The truth about Columbus

i didnt find a thread for this...

Columbus Day is a national holiday. But it's also a good
time to confront the mythology about the heroic explorer who
"discovered" America.

Columbus had a crew of 90, four of whom were criminals.
The criminals were promised pardons on their return.
Columbus had a hard time getting sailors to go with him,
because most thought his voyage was crazy.


Columbus' voyage has even less meaning for North Americans than
for South Americans because Columbus never set foot on our
continent, nor did he open it to European trade.
Scandinavian Vikings already had settlements
here in the eleventh century, and British fisherman
probably fished the shores of Canada for decades
before Columbus.

Contrary to popular legend, Columbus did not prove
that the world was round; educated people had
known that for centuries. The Egyptian-Greek
scientist Erastosthenes, working for Alexandria
and Aswan, already had measured the circumference
and diameter of the world in the third century B.C. Arab
scientists had developed a whole discipline of
geography and measurement, and in the tenth
century A.D., Al Maqdisi described the earth
with 360 degrees of longitude and 180 degrees of latitude.

Columbus did not set sail to prove the world was round.
He set sail to find gold, spices, and silks, and other riches in Asia.
when he did not find that stuff, Columbus decided to pay
for his voyage in the one important commodity he had
found in ample supply - human lives. He seized 1,200
Taino Indians from the island of Hispaniola, crammed
as many onto his ships as would fit and sent them to
Spain, where they were paraded naked through the
streets of Seville and sold as slaves in 1495. Columbus
tore children from their parents, husbands from wives.
On board Columbus' slave ships, hundreds died;
the sailors tossed the Indian bodies into the Atlantic.
Because Columbus captured more Indian slaves than
he could transport to Spain in his small ships, he put
them to work in mines and plantations which he, his
family and followers created throughout the Caribbean.
His marauding band hunted Indians for sport and profit -
beating, raping, torturing, killing, and then using the
Indian bodies as food for their hunting dogs. Within four years
of Columbus' arrival on Hispaniola, his men had killed or
exported one-third of the original Indian population of
300,000. Within another 50 years, the Taino people
had been made extinct [editor's note: the old assumption
that the Taino became extinct is now open to serious question] -
the first casualties of the holocaust of American Indians.
The plantation owners then turned to the American
mainland and to Africa for new slaves to follow
the tragic path of the Taino. Historians
estimate that half of the Indians on Haiti --
as many as 125,000 people --
were dead within a few years. Virtually all were dead
within two generations.


In October, we honor Christopher Columbus,
who opened the Atlantic slave trade and
launched one of the greatest waves of genocide known in history.

sources- http://www.thepeoplespaths.net/Articles2000/Weatherford0010Columbus.htm

http://home.att.net/~ascacmidatlantic/columbus.htm

everyone knows Columbus is an idiotic asshole
so was Jefferson but we all celebrate them anyway

they're our history, whether we like them or not

and besides, admitting that we come from tyranical, biased, stupid, assholes is what seperates us from the French (I'm just kidding you guys, but maybe next time a country has a revolution take less than eight years to help out

spill_no_sick:

everyone knows Columbus is an idiotic asshole
so was Jefferson but we all celebrate them anyway

they're our history, whether we like them or not

and besides, admitting that we come from tyranical, biased, stupid, assholes is what seperates us from the French (I'm just kidding you guys, but maybe next time a country has a revolution take less than eight years to help out

so your saying its ok to be rasist and lie to people and have a holiday celabrateing someone who commeted genocide?

ST.JIMMYSREALESTATEAGENT:

spill_no_sick:

everyone knows Columbus is an idiotic asshole
so was Jefferson but we all celebrate them anyway

they're our history, whether we like them or not

and besides, admitting that we come from tyranical, biased, stupid, assholes is what seperates us from the French (I'm just kidding you guys, but maybe next time a country has a revolution take less than eight years to help out

so your saying its ok to be rasist and lie to people and have a holiday celabrateing someone who commeted genocide?

It's common knowledge now a days.

Everyone knows that, and it's the same as well for the exlorers who went to South America. Besides, what do you propose we do now? I'm not even American so I really don't care much.

Dude, EVERYONE knows that Colombus didn't prove that the Earth was round. Waaaaaaay more ancient civilizations knew it before the Europeans.

India, Arabia, all those guys knew it. Vasco Di Gama was the first record of someone circumnavigating the Earth.

And yes, Colombus was a dick. Lord knows why it's celebrated. But it is.

Personally it's a case of where do you draw the line.


You can pretty much doubt the revelance of every national holdiay US or otherwise.

I mean we celebrate Guy Fawkes night a man that is a convicted terrorist and planned to blow up the houses of parliament and the 100's of people who lived there


Martin Luther King was an adulter and generally thought of a a wife beater.

Winston Churchill was a sexist pig who was one of the main instigators behind holding the vote back from women.



History is fucking evil but it's still your history. Maybe having a columbus day not only highligths what he achieved but also his downfalls in humanity which allow us to learn from our mistakes. So thjey are not repeated. If it wasn't a day then maybe people would forget, is that what you want to happen?

I agree with Steph!

And well, National Holidays don't give me that much at all They're too old and mostly religious, so I don't care but enjoy the non school day..

ST.JIMMYSREALESTATEAGENT:

spill_no_sick:

everyone knows Columbus is an idiotic asshole
so was Jefferson but we all celebrate them anyway

they're our history, whether we like them or not

and besides, admitting that we come from tyranical, biased, stupid, assholes is what seperates us from the French (I'm just kidding you guys, but maybe next time a country has a revolution take less than eight years to help out

so your saying its ok to be rasist and lie to people and have a holiday celabrateing someone who commeted genocide?

that's exactly what I said you closeminded genious

it's our HISTORY
so what I'm saying is we LEARN ABOUT IT
therefore we get the facts and FORM OUR OWN OPINION on it

I know those three steps aren't exactