every year, because of our warrior people and what they stood for. In honor of all veterans and Crazy Horse we committed ourselves to this journey; a journey that has brought us closer to our ancestors and gave recognition to the real heroes of today, our veterans.
In a modern time when our youth really struggle with the difficulties of growing up, here is an event that has been a cultural, educational and spiritual experience for our youth. Our journey has seen some rough spots with injuries and accidents; I thank all of our people for your dedications to our Veterans and Crazy Horse. I have seen the people come together, we forgot anything that was negative or the hardships in our lives, I know some of those injuries were serious and the horse that we lost was a beautiful war pony. We continued on through it all to say thank you to those Veterans who returned from the battle fields, and to remember what Crazy Horse stood for. We took our youth on a journey back into who they really are, the future generation of the Lakota Nation.
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"We've got to learn what's going on today in the world, and we've got to get an education so we can survive."
-- Jimmy Jackson, OJIBWA
Indian people have the ability to adapt. In these modern times, we Native people must walk two roads. We must get educated so our people don't lose. We need lawyers, doctors, nurses, foresters, scientists, educators, carpenters, welders. These skills are needed to help the people. While we are learning we need to remember to keep our culture, learn our dances, sing our songs, learn to speak our own language and maintain our culture for future generations.
Great Spirit, let my education never lack the meaning and value of Indian spirituality.
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Republican lawmaker wants to put tobacco tax on Idaho tribes
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Idaho House Speaker Lawerence Denney (R) introduced a bill that would force tribes to collect the state's tobacco tax.
Denney doesn't want customers to go to reservations just to find cheaper cigarettes. His bill raises the state's tax to $1.25 per pack and requires tribes to pay the same on tobacco sold to non-Indians.
“It’s sending us the wrong message, by dropping a bill without consulting us,” Chief Allan, the chairman of the Coeur d’Alene Tribe, told The Spokesman Review. “We seem to be taking a step backward again.”
The Idaho Council on Indian Affairs voted to ask the House Revenue and Taxation Committee to put a hold on the bill to give time to consult tribes.
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National Park Service names Alaska Native woman as liaison
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
The National Park Service has named Jean Gamache as tribal liaison for the Alaska region.
Gamache is a member of the Tlingit and Haida Tribes of Alaska. She has worked for the Region 9 Tribal Program Office at the Environmental Protection Agency and also for the EPA's Alaska Operations Office.
Gamache starts work March 13 in Anchorage.
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Medical marijuana is legal in Montana except in Indian Country
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Medical marijuana use is growing in Montana but members of federally recognized tribes face legal consequences if they use the drug on reservations.
The Montana Medical Marijuana Program allows certain patients with specific medical conditions to alleviate their symptoms through the limited use of marijuana under medical supervision. Marijuana, however, remains illegal under federal law in Indian Country.
That means tribal members with state-issued medical marijuana cards must leave their reservations to use the drug. But non-Indians can use the drug on reservations without consequence because federal prosecutors are not pursuing medical marijuana cases under the Obama administration.
Members of the Fort Belknap Indian Community and the Chippewa Cree Tribe have sought to legalize marijuana under tribal laws. Tribal leaders are reluctant to change their laws because federal funding for housing and other programs is often tied to anti-drug requirements.
"As long as we need federal funding, we can't allow medical marijuana on the reservation," Chippewa Cree Bruce Sunchild told The Great Falls Tribune.
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ANIMAL SPIRIT GUIDE
MONTH OF MARCH 2011.....WEASEL
Keynote: Sly and Secret. Circumvention and/or pursuit
Cycle of power: nocturnal
The weasel is graceful, solitary and very silent. Weasel people may often be loners. Their ability for silence enables them to go unseen and unheard, even in the company of others. Because of this, things are said and done in front of weasel people without others realizing.
Weasel can show you how to use your powers of silent observation to sniff out what is hidden or secretive without anyone being the wiser.
Weasel has the medicine for seeking out secrets. Trust your own senses in regard to other people and you will come out all right, even if it means going alone. This is part of what weasel teaches.
Ferocity is probably greatest among the weasel family off all mammals. Mothers will even attack humans if they feel their young are threatened.
