Open scene: two young boys playing cowboys and Indians. One with a feather and bow and arrow, the other wearing a cowboy hat and a pistol. They run, hide, and imagine an elaborate battle scene without a care in the world.
What does it mean? What caused them to take these roles? What is the history behind this game? Why are the two characters fighting anyway?
For starters, it can all be traced back to early settlers. (Now understand I'm no history buff; I'm horrible at history as a matter of fact, but it's okay because my point lies not within the specific details of the past, but the overall principle.) Anyway, when the settlers came over on their boats with their huge ships and weapons, they planned to live on the land. Much to their dismay, there were people already there - the Native Americans. After living in some sort of peace for some time, they eventually began pushing the Natives away to make room for themselves. The Natives were lied to, mistreated, attacked, disrespected, and among many other things, misunderstood. Over time, the Native Americans have been constantly pushed from their homelands by greedy white land mongers.
Think of some political issue that you have a strong opinion about: the one that you have the most intense feelings and opinions for. This is mine.
Any day of the year, I will much more fiercely and passionately defend the Native Americans than I will the United States of America. As a matter of fact, the United States is the villain in this instance - the one that I am most passionate about. I cannot come close to grasping the thought of anyone wanting to cause harm to the Native Americans. They thrived for thousands of years, living as one with nature, without releasing pollution, destroying land, destroying resources, blowing things up, or causing any traceable harm to Mother Nature. They lived as tribes in commune, with every member of the community doing everything for the good of the people. They were filled with loyalty that they would go to extensive lengths to help the tribe. Furthermore, everything was based on survival. It's not like today where if you are fortunate enough to be rich, you don't need to worry about not having food or shelter. Oh no, this was a completely different life style. If you weren't helping the tribe, you were hurting it. If you were hurting the tribe, you were dishonoring yourself, your family, and your entire tribe. I can't express in words how envious I am of such a lifestyle; neither can I express how bitter and resentful I am that they were moved from the land which they first set foot upon (excluding the animals).
Are we happy now? Has America really improved? Facing global warming, shortage of food and resources, overpopulation, dwindling dumps, deforestation, and heavy pollution all in the near future, have we really taken a step in the right direction? Why have we persued development and industry? Is it to improve our lives? Make things easier and more enjoyable? One of the best things about teh Native American culture was that they did not see the need for this so called "improvement." They were one with the environment, they were spiritually strong, and they survived for thousands of years. What is there not to like about that? If we are happy with what we have, why invite change if it will cause any sort of harm (in the near or distant future) to the earth? What a shame - we kicked out the people who could have saved us from eventual devastation. I believe the state of the Earth has been reduced since their time, and I believe that if nothing happens to drastically stop it, the human race will essentially destroy itself and its environment.