Suchergebnisse

THE UNITED STATES' CURRENT DRUG CRISIS IS A TRAGEDY BORN OF A PHONY TAXONOMY. FOR REASONS THAT ARE LITTLE MORE THAN ACCIDENTS OF HISTORY, A CATEGORY OF NON-FOOD SUBSTANCES HAS BEEN DIVIDED INTO ILLICIT DRUGS, SUCH AS COCAINE, OR INTO ITEMS THAT CAN EASILY BE PURCHASED FOR SUPPOSED PLEASURE, SUCH AS ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO. HOW CAN WE POSSIBLY DEFEND THE CURRENT POLICY BASED ON AN ABSURD DICHOTOMY THAT ENCOURAGES PEOPLE TO VIEW ONE CLASS OF SUBSTANCES WITH ULTIMATE HORROR AS PREEMINENT SCOURGES OF LIFE WHILE THE TWO MOST DANGEROUS SUBSTANCES, ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO, ARE ADVERTISED ON VIRTUALLY EVERY STREET CORNER IN URBAN AMERICA?

The use of genealogy by New Zealand Maori is not confined to human descent lines & relationships. It is also used as an epistemological framework for describing the inherent order in nature. Called "whakapapa," these typically contain information concerning an organism's theorized origin from the gods; descent lines; relationships (spiritual & physical), & uses. At one level, they function as all-inclusive "folk taxonomies." But understanding the nature of the relationships is impossible without knowledge of the accompanying narrative(s). These provide explanatory theories of why things came to be the way they are, as well as ethical guidelines for proper conduct. Renewed interest in the whakapapa of plants & animals results from concerns raised by Maori regarding genetic engineering, particularly the transfer of genes between humans & other species. Central to this interest is the nature of the relationships outlined in the whakapapa & what these might mean in terms of modern scientific concepts of taxonomy based on phylogeny & of the nature of a species. In this paper the whakapapa of an important food plant, the sweet potato or kumara, is described & an attempt made to interpret the multiple functions of this particular whakapapa. 2 Figures, 1 Photograph, 14 References. Adapted from the source document.

The use of genealogy by New Zealand Maori is not confined to human descent lines and relationships. It is also used as an epistemological framework for describing the inherent order in nature. Called 'whakapapa,' these typically contain information concerning an organism's theorized origin from the gods; descent lines; relationships (spiritual and physical), and uses. At one level, they function as all-inclusive 'folk taxonomies.' But understanding the nature of the relationships is impossible without knowledge of the accompanying narrative(s). These provide explanatory theories of why things came to be the way they are, as well as ethical guidelines for proper conduct. Renewed interest in the whakapapa of plants and animals results from concerns raised by Maori regarding genetic engineering, particularly the transfer of genes between humans and other species. Central to this interest is the nature of the relationships outlined in the whakapapa and what these might mean in terms of modern scientific concepts of taxonomy based on phylogeny and of the nature of a species. In this paper the whakapapa of an important food plant, the sweet potato or kumara, is described and an attempt made to interpret the multiple functions of this particular whakapapa. 2 Figures, 1 Photograph, 14 References. (Original abstract - amended)

Just over a century ago, a young Max Weber assumed his first professorship in Freiburg with a highly politicized inaugural lecture in which he invited the audience to follow him to the eastern marches of the Reich. There he described the Junkers' turn to Polish seasonal labourers--people with 'inferior physical and intellectual standards of living' brought in to work the sugar-beet fields. These 'troops of nomads recruited by agents in Russia, who cross the frontier in tens of thousands in spring and leave again in autumn', appeared desirable, 'because by employing them one can save on workers' dwellings, on poor rates, on social obligations, and further because their precarious situation as foreigners puts them in the hands of the landowners.' Yet these 'unviable colonies of starving Slavs' were propping up an outmoded, labour-intensive system of production, and represented essentially a 'side-effect of the death throes of the old Prussian Junkerdom'. The neophyte went on to rally the audience with the call that 'the German race should be protected in the east of the country, and the state's economic policies ought to rise to the challenge of defending it.'. Adapted from the source document.