Weasels usually bite their prey on the neck and hang on until the spinal cord is cut or until the damage is done. Weasel people, if angered, do not hesitate to attack in some way. This can be verbal and cut deep and sure and inflict lasting wounds.
Weasels are naturally silent when hunting but they have a wide range of vocalizations. The worse thing an individual can do is to assume that a weasel person is weak simply because he/she is silent.
When weasel shows up as your spirit/totem, examine your life. Do you need to develop your observation skills? Are you being too vocal in your pursuits? Telling others about your goals will undermine your won pursuit of them. Are you not digging hard enough? Is there a narrow space that you may have to squeeze through? Are you missing the obvious? Are you not trusting your own feelings and senses?
Weasel medicine awakens your innate ability for silent and secret observation. It can teach you how to pursue your goals on any level with the greatest success.
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Native American Hoop Dance
Participants in the 2005 World Hoop dance championship at the Heard Museum.Native American Hoop Dance is a form of storytelling dance incorporating anywhere from one to thirty hoops as props, which are used to create both static and dynamic shapes, or formations, representing various animals, shapes, and storytelling elements. It is generally performed by a solo dancer with many hoops. The first World Hoop Dance Competition was held at the New Mexico State Fair in 1991. The first World Champion Hoop Dancer was Eddie Swimmer, a Cherokee from Cherokee, North Carolina. The venue was moved to the Heard Museum in Arizona for the second event and the first adult winner of what was to become the permanent venue was Quentin Pipestem of the Tsuu T'ina Nation in Alberta, Canada.
During the dance, shapes are formed in storytelling ritual such as the butterfly, the eagle, the snake, and the coyote, with the hoop symbolizing the never-ending circle of life. Native American Hoop dance focuses on very rapid moves, and the construction of hoop formations around and about the body. The hoops used are typically of very small diameter (1-2.5 feet). In elaborate sequences of moves, the hoops are made to interlock, and in such a way they can be extended from the body of the dancer to form appendages such as wings and tails. The hoops are often handmade by the dancers out of simple plastic piping (though some are made of wood) and wrapped in colorful tapes, similar to the construction techniques used by non-Native American hoop-based dances.
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Rios, accessory in Aquash murder, dead at 65
by Mary Garrigan, Journal staff
Rapid City Journal
Posted: Friday, February 11, 2011 6:30 am
Thelma Rios, longtime Lakota advocate who was recently convicted of being an accessory in the Annie Mae Aquash murder case, died Wednesday in Rapid City of complications from lung cancer.
Randy Connelly represented Rios, 65, when she pleaded guilty in November to being an accessory in the kidnapping of Aquash, an American Indian Movement activist murdered in 1975. The Rapid City criminal defense attorney has known Rios since the 1970s and called her death a "sad day" for the Lakota people on whose behalf Rios often worked.
"She was a warrior. There was no greater warrior for her people and her fellow man than Thelma. She assisted her people in many, many ways," Connelly said Thursday.
Rios died at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday of complications from lung cancer at Rapid City Regional Hospital, according to a family member. She was in poor health late last year when she avoided a trial on murder charges in the Aquash case by agreeing to a plea bargain that acknowledged her role in the events leading up to Aquash's death. In an agreement between prosecutors and defense attorneys, she was sentenced to a maximum of five years in prison, most of which was suspended. She spent 90 days in the Pennington County Jail following her arrest in September 2009.
South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley extended his condolences on Thursday to the Rios family and said he didn't expect her death to affect any possible future charges in the Aquash case.
"While I do not condone the criminal venture that kidnapped and executed a young mother, it is important to recognize Ms. Rios' acceptance of responsibility for her involvement and her willingness through the plea agreement to provide assistance to authorities," he said in an e-mail to the Journal. "The prosecution has overcome many evidentiary challenges stemming from this 35-year murder case, and while this certainly may give rise to future evidentiary issues, I do not anticipate it will have an overall effect on holding those involved in this brutal murder responsible for their actions."
Spearfish attorney Matt Kinney said Rios was diagnosed with lung cancer shortly after he negotiated her plea agreement, which was sealed by the judge at the request of both prosecutors and defense attorneys.
