Quote:
Originally Posted by IamKira
wow.. where to begin... first off, people group together to form a system of governance for the sole purpose of creating an environment in which everyone does a part to support the group and thus they are supported through eachother's actions.. so it is the sole job of government to make sure it's people are protected and given the best opportunities
second, the puritans were the biggest hypocrites in the world.. they came to the new land to escape oppression and immediately set about their conquest of the "lesser advanced" natives... raped the women and pillaged the land and stole whatever they could...america likes to believe it's a good, righteous country build on good values by good people... you sir have been fooled... group mentality at work there.
"The first thing the pilgrims did when they came to the new world was eat a few indians." -Denny Crane  |
Puritans were not hypocrites. They were not religious fundamentalists in the sense that they are described now. They did not rape, kill, steal, or any of those things; you seem to forget that Puritans sought salvation through their good actions. They lived quite peacefully with the native peoples they found, and even intermarried among them (I have Native-American blood myself, and am a descendant of one of these couples). You yourself have been fooled, and are a part of the group mentality.
The raping, killing, and pillaging you mention didn't occur on any real scale until it became a government policy. This wasn't so much a Colonial British policy, you may or may not know that during the French and Indian Wars, the English settlers and Indians were allied against the French, living and fighting together.
Life between the Indians and Early-Americans was also mostly peaceful. George Washington himself signed treaties and legislation giving government recognition to the Indians claims on their home and hunting lands.
It wasn't until the 19th century that the Indians became seriously oppressed. This oppression was government sponsored, and had nothing to do with any kind of religion. The treaties signed be George Washington were reneged on by acts of Congress, and Native-Americans were forced to leave their homes and settle on reservations (where I happened to spend much of my time growing up).