Your personal experience with Canadian Aboriginals

[Higgly]

Be honest now...

[Canadian Blue]

Yes, I had one full blood aboriginal in my basic, and another recruit's dad was aboriginal. In fact he was probably one of the best friends I had during Basic, he helped me get through it.

[Higgly]

I spent two winters living and working on a reserve. One of the best experiences of my life and among the warmest and most welcoming people I have ever met.

[Canadian Blue]

Which reserve, I hope it wasn't Hobbema!!!

My brother was a paramedic, but unfortunately he rarely saw much good come out of the reserves.

[Leafless]

I once knew an aboriginal family and their no different than anyone else.

Being an 'Official Multicultural Country' I suppose they LEARNED like other OFFICIAL RECOGNIZED GROUPS to squeeze as much as they can out of the country in the name of 'charter rights and freedoms'.

Can't say I blame them!

[Higgly]

And you don't do that?

[scribblet]

My neighbour when I lived in the big smoke was an aborignal lady, we had some good times in the back yard. She was married to a non native and did not believe in taking from the taxpayers, she refused to apply for a card and paid her taxes, she didn't believe in apartheid. I admired that young lady.

[Who's Doing What?]

Oh if you only knew.....

[Leafless]

And you don't do that?

I can't do that, that is using special charter legalities that simply are not available to regular Canadians or whatever the legal definition is supposed to be defining a Canadian.

The only special interest groups that are entitled to legal privileges over regular Canadians are primarily Quebecers and Aboriginals, privileges that they use on a regular basis defining their distinctiveness for more power and money.

The latter would have be excluded if the emphasis for special treatment did not involve cultural concerns, but the government had no option but to include them also.

The charter was made and designed for Quebec to advance it's racist ideologies in a twisted legal sense made possible by the countries foremost expert in oppression and discrimination Pierre Trudeau and his communist type pinko's.

[Temagami Scourge]

Interesting news from Alberta that seems to fit in nicely with this topic:

http://www.businessedge.ca/article.cfm/newsID/13861.cfm

Funny that it always seems that Ontario has to let Alberta know what's going on in their own backyard, but that is another story.....

[fellowtraveller]

Interesting article, and let us all hope it isn't just more self -serving bullshit, and that aboriginal leadership will finally emerge to serve their people.

[geoffrey]

Interesting news from Alberta that seems to fit in nicely with this topic:

http://www.businessedge.ca/article.cfm/newsID/13861.cfm

Funny that it always seems that Ontario has to let Alberta know what's going on in their own backyard, but that is another story.....

Through a business associate I've done business with the Samson's and I have a high degree of respect for their business ability. There is tons of ability and potential on alot of reserves, just most choose not to do anything with it...

I had no idea the Peace Hills Trust was Indian run, I think that's very commendable.

My question to you Temagami as I honestly have no idea... do these businesses and projects have to pay the same tax as if they were run by white (or others) people? How many extra incentives do they get?

What's your take on private home ownership on reserves as well?

[Temagami Scourge]

Heffie:

My question to you Temagami as I honestly have no idea... do these businesses and projects have to pay the same tax as if they were run by white (or others) people? How many extra incentives do they get?

If on reserve and dealing exclusively on reserve, then they are tax exempt. If on reserve and they do some business off reserve, then they pay taxes on the off-reserve portion of business. If they are located off-reserve, then they pay taxes like everyone else, while getting upset with a plethora of non-Natives who whine that all Natives are tax exempt, like me.

What's your take on private home ownership on reserves as well?

As long as the Aboriginal Nation in question maintains ultimate title to the land used as collateral (like the Crown does in non-reserve lands), then I have no problem what so ever. Banks already operate on reserve, so foreclosong a property and then re-selling to another person already occurs...but the land remains part and parcel of the Reserve.

In Six Nations's this is somewhat different, as much of the land "sold" was sold under the understanding that ultimate title remained with Six Nations, however, the Crown used these sales as justification to remove the land from Six Nation's and turn it into Crown land, which is part of the crux of the problem there.

[M.Dancer]

What on earth does that question mean? I once worked in a factory and there was a mohawk supervisor on the shipping floor.......

......so what?

[Led Boots]

Interesting news from Alberta that seems to fit in nicely with this topic:

http://www.businessedge.ca/article.cfm/newsID/13861.cfm

Funny that it always seems that Ontario has to let Alberta know what's going on in their own backyard, but that is another story.....

Temagami,

no big surprise to me. I’ve stayed in many Native owned and operated camps in northern Alberta, worked along side many aboriginal contractors in the oil and gas sectors and recently spent about a year and a half helping a couple of friends (who are Cree) start up a fabrication business in the Edmonton area. (They know the business end of it and I know the production end of it.)

What does surprise me is how the stereotype (lazy Natives) persists in the face of these realities.

What on earth does that question mean? I once worked in a factory and there was a mohawk supervisor on the shipping floor.......