"I think it was fortunate that we were able to spare her from a trial," Kinney said.
Kinney assumes that there are ongoing state or federal investigations of other suspects in the Aquash case, but neither he nor Connelly expect that Rios's testimony will play a role in further prosecutions.
"All along I never felt that Thelma's role in the Aquash case was very extensive. I don't believe she knew very much. I thought the government's case against her was very thin," Kinney said.
Now that Rios is deceased, it remains to be resolved if any of her statements in the case would be admissible in court, Kinney said.
Connelly said Rios' conviction in the case cast an unfair shadow over her life, which he described as "filled with character and integrity."
"It puts an improper and unfortunate punctuation to the end of her life. It truly, truly does," he said. "Her involvement, I've always believed, was totally unwitting in a sense."
Ryan White Feather, a close friend and distant relative of Rios's, said she was well-known as a Native American advocate.
"Thelma had done a lot of great things in Rapid City long before AIM came here," White Feather said.
Connelly doubts that Rios knew how little time she had left to live when she agreed to the plea.
"She hadn't been diagnosed but knew she was having problems and was aware her health was failing," Connelly said. "Whether the stress of the charges exacerbated or aggravated the cancer, I wouldn't know. But I know it was very hard on her."
"Her desire was to spend what time she had with her family. I don't think she did know how little time that was."
An all night wake for Rios will begin at 5 p.m. Friday at the Mother Butler Center in Rapid City with a service at 7 p.m.
The funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday at Edstrom & Rooks Funeral Service at Serenity Springs, Chapel of Tranquility with Rev. Brad Abelseth officiating. Interment will be in Pine Lawn Memorial Park in Rapid City.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
American Thoracic Society <http://www.thoracic.org/>
Vitamin D deficiency alters lung growth and decreases lung function
Previously linked to the severity of asthma and chronic obstructive
pulmonary disease (COPD) in humans, vitamin D deficiency has now been
shown to alter lung structure and function in young mice. The new study,
conducted by researchers in Australia, offers the first concrete
evidence linking vitamin D deficiency with deficits in lung function and
altered lung structure.
The findings were published online ahead of the print edition of the
American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical
Care Medicine.
"The results of this study clearly demonstrate that vitamin D
deficiency alters lung growth, resulting in lower lung volume and
decrements in lung function," said Graeme Zosky, PhD, a research fellow
at the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research in Subiaco,
Australia. "This is the first direct mechanistic evidence showing that
vitamin D deficiency alters lung development, which may explain the
association between obstructive lung disease and levels of vitamin D."
To conduct their study, the researchers used a mouse model of vitamin D
deficiency and evaluated lung responses of two-week-old mice, comparing
them to control mice without vitamin D deficiency to determine what, if
any, effects the deficiency may have caused in the growth, structure or
function of the lungs.
Lung volume and lung function were evaluated using a plethysmograph, an
instrument used to measure the amount of air in the lung, and via
forced oscillation, a technique used to measure the resistance to air
flow in the lungs. Microscopic lung tissue samples were also evaluated
to assess changes in lung structure.
"The aim of this study was to determine if vitamin D deficiency results
in altered lung function and/or structure as a potential explanation
for the association between vitamin D and chronic respiratory disease,"
said Dr. Zosky, who is also an adjunct senior lecturer at the
University of Western Australia's Centre for Child Health Research.
"Specifically, we aimed to determine if vitamin D deficiency has an
influence on lung growth as indicated by a decrease in lung volume. We
also wanted to determine if the deficiency alters the mechanical
properties of the lung tissue due to changes in the structure of the
lung."
The researchers found that airway resistance was significantly higher
while lung volume was significantly lower in vitamin D-deficient mice
compared to control mice. Examinations of specific tissue responses
revealed model mice had reduced lung function. Lungs were also smaller
in model mice, which Dr. Zosky said could have been caused by the
deficiencies of the mother or of the offspring.
"Due to the nature of this study, we were not able to determine whether
the differences in lung size and function we observed in the deficient
offspring were the result of their own deficient status or as a
consequence of developmental deficits that occurred in utero due to the
mother's deficiency," he said.
