Delayed Columbus Day Post

I was on vacation the last two weeks so this post is a little late, but whatever.  I chose to spend time with my family instead of writing about a subject that can make my blood boil.  Deal with it. 

Over the years, I have gone from being straight up angry about Columbus Day to being just sad about it.  Not crying on the couch in the dark because of something, but sad because everyone has read the history books about this guy and what he and his men did to indigenous people.  The information is there and still we have Columbus Day.  The information is there and still it's a federal holiday.  All the information is there and we as a country have done NOTHING about it.  You don't want to beat a dead horse, but if there were an Adolf Hitler Day or a Pol Pot Day or a Joseph Stalin Day, how quickly would there be a movement to end that day of observation?

Instead of being full out angry about this holiday still being around, I would want to educate people about it.  Educate people about the atrocities that not only did Columbus perpetrate when he came to the 'New World' but what other explorers did.  Look at the Spanish Conquistadors.  Killing.  Maiming.  Raping.  It's all there.  You don't want to drop this knowledge on little elementary school kids, but I think that high school kids could handle the facts.  I never had this education in high school.  I was never given the facts in school, but I learned about the facts by reading real history books.

The best thing you can do about this holiday is to get the facts.  Once you learn the facts, share them!  Yes, it is good to be angry about this being a holiday.  But don't get sucked down by the anger and dragged into the mud.  Be above that.  Be better than that.  Spread the facts because educating the masses is the best way to fight stupidity and ignorance. 

White Guy 'Honors' Native Americans

Let's just get this fact out of the way:  Dan Snyder is a horrible human being.  He is the Dick Cheney of the sports world.  Are we all clear on that?  Good.  In a public statement, he made it very well known that he has no intentions of ever changing the name of the Washington Redskins.  NEVER.  He sees it as honoring the Native American people and culture.  He sees the name as a great tradition and he couldn't let the fan base down by changing the name.  No sir, you are wrong.  Having a team name that is a derogatory term is not an honor. 

There are professional and collegiate teams that have Native American inspired names.  The Atlanta Braves, Kansas City Chiefs, Cleveland Indians, Central Michigan Chippewas, North Dakota Fighting Sioux, and Chicago Blackhawks just to name a few with which I am familiar.  Just looking at those names, there is nothing that really jumps out as offensive material (their logos are a different matter).  Yes, there are some controversy with some of these organizations, but not to the scale as the Washington Redskins.  When the organization was first founded in 1932, they were the Boston Braves.  That is just fine, but I'm sure their logo was horribly racist.  There is nothing wrong with the name 'Braves' as I see it, but if you throw in some tomahawk chops we are done.  The following year their nickname was changed to the Redskins.  It has been shamefully there ever since.  In 1933, 'Redskins' was probably in the everyday vocabulary and seemed to be okay to use.  

It's one thing for an oblivious, douche-tastic team owner to think that it is in the best interest of his team and fans to keep an offensive name, but when the commissioner comes out in a public statement saying he will not force said oblivious, douche-tastic team owner to change the name, that is something else.  That is Roger Goodell, the commissioner of the NFL.  He does not have the decency to stand up to Snyder and tell him that what he is doing is giving not only his team but the league a black eye.  He is quick to jump at the opportunity to fine players for tweeting, or speaking bad on the NFL, but when it comes to a true issue, he goes soft.  Roger Goodell is just as guilty as Dan Snyder in this situation. 

Name changes happen in sports.  Teams move places and change their name to fit where they now are.  Or teams change their name for public relations reasons.  Even within the city of Washington D.C. there has been a sports team change their name to help disassociate themselves with controversy.  Show of hands, who remembers the Washington Bullets?  Well, back in 1996 the crime rate in D.C. was extremely high and the owner thought it was bad publicity and bad connotations to have the nickname 'Bullets'?  It took all of two second to change the name of that team to the 'Wizards'.  You see how easy that is Mr. Snyder and Mr. Goodell? 

Didn't feel like reading all of that?  That's fine, here's some white guys honoring my people: 

old navy ad

One of the most unfortunate 'holidays' is coming up.  Columbus Day.  How does some raping, pillaging, murdering douche bag get a day named after him?  I always ignored the columbus day sales.  Whatever companies can use to boost sales, they'll do it.  

I was taken aback by Old Navy a couple of weeks ago.  I was watching tv, and an old navy ad came on with the tag line of 'party like it's 1492'.  Yeah, I'm gonna party like there are people getting raped and murdered.  I'm gonna party like there are some new guys taking full advantage of my people.  What a party.  It'll be a block party.  Fuckers.  How do they not research this?  News flash people:  Christopher Columbus was an arrogant asshole.  Dude deserves no respect.  He didn't even 'discover' anything.  People make arguments for the Vikings hanging out in north eastern canada for a while.  And then there is us...the native americans!  Yeah, let's talk about us.  we've been here for quite a while, despite the fact that the united states government tried to push us into the pacific ocean.  

This is why I could never be a history teacher for little kids.  We would get to him in the history books and I would have kids running home and asking their parents what a murdering douche bag was.  I can't stand the fact that people know what he did and still have a day with his name.  

Wear a black arm band, print and hand out some flyers, do something proactive against the guy who murdered at will.  Go back in time and kick him in the junk if you can.  Put a hole in his ships so he never gets to the western hemisphere.  

He is on my list of historical figures I would go back and kill.  Him and Hitler.  Yeah, I just put him on a list with another mass-murdering fuck head.  

And he deserves it.