Being oblivious to much, I was surprised right out of getting Jonah dressed for school this morning when through the mindless soothing babble of someone being chummy-viewed on MPR this popped out like bending over and picking up a branch in the eye, or the sudden head-butt while tying the shoe laces of a boucing child:
Eirík the Red sighted Greenland in 981 when he was exiled from Iceland for manslaughter. In 985 he led an expedition of 25 ships to Greenland from Iceland. Two colonies were established, first the Eastern Settlement and then the Western Settlement on the Davis Strait. Most of the Euro-Greenlanders lived in the Eastern Settlement. Two hundred seventy five years later, in 1261, the Euro-Greenlanders sought dependency under the Norwegian crown.
No "Vikings", no "Norwegians", just Icelanders, one hundred and fifteen years after the first Settlement of Iceland, some looking for land, some for distance from the new cult and the converted kings.
While I was on the phone to MPR (they think it came from the BBC, which provides bits and little else in the way of program notes) MB figured it out. It was Jared Diamond. Ugh. Another Euro-Triumphalist potboiler must be due out soon.
A good day to wear my IETF-45 tee, the one from Oslo, and to remember the Ice Storm.
Posted by EBW at January 10, 2005 10:43 AM | TrackBackI so glad that it isn't just me who wanted to either scream uncontrollably or laugh hysterically (both questionable activities at 65MPH (really officer!)) when I heard this drivel. It seemed that the interviewer wanted desperately to press JD with little things like facts/logic, but his Newt chip (the brain chip all NPR personnel received post-1994 to prevent offence to their corporate masters) kicked in and he happily followed along with the BS JD was spewing. The worst part about long drives is that I got to hear it a second time, and like a car crash, you don't want to look but you can't help yourself. Well at least the Y2K crowd can have some new kind of civilization collapse to look forward to.
Posted by: DeJeep at January 10, 2005 02:26 PMDeJeep,
You get _my_ prize for the most humorous comment. I wish I heard the drivel about Rapa Nui and whatever he ment by "the Mayans".
I actually had an inkling Jared was getting some "buzz" in East Blogistan, since I clicked on a trackback to Lindsay Beyerstein's blog and read a few entries, and found one discussing GGS and Uggabugga's critique of Jared's prior work. The MK comment (or UB quote, and I just checked, it was a UB quote) on domesticants really stuck out. That issue was addressed by indigenous scholarship thirty years ago, not that many European transplants bother with indigenous scholarship.
Thanks for reading, and writing!
Posted by: Eric at January 10, 2005 07:36 PMEric
Do you have links to the critiques? (Google failed me ..) I have read Guns, Germs, and Steel and am reading the new one (for some reason, I cannot remembr if its Collapse or Disastor) (the norweigian/viking thing is not so sloppily presented in the book) and don't see huge holes (not that I am a historian) in his work or catch anything like Euro triumphalism. His work is closer to being environmental determinism, IMO, and even that seems to be a stretch. What am I missing?
Posted by: kevin at January 11, 2005 10:49 AMIt is a serious subject and we're busy, with Koufax and trying to get work and preping the house for sale while we can.
You should read "Spiritualism, the highest form of Political Consciousness", from the Awkwesasne Notes publication in the late 70's". I may post on it.
Posted by: Eric at January 11, 2005 01:17 PM"It is a serious subject"
I wasn't trying to make light, and I'm sorry if I came across that way.
Thanks for the pointer. One of the unniversity libraries should have it, I would think. I will look forward to the post when you have time.
Good luck finding work.
Posted by: kevin at January 11, 2005 04:03 PM