The Pipeline and the Standing Rock Community

    I have not weighed in on the conflict at Standing Rock yet, because I have been trying to untangle the mess that is the octopus of conflicting and cooperating forces that have teamed up to protest the pipeline.  Here are some thoughts on the issue, and I will warn you, they are just as murky as the motives of the protesters at the site.

   I certainly agree that the damage done to the livelihoods of the individuals who have had property damage is unacceptable.  If you are going to protest something because you don't think that people's livelihoods are in danger, don't endanger other people's livelihoods to do it. This may simply be not understanding how crucial it is to not damage things like grazing lands and fences.  But, if you are not going to take the time to learn and understand what side effects your behaviors cause, maybe you should not act at all.  Likewise, I don't think the harassment that law enforcement has received has been justified.  The law is the law and we all follow the law, whether we like the outcome or not.  With that said, if you are not from that part of the world is is hard to understand just how much politics and greed swirl around each and every contentious event.  It is only partly right to say that there are always two sides to each story.  In stories like this one there are actually several, if not several dozen.  Certainly Soros and his minions have taken this issue and used it as a national stage for certain issues they want to lift up and support.  Most notably the blocking of the pipeline slows the flow or oil, which raises the price of oil, which lowers the consumption of oil, which encourages alternate energy sources.  The environmental groups backing the First Nation (what some folks call Native American) interest have made no bones about the fact that they are there to stall and inhibit the access to the oil fields.  And yes, Warren Buffet has a vested interest in keeping the pipeline non-functional, at least if his railroad interests are going to reap the huge profit from transporting the oil from the oil fields.  And those are all sides to the story.

    However, as a person of First Nation ancestry (I am am Montaukett by way of the the Matinecock of Long Island who are, more or less, merged with the Montaukett) there is yet another side.  I know the Montaukett and remaining Matinecock tribes have spent a good bit of time discussing this issue and there are some considerations worth noting. The tribe at Standing Rock has good reason to fear the outcome of having a pipeline that is anywhere in the vicinity of their water supply. Pipeline leaks are common and often quite disastrous. Pipeline companies have terrible reputations when it comes to clean up and the brunt of the cost usually falls on the communities where the damage is done.   Tribes living on reservations often have far less access to healthy infrastructure than the rest of the country so it is doubly important to protect basic utilities like water.  Also, the value of sacred spaces, and locations is not as concrete as it is in non-indigenous thought.  Native populations have much more fluid understandings of these things,so an archaeological study, while useful, is not as conclusive as you might think.  The tribe knows it is being used as a pawn in the pursuit of a myriad of alternative, and often, hidden agendas.  All of  the First Nation communities know that.  The issue is, when you are fighting for basic human rights (like water and safety) sometimes you have to accept strange bedfellows.  First Nation interests have rarely fared well in legal disputes so allies, even of the most dubious sort, are being welcomed.

    Would they prefer for all of the outsiders who have non-indigenous interests to stay at home and leave this to them?  Yes.  But, without the resources, either financial or numerical, to fight the pipeline little choice has been left the tribe at Standing Rock.   This is a multifaceted issue, and it is one that is clouded by vested interests on both sides.   At the center of it is a small community of people who just want what little they have left not taken from them.  While we may find the actions of those who have chosen to opportunistically use this event for selfish purposes abhorrent, we cannot forget that the human face of this conflict is a community that wants clean drinking water for their children.

    So, my final thought is just this: pray for a safe outcome that best looks out for the interests of the innocent, safeguards the livelihoods of those affected by the protest, leaves our police forces un-harassed for doing their jobs, while forestalling the less noble goals of the competing factions. Like I said, it is a murky post about a murky issue.  But that is real life folks.