Eskimo Hunters - 1949 Film
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Stumble ThisA film from 1949 featuring an Eskimo family from Alaska. (Canadian Inuit prefer to be called 'Inuit' - Alaskan Inuit prefer being called 'Eskimos').
My father was born in 1950, and grew up in a way very similar to the lifestyle featured in this film.
Not crazy about some of the sound effects (caribou running on snow don't sound like horses on cobblestone, shooting caribou doesn't produce a ricochet sound, etc.), but otherwise this is a pretty accurate depiction of Inuit lifestyle during the period.
My father was born in 1950, and grew up in a way very similar to the lifestyle featured in this film.
Not crazy about some of the sound effects (caribou running on snow don't sound like horses on cobblestone, shooting caribou doesn't produce a ricochet sound, etc.), but otherwise this is a pretty accurate depiction of Inuit lifestyle during the period.
These people have lost all touch with reality now in Alaska. They still want to live in their remote villages, but they dont want to live the lifestyle that goes with it. So they bitch and moan that they pay $6 for a gallon of gas, $9 for a gallon of milk, etc. They want roads and infrastructure and airports and sewer systems, and regular flights to support their microscopic communities. I say if their historical lifestyle is dead, and their diet is now white bread and pepsi, they need to get the hell out of the arctic desolation and move to a city.
Sounds very similar to where I come from, except that I would be the one bitching about $9 milk (more like $14 where I come from).
Are they not deserving of the same infrastructure as you? Do they not pay taxes the same as you do?
How very thoughtful of you, I presume of European descent, to bitch about the folks whose land you now live on. Something must be wrong with THEM, right? Inuit were living quite happily before your ancestors moved in. It's kinda like you crashing my party and then complaining I don't stock the type of Gin you like.
'Lost all touch with reality'? That's a bold statement - so bold in fact I think it's worth pointing out to you that the city you want them to move to was built in the very Arctic 'desolation' they call home.
No natives were displaced to build my home, and no native relics were found during construction. As far as I can tell, nobody has ever lived where I live, or in the area.
"whose land you now live on" - Did their tiny population own all 1.48 million square kilometers of Alaska?
The native Inupiat culture seemed to fading pretty fast. Satellite dishes, pointed at the horizon were everywhere. Lot's and lots of heavy drinking, shooting and caribou hunts on snow mobiles with high power rifles.
I'm not sure what the answer is to helping these cultures survive and not completely corrupting / assimilating them into modern society - but in my experience at least, the status quo didn't seem to be working very well.
'as far as I can tell' - I'm sure you've been trying real hard.
'Did their tiny population...' - Collectively, yes they did. Either them or the Klinkit. I know it's easier to pretend that that land didn't belong to an indigenous people prior to European contact, but that would be naive.
Look at how ^Dag is much more respectful and tactful in getting his point across.
^Dag: Very well said. The same issues exist for Inuit (Inupiat are Inuit) across Canada and Greenland today. I have a pretty good idea of what you would have experienced and witnessed up there (many of my teachers in high school were fresh out of University and were shocked at much of what they saw).
I believe a culture is responsible for it's own survival (mine included) if it's given enough time to adapt to the world it finds itself in. I grew up hunting with snowmobiles and with rifles, nothing wrong with that. It is folly to think that a culture must remain static or become assimilated. Adaptation is the key to cultural survival and success.
I agree on the status quo too - I relentlessly rail against the status quo back home, and of the dangers of complacency. I understand perfectly well what you (and deathcow) are trying to say about the feasibility of small populations trying to acquire a 'modern' lifestyle in the Arctic, while preserving aspects of their culture. Believe it or not, IRL I'm not the flippant, immature person I can come across as on VS, and I spend a large portion of my time thinking about ways to address these kinds of issues.
Drop me a PM sometime - I'd be interested in having a mature discussion about your experiences in Barrow.
Throbbin - Alaska is about 1.5 MILLION square kilometers you dope. That's about 30 square kilometers for every native who lived here in 1950. I guess any "European" descent person has no right to be here according to you?
> Look at how ^Dag is much more respectful and tactful in getting his point across.
Bummer I deleted your respectful private message to me. Such a statesman! Go pound sand.
Thanks for the geography lesson. In Nunavut, today, the population density is roughly 1 person for every 63 square kilometers. Your point?
I never said people of European descent have no right to live there, don't be thick. I did, however, imply that it was rich for you to complain about THEM, from a historical perspective and all.
And that message wasn't private you hoser, I purposely left it as a public message.