Commentary by H.G. Listiak

Thursday 09/18/2003

Welcome to my world, where as many of you know, my dad worked for the B.I.A., so I became very Indian-oriented at a very early age. I hold my native brothers in high esteem. They are strong, and really don't require a lot of outside interference anymore. Now if they could just get rid of all this politically correct nonsense, stuff like newcomer Kathy Davis of the National Park Service removing a prominent historical market because it referred to Fort Verde as protecting settlers against hostile Indians, an historic fact, and part of Arizona. She says the word hostile is derogatory to Native Americans, which she is definitely not. She's simply another government official forcing more politically correct garbage down our throats. The people in Verde Valley are upset and passing around petitions, but it may not work, and it's sad. Just because one politically correct zealot doesn't like a word, it doesn't change history. The Verde Valley Wars were hostilities, just like the Revolutionary, Civil, and all the rest of the fighting on American soil that shaped our nation. The word hostile is not derogatory, but a state of events. I didn't lose any self esteem in the war when I was hostile. I mean, was Santa Anna discriminated against when he was hostile at the Alamo? I doubt it, and he was Hispanic. But hang on, it gets worse. A booklet about the history of Fort Verde, "An Era Of Men And Courage", has been removed from the bookshelves because according to Janet Hawks of the Arizona Park Service, it's a very valuable book, the only one about Fort Verde, but it's language is outdated. Well lady, the Bible's language is outdated, so is the Constitution. So are some politically correct zealots going to shelve or rewrite them? History is gone, good or bad. It's already been written, and no amount of politically correct crap is going to change that, as I see it ... I'm H.G. Listiak.