I enoyed parts of this video, while other parts I found rather agonizing. His analysis is rather good at points, imo, but falls short of really addressing the root of the problem. He comes so close at many points, which is why I found it agonizing at times.
While his critique of colonialism is valid, it falls short of truly addressing neocolonialism, even though he makes overtures towards it. I would challenge his assertion that "having more money is good" and that bringing money to impoverished places can be good, but causes rifts when left unchecked. Capital is inherently dominating and disempowering. Imo, it is not valid to decry the effects of tourism while touting the "benefits" of accruing more capital, both are pieces of the neocolonial paradigm that lead to oppression and ruin. It is not enough to say, let's leave these places alone (aside from being antithetical to neocolonialism), nor is it practical. The only way that we can work, from our end, to "protect" the sort of remote places he discusses is to actively dismantle the colonialist/capitalist paradigm. Anything short of that will, imo, lead to ruin..of us, of them, of this planet.
Similarly, his claims about pastoralism are mostly on-point, imo, but again, fall short. It's not that these people are "special" or that they are "better-than," "greater-than," or "super" human. Rather, I would assert that there is clear evidence that the manner in which they are living is less environmentally detrimental than industrial civilization. This is not to pass value judgement on indigenous communities as people, but rather, to evaluate the acute "footprint" of those civilizations on "nature" in comparison with the "footprint" of industrial civilizations on "nature."
This is not to say that individuals within these communities do not want technological gizmos, in fact, the majority of the evidence I have seen points to the contrary. However, it is to say that the tremendously ecologically destructive processes of industrial civilization are, by and large, absent from indigenous societies for a number of reasons, some more complex than others. There are interesting questions that arise from indigenous claims regarding the acute effects of and knowledge received from ayahuasca ceremonies and the relationship of these ceremonies to understandings of the ecological environment. I would posit it's not about the people, but moreso, about the effects of the plants, when utilized in contexts that allow for the experiencing of this knowledge.
I think that utilizing these plants (and chemicals), in contexts that have relevance to the user(s), in order to catalyze certain understandings/states of consciousness, and then acting in accordance with those models, is the takeaway from these indigenous practices. That is to say, if you eat mushrooms and realize that all of nature is connected, don't sit around getting baked off your ass pontificating about it,
do something about it. If you take ayahuasca and have epiphanies that plants and animals are more than the "machines" Descartes claimed them to be, don't order shipibo garb and prance around your Manhattan apartment singing icaros,
do something with that newfound understanding. Imo, if we claim to receive understandings from these substances, if they truly change the way we relate to the world, that should be reflected in the full range our actions, not just our lifestyles.
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The OHTIn New York, we wrote the legal number on our arms in marker...To call a lawyer if we were arrested.
In Istanbul, People wrote their blood types on their arms. I hear in Egypt, They just write Their names.
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