Dr. Zosky noted that although recent studies suggest that vitamin D
deficiency is associated with reduced lung function, causal data
confirming a relationship between vitamin D and lung function have been
lacking.
"For the first time, we have demonstrated a direct role for vitamin D
in causing decreased lung function in the absence of known confounders
such as physical inactivity, confirming the assertion by epidemiological
studies that there is a relationship between vitamin D deficiency and
lung function," Dr. Zosky said. "The differences we observed in lung
volume and lung mechanics, which were substantial and physiologically
relevant, raise serious concerns regarding the increased prevalence of
vitamin D deficiency in communities around the world. The results also
raise concerns about the potential this deficiency may have on lung
health, and in particular, the potential impact deficiency may have on
the susceptibility to obstructive lung disease."
Dr. Zosky said the study results have important implications for
prevention of lung diseases in populations where vitamin D deficiencies
are common. Future studies need to be conducted to determine whether
vitamin D deficiency-induced alterations in lung growth increase the
severity of obstructive lung disease and to identify susceptible
populations whose use of dietary vitamin D supplementation could be used
to improve lung health outcomes, he added.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DOORS:
"eastern door, from where we get visions and guidance,"
"southern door, where we get the energies of the family,"
"western door, where we honor the sacred ways and sacred ancestors,"
"northern door, where we receive challenges and the strength to meet those challenges." "Father Sky, where we get our masculine energy"
"Mother Earth, where we get our feminine energy."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FUNNY:
Why did the chicken cross the road?
SARAH PALIN: The chicken crossed the road because
gosh-darn it,he's a maverick!
BARACK OBAMA: The chicken crossed the road because
it was time for change! The chicken wanted change!
JOHN MC CAIN: My friends, that chicken crossed
the road because he recognized the need to engage
in cooperation and dialogue with all
the chickens on the other side of the road.
HILLARY CLINTON: When I was First Lady, I
personally helped that little chicken to cross the
road. This experience makes me uniquely qualified
to ensure right from Day One that every chicken in this
country gets the chance it deserves to cross the
road. But then, this really isn't about me.
GEORGE W. BUSH: We don't really care why the chicken
crossed the road. We just want to know if the chicken
is on our side of the road, or The chicken is either
against us, or for us. There is no middle ground here.
DICK CHENEY: Where's my gun?
COLIN POWELL: Now to the left of the screen, you
can clearly see the satellite image of the chicken
crossing the road.
BILL CLINTON: I did not cross the road with that chicken.
AL GORE: I invented the chicken.
JOHN KERRY: Although I voted to let the chicken
cross the road, I am now against it! It was the wrong
road to cross, and I was misled about the chicken's
intentions. I am not for it now, and will remain against
it.
AL SHARPTON: Why are all the chickens white? We
need some black chickens.
DR. PHIL: The problem we have here is that this chicken
won't realize that he must first deal with the problem on
this side of the road before it goes after the problem on
the other side of the road. What we need to
do is help him realize how stupid he's acting by not
taking on his current problems before adding new problems.
OPRAH: Well, I understand that the chicken is having
problems,which is why he wants to cross this road so badly.
So instead of having the chicken learn from his mistakes
and take falls, which is a part of life,I'm going to give
this chicken a NEW CAR so that he can just drive across the road
and not live his life like the rest of the chickens.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN: We have reason to believe there is a
chicken,but we have not yet been allowed to have access to the
other side of the road.
NANCY GRACE: That chicken crossed the road because he's
guilty! You can see it in his eyes and the way he walks.
PAT BUCHANAN: To steal the job of a decent, hardworking American.
MARTHA STEWART: No one called me to warn me which way that chicken was going. I had a standing order at the Farmer's Market to
sell my eggs when the price dropped to a certain level. No little bird gave me any insider information.
DR SEUSS: Did the chicken cross the road? Did he cross it with a
toad? Yes, the chicken crossed the road, but why it crossed I've not been told.
ERNEST HEMINGWAY: To die in the rain, alone.
GRANDPA: In my day we didn't ask why the chicken crossed
the road.Somebody told us the chicken crossed the road, and
that was good enough.
BARBARA WALTERS: Isn't that interestin g? In a few moments,
we will be listening to the chicken tell, for the first time,
the heart warming story of how it experienced a serious case
of molting, and went on to accomplish it's lifelong dream of
crossing the road.