......so what?

Kinda wunderin' the same thing.

[Temagami Scourge]

Led/Dancer:

You're right. I think stereotyping is a large part of the problem. I know full well that I am not representative of all Natives much in the way that many of the personalities here are not representative of the grouping they identify with.

...and yet the stereotypes are often conferred on me for simply daring to have a contrary opinion. So, I do likewise, rather blatantly, and appear to work some people up.

As far as I'm concerned, I think I'm some people's wet dream of the perfect Native: Tax-paying, lives off reserve, owns off-rez properties, highly-intelligent, university-educated, faithful to family and friends, one son in the gifted program at school (because he takes after me) and the other an accomplished musician (Also taking after me) and responsible....and who also happens to know an awful lot about Canadian law and history as it applies to Native people, and who also understand Native history (in relation to my mother and Father's Nations, respectively.

The only thing that I think I can be accused of that is "anti-Canadian" is my preference for the NFL.

I even like White people. Especially Peyton Manning, after watching him pick apart a top defence like Denver's yesterday.

My only regret is that I have to attend a parent council meeting tonight and will miss part of the first quarter in tonight's Vikings (no offense to any actual Vikings out there...I didn't name the team) and Patriots (No offense, see previous) game.

I also possess a sense of humour, which is a cultural trait of Native people, however, if you watch old westerns, we are portrayed as humorless.

Hence the stereotyping....

[theloniusfleabag]

Back when I was head chef at a Calgary restaurant, and I hired a Native (or Original) line cook. Good guy, and my wife (she was my 'sous chef') and we really liked him as a person, which is a bit rare in the industry. We were sad to see him go, but he explained his situation...he left the reserve to be a chef, and owed a bunch of tax dollars as a result. He was already working another part time cooking job, and could make more money (to pay his back taxes with) at a golf course than at our place.

As to other situations, my wife and I have been on almost every reserve in Southern Alberta (south of Edmonton) including the 4 around Hobbema (Louis Bull, Samson, Ermineskin and Montana), Sunchild (near Rocky Mountain House), Morley (Stoney), Sarcee (Tsuu T'ina), Piikani (or Peigan, at Brockett), the Blood (from near Lethbridge to Cardston, I believe it is the largest in Canada), and Siksika. Met a bunch of really nice people, and a couple of jerks.

[Led Boots]

Temagami,

I guess I just didn’t grow up believing in the stereotypes as my family is soooo mixed in respect to our ancestry. My mother’s side of the family is a mixture of German and Russian and my father’s is French, Hungarian, Iroquois and Métis. To complicate matters further my wife is a mixture of Australian Scottish and Koori (in perfect proportion of course) which leaves me wondering what stereotypes my kids should live up to.

[Temagami Scourge]

Led:

I guess I just didn’t grow up believing in the stereotypes as my family is soooo mixed in respect to our ancestry. My mother’s side of the family is a mixture of German and Russian and my father’s is French, Hungarian, Iroquois and Métis.

My brother!

To complicate matters further my wife is a mixture of Australian Scottish and Koori (in perfect proportion of course) which leaves me wondering what stereotypes my kids should live up to.

Wow...you must be a breast man. Damned lucky Germo-Ruso-Franco-Hungariano-Iro-Metis bastard! (N.B. Oh...I mean a nice bastard -like the kind brothers use to describe one another, not the "questioning your ancestry type of bastard" -author)

Now I'm envious....

[M.Dancer]

Bose

Harmon

Sony

Technics

Denon

...these are the stereo types I know best......

[Temagami Scourge]

Bose

Harmon

Sony

Technics

Denon

...these are the stereo types I know best......

Yes...but are you a multicultural breast man. That is the pertinent question...

[M.Dancer]

Bose

Harmon

Sony

Technics

Denon

...these are the stereo types I know best......

Yes...but are you a multicultural breast man. That is the pertinent question...

Are you asking if I like boobs in all sizes shapes and colours? Why yes, but I draw the line at hairy nipples.....

[fellowtraveller]

I had no idea the Peace Hills Trust was Indian run, I think that's very commendable.

I know a couple of guys at Peace Hills Trust, and they aren't First Nations people. The seed money at PHT was from a couple of bands, but I don't think the day to day management is specifically aboriginal.

[WinnipegPatriot]

Well, I live around many aboriginals, and to be honest, for the most part, they are barbaric. Their social ills seem to be reflected in everyday life. They just do not seem to have an interest in things the majority of us do. For instance, no aboriginal households in my area have a desire for gardening/landscaping. The majority of the homes in my area have occupants who plant flowers, etc. No Aboriginals seem to care about such things. Perhaps it is because they do not own their homes? The woman who lives next door has five children, and she is the most useless b*tch. Her kids stare at us in awe when we plant our flowerbeds, etc.

I think a high number of Aboriginals expect to be taken care of by the government, as if it is some lottery.

[gerryhatrick]

What is the point of this thread?