Yesterday the Sioux nation dropped a bomb on the United States that more than decimated a 5 state area in the northern central plains. It pretty much destroyed Nebraska, took away the famed Devil’s Tower (from Close Encounters) and almost affected Iowa.
Horrors!
Oh, wait.. Maybe I’m overreacting.
Let’s look at what really happened.
A group of self-appointed representatives went to the US Secretary of State and said, “We’re dissolving all US Treaties.”
I assume they did this by invoking Article 15 of the Shadow Proclamation.
The perception is that the Lakota nation would thus take their land and their people and no longer be part of the US. The representative went so far to explain that anyone could live in the lands, get a Lakotan driver’s licenese, passport, and no longer be part of the US. (Including the yummy lack of taxation and prosecution under US laws.)
This is the Sioux Nation we’re talking about. Crazy Horse, Little Big Horn, The defeat of Custer. Why not take them seriously? Why not believe this is real?
Well, when you hear a story like this, you initially want to believe it. Assuming you’re not a diehard abortion-doctor-killin’, flag-burner-ass-whumpin’, love-our-troops-least-til-they-come-home-then-ignore-’em, red-white-and-blue-bleedin’ “AMER’CN”! If you have a shred of open-mindedness, you dream of a place of freedom from the government which you and mostly everyone you know has lost faith in. Bully for the Native (no longer) Americans
Okay.. enough ham-fisting the topic.
I hear a story like this and I want to get the details. I mean… this is the kind of thing that makes most groups kind of shudder. I spent years in the SCA hearing the horror stories about the size of the files that the FBI had on the group because the SCA was the largest freestanding militia not under any country’s direct control. One day we might rise up and take on the US and could potentially destroy their army with our foils and rattan sticks. Personally, I thought it’d be Kit’s talent for eating strawberries. He could make a straight man give pause. (Yes, this last bit is an obscure reference that probably no one will get)
But back to the Sioux… or the Lakhota… or more properly to Russell Means. On December 20, 2007, Means announced the withdrawal of the Lakota Sioux from all treaties with the US Gov’t. He made claim to a slightly larger than previously established land area.
The question now is not how will the US Government deal with this. The question is “How will the Sioux deal with this?” Means has lost election after election for the leadership of the Sioux Nation. So does he really speak for the people of the Sioux Nation?
My personal opinion is that this move could be horribly damaging to the Sioux. The US will probably ignore this as an internal affair. This could be viewed as an attempted political coup. Unfortunately with the track record of his own nation not supporting him, Means will probably not have much support. Either Means will quietly go away and the Sioux will try to remove the egg from their face, or Means’ supporters will rally leading to a possible fracture, schism, or split of the Sioux Nation, making it inevitably…even less of a threat to the US.
To put it in simpler terms: If the Secretary of the SCA stood up and said, “Today we are independent of the US. Pennsic’s lands are ours. Come live in our world.”.. it would do little more than get the person thrown out on their ear.
My predictions:
41% Sioux Nation ignores it
32% Sioux Nation makes PR statement denying it.
25% Means makes more statements of grandiosity and then see previous two predictions.
2% Sioux nation backs Means. Then there will be another post or 20.
One final note… In researching this I have found two different spellings: Lakota and Lakhota. I’d like an official statement on this before I apply for my passport.