ARISTOTLE: It is the nature of chickens to cross the road.
JOHN LENNON: Imagine all the chickens in the world crossing roads together, in peace.
BILL GATES: I have just released eChicken2011, which will not only
cross roads, but will lay eggs, file your important documents,
and balance your checkbook. Internet Explorer is an integral
part of eChicken2011.
This new platform is much more stable and will never reboot.
ALBERT EINSTEIN: Did the chicken really cross the road, or did the
road move beneath the chicken?
COLONEL SANDERS: Did I miss one?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FUNNY:
Working people frequently ask retired people what they do to make their days interesting.
Well, for example, the other day, Mary my wife and I went into town and visited a shop.
When we came out, there was a cop writing out a parking ticket.
We went up to him and I said, 'Come on, man, how about giving a senior citizen a break?'
He ignored us and continued writing the ticket. I called him an “asshole” . He glared at me and started writing another ticket for having worn-out tires.
So Mary called him a “shit head”. He finished the second ticket and put it on the windshield with the first.
Then he started writing more tickets.
This went on for about 20 minutes.
The more we abused him, the more tickets he wrote.
Just then our bus arrived, and we got on it and went home.
We try to have a little fun each day now that we're retired.
It's important at our age.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FUNNY:
Miss Beatrice, The church organist, Was in her eighties and had never been married.
She was admired for her sweetness and kindness to all.
One afternoon the pastor came to call on her and she showed him into her quaint sitting room. She invited him to have a seat while she prepared tea.
As he sat facing her old Hammond organ,
The young minister noticed a cute glass bowl sitting on top of it.
The bowl was filled with water, and in the waterFloated, of all things,
a condom!
When she returned With tea and scones,They began to chat.
The pastor tried to stifle his curiosity about the bowl of water and its strange floater, but soon it got the better of him and he could no longer resist.
'Miss Beatrice', he said, 'I wonder if you would tell me about this?'
Pointing to the bowl.
'Oh, yes,' she replied, 'Isn't it wonderful? I was walking through the park a few months ago and I found this little package on the ground.
The directions said to place it on the organ, keep it wet and that it would prevent the spread of disease.
Do you know I haven't had the flu all winter.' !!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FUNNY:
THE TOILET SEAT
Charlie's wife, Lucy, had been after him for several weeks to paint the
seat on their toilet. Finally, he got around to doing it while Lucy was
out.
After finishing, he left to take care of another matter before she
returned.
She came in and undressed to take a shower. Before getting
in the shower, she sat on the toilet. As she tried to stand up, she
realized that the not-quite-dry epoxy paint had glued her to the toilet
seat. About that time, Charlie got home and realized her predicament.
They both pushed and pulled without any success whatsoever. Finally, in
desperation, Charlie undid the toilet seat bolts. Lucy wrapped a sheet
around herself and Charlie drove her to the hospital emergency room.
The ER Doctor got her into a position where he could study how to free
her (Try to get a mental picture of this.).
Lucy tried to lighten the embarrassment of it all by saying, "Well, Doctor,
I'll bet you've never seen anything like this before."
The Doctor replied, "Actually, I've seen lots of them. I just never saw one mounted and framed."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FUNNY:
Subject: Fw: Being polite
During one of her daily college classes, a teacher trying to teach good manners, asked one of her students the following question:
"Michael, if you were on a date having dinner with a nice young lady, how would you tell her that you have to go to the bathroom ?" Michael said, "Just a minute, I have to go pee." The teacher responded by saying, "That would be rude and impolite.
What about you Sherman, how would you say it ?" Sherman said, "I am sorry, but I really need to go to the bathroom. I'll be right back." "That's better, but it's still not very nice to say the word bathroom at the dinner table.
And you, little Edward, can you use your brain for once and show us your good manners?" I would say, 'Darling, may I please be excused for a moment ? I have to shake hands with a very dear friend of mine whom I hope to introduce you to after dinner.'"
The teacher fainted.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
KITCHEN TIPS:
1. Line the bottom of your refrigerator’s crisper drawer with paper towels. They’ll absorb the excess moisture that causes vegetables to rot.
2. To keep herbs tasting fresh for up to a month, store whole bunches, washed and sealed in plastic bags, in the freezer. When you need them, they’ll be easier to chop, and they’ll defrost the minute they hit a hot pan.
3. A bay leaf slipped into a container of flour, pasta, or rice will help repel bugs.
4. Stop cheese from drying out by spreading butter or margarine on the cut sides to seal in moisture. This is most effective with hard cheeses sealed in wax.
5. When radishes, celery, or carrots have lost their crunch, simply pop them in a bowl of iced water along with a slice of raw potato and watch the limp vegetables freshen up right before your eyes.
6. Avoid separating bananas until you plan to eat them – they spoil less quickly in a bunch.
7. Put rice in your saltshaker to stop the salt from hardening. The rice absorbs condensation that can cause clumps.
8. Stock up on butter when it’s on sale – you can store it in the freezer for up to six months. Pack the butter in an airtight container, so it doesn’t take on the flavor of whatever else you’re freezing.
9. In order to make cottage cheese or sour cream last longer, place the container upside down in the fridge. Inverting the tub creates a vacuum that inhibits the growth of bacteria that causes food to spoil.
10. Believe it or not, honey is the only nonperishable food substance, so don’t get rid of the stuff if it crystallizes or becomes cloudy. Microwave on medium heat, in 30-second increments, to make honey clear again.
11. Prevent extra cooked pasta from hardening by stashing it in a sealed plastic bag and refrigerating. When you’re ready to serve, throw the pasta in boiling water for a few seconds to heat and restore moisture.
12. Keeping brown sugar in the freezer will stop it from hardening. But if you already have hardened sugar on your shelf, soften it by sealing in a bag with a slice of bread – or by microwaving on high for 30 seconds.
13. If you only need a few drops of lemon juice, avoid cutting the lemon in half – it will dry out quickly. Instead, puncture the fruit with a metal skewer and squeeze out exactly what you require.
14. If you’re unsure of an egg’s freshness, see how it behaves in a cup of water: Fresh eggs sink; bad ones float.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lower Triglycerides Naturally with This Sandwich Topping
By RealAge
Do you usually ask for tomatoes with your turkey on whole wheat? Make it a habit and your triglycerides could benefit.
In a study, young adults who consumed lots of fresh tomatoes experienced lower triglyceride levels -- and higher HDL (good) cholesterol levels. And after only 6 weeks!
You Say Tomato
Participants in the study noshed on lots of tomatoes every day -- almost 3 cups of the fresh fruit. So top your salads with cherry tomatoes, add slices to your sandwiches, and dice up a bunch of fresh tomatoes for a pico de gallo snack. You could throw in some tomato juice for good measure, as well. In the study, people who drank 2 1/2 cups of tomato juice daily experienced similar benefits -- and lower LDL cholesterol levels!
Talkin' About Tomatoes
Tomatoes and tomato juice are rich in phenols -- and researchers credit these disease-fighting compounds with helping to keep unhealthful blood fats in check. Although the mechanism behind it all is not yet understood, one thing is certain: Optimal cholesterol levels can help stave off heart and blood vessel disease.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PRAY FOR:
Chief Strong Horse...health
Tony Cricket...health
Chief Snake...health, wisdom and strength
Spirit...health, wisdom and strength
Kevin...health (Annie)
Barbara...health and healing
~ ~
We send out prayers for Anyone and everyone without adequate heat for their homes, that they may stay warm and comfortable through this very harsh and unpredictable winter.
Dancing Night Crow
~ ~
Prayers for wisdom and understanding for our council members and all Chiefs
~ ~
Prayers for all that are incarcerated that they find peace and a new way.
~ ~
Wisdom for our Spiritual Leader so he can show the way back to the 'road'
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THE POWER OF MOTHER NATURE....REVENGE OF THE SPIDERS
Printed from the News & Observer - http://www.blogger.com/www.NewsObserver.com
Published Thu, Mar 03, 2011 11:00 AM
Wandering spider leads Mazda to recall 50,000 cars
By KEN THOMAS - Associated Press
Published in: Nation
WASHINGTON Mazda has fingered an unusual culprit in its new safety recall - a spider.
The Japanese automaker is recalling more than 50,000 Mazda6 cars from the 2009-2010 model years. The company says a spider could weave a web in a vent connected to the fuel tank system and clog up the tank's ventilation. Pressure on the fuel tank could lead to a crack, causing fuel leakage and the risk of a fire.
Mazda told the government it had received two reports about problems with the tank. In one of the cases, a spider web was found in the vent.
The recall involves vehicles built from April 2008 and February 2010.
It teaches a new respect for the spider!! What powers!!! :>)
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Dixon Palmer, Kiowa artist from Oklahoma, passes on at age 90
Friday, March 4, 2011
Dixon Palmer, a member of the Kiowa Tribe of Oklahoma, died on Thursday. He was 90.
Palmer was an artist, dancer and tepee maker. His tepee work was featured in the Southern Plains Indian Museum and at the Smithsonian Institution.
Palmer was a leader of the Black Leggings Warrior Society, spokesperson Patrick Redbird told The Oklahoman.
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Police seek information on Native man missing since November
Friday, March 4, 2011
Police in Billings, Montana, are asking the public to help find Timothy Scott Roundstone Jr., a 21-year-old Native man who has been missing since November 2010.
Roundstone was last seen leaving a friend's apartment on November 19, a night of a heavy snowstorm. He never made it home.
"There's been nothing broadcast lately and we've just kind of been hoping for longer breaks in the weather where we can get out there," stepfather Chad Caldwell told The Billings Gazette. "All we can do is search the places we've already searched because there's no new information."
Roundstone is described as a Native American, 5 feet, 5 inches tall, black hair, brown eyes and weighing about 130 pounds.
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Siblings from Chickasaw Nation family all undergo heart surgery
Friday, March 4, 2011
In the course of four years, five siblings from the same Chickasaw Nation family have undergone open-heart surgery.
James Mose, 61; Shirley Mose, 59; Dorislene Morgan, 58; Christine Lewis, 56; and Don Mose, 51, count 17 bypasses among them. Their mother and uncle also died of heart attacks and heart problems.
“To have that many family members not only have heart disease, but in the same age range and all five needing bypasses is very unusual,” Dr. John Harvey, president and chief executive of Oklahoma Heart Hospital, told The Oklahoman.
Genetics plays a role -- American Indians are twice as likely to develop heart disease, which is the number one killer in Indian Country. But lifestyle is also a major factor, so the siblings are trying to eat better and exercise more.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fort Mojave Tribe revives lawsuit over sacred place in California
Friday, March 4, 2011
The Fort Mojave Tribe filed a new lawsuit to protect one of its most sacred sites.
The tribe says the California Department of Toxic Substances Control is violating a settlement that was reached in 2006. The tribe says the state has failed to remove and clean up a $15 million water treatment plant built on top of Topock Maze, a series of rock formations and lines that is considered the portal into heaven.
The plant is operated by Pacific Gas & Electric, which apologized in 2006 for harming the sacred site.
"Instead of the polluter paying for the damage, it'll end up being the tribe's religious practices and cultural values that take the hit and that's not right," tribal attorney Courtney Ann Coyle told the Associated Press. "PG&E and DTSC can do better."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kevin Abourezk: Tribes in Nebraska oppose tobacco taxation bill
Thursday, March 3, 2011
"When Lance Morgan went to work for his tribe in 1992, the Winnebago Tribe had just $180,000 in discretionary funds.
The Harvard law graduate helped create businesses and jobs, and the tribe now employs nearly 2,000 people and generates more than $200 million in annual revenue.
On Wednesday, Morgan went to the state Capitol to fight for a portion of that revenue, about $250,000 in taxes the tribe collects each year on cigarette sales that are being targeted by a legislative bill.
"It's something that we want to fight for," said Morgan, CEO of Ho-Chunk Inc., his tribe's economic arm.
Introduced by Sen. Mike Gloor of Grand Island, LB590 would require tribes to make payments to Nebraska in order for the state to continue receiving millions of dollars each year through a national settlement agreement that was reached with the four largest tobacco companies in 1998.
Nebraska is fighting the tobacco companies over demands that states force smaller tobacco companies, including those operated by tribes, to also make payments to the states for smoking-related medical costs, said David Cookson, chief deputy attorney general."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Nakia Zavalla: Chumash Tribe seeks to protect our sacred places
Thursday, March 3, 2011
"At the end of last year our tribe commemorated the winter solstice with a ceremony that included traditional songs, prayers and celebration.
Celebrations that usher in a new season are not new to our tribe. John Peabody Harrington, an American linguist, ethnologist and a specialist in California tribes, noted a conversation with Maria Solares, a Santa Ynez Chumash ancestor, about such events.
As I’ve mentioned in previous columns, Harrington gathered more than one million pages of notes on tribes and when the technology became available, he supplemented his written documents with audio recordings — first using wax cylinders, then aluminum discs. Among the many conversations Harrington recorded with Maria Solares was a discussion about the Chumash tribe’s winter solstice ceremony.
She told Harrington that the winter solstice is one of the special times of the year for Chumash people. She said that ancestors would go to sacred areas and erect feather poles made with the finest magpie and eagle feathers. The feathers were placed on top of the feather pole and they also strung three different kinds of beads on a string and used tar to wrap it at the base of the pole.
The best dancer was selected to dance with the feather pole in a blessing ritual. She told Harrington that the elders said the sun returns and on the night of the fiesta, the crier announces the sun’s return.
While our winter solstice celebration was an elder’s luncheon held at our Tribal Hall, in the days of our ancestors, celebrations were often held at sacred sites, or shrines."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bill would address impact of gaming on three Connecticut towns
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Three towns near tribal casinos would be eligible for a greater share of state funds under a bill in the Connecticut Legislature.
Preston, Ledyard and Montville are located near the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation and the Mohegan Tribe. HB5784 would increase their share of payment-in-lieu-of-taxes, or PILOT, grants to address the impacts of land-into-trust and Indian gaming.
“The benefits of the casinos are shared by 169 towns, yet the costs and responsibilities of hosting the casinos fall disproportionately to two small towns, Ledyard and Montville,” State Rep. Tom Reynolds (D) said at a public hearing, The New London Day reported. “HB5784 would help towns meet their financial obligations as casino host communities without requiring state funds and without a significant impact on other towns.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
William Kelly, a descendant of last Maidu chief, dies in California
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
William Kelly, a descendant of Maidu Chief Kelly, died in Nevada City, California, after complaining that police took his bedding gear. He was 51.
Kelly's frozen body was found under a bridge on Sunday night. It's not clear when he died, or how he died, The Grass Valley Union reported, but friends and others in the homeless community were concerned that he was sleeping without his gear in cold temperatures.
“To take his blankets away, you might as well have held a gun to his head and pulled the trigger,” a woman who didn't want to be named for fear of retaliation by police told the paper. Another homeless man died on a freezing cold night in January.
Kelly was a descendant of Chief Kelly, who is known as the last Maidu chief. Chief Kelly Road in Nevada City is named for the late chief.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
RECIPES:
Rosemary Marinated Steak
1 serloin buffalo steak
1 tbsp. dried rosemary
1/2 cup red wine
1/4 cup olive oil
Marinate steak in sauce for about 2 hours and leave the meat out so all can come to room temperature. Barbecue on hot coals
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Bar-B-Que BUFFALO
4-5 lb. buffalo chuck roast
Pat the sides and top of a chuck roast with brown sugar. Wrap in foil and cook 10 hours at 225-250*F. Separate into large chuncks.
Combine cooking juices with the following sauce and marinate meat for 4 hours
BBQ Sauce: simmer 15 minutes
3/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup butter
2 tbsp. mustard
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp salt
1 raw onion, sliced
Serve on toasted, butter buns and top with greated cheese.
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Well, back to the drawing board for next month. Don't forget...if you would like to see your poem or prayers or what ever in the newsletter just send them to me and I will edit if need being.
Until next month....keep your chin up and talk to your Creator for help with any problems as they arise...He is waiting!!
Health, strength, and happiness.
Shiakoda Autumn Wolf Moon Q.
Shiakoda Qkalokqua or shiakoda@att.net
PO Box 754
Moodus, Ct. 06469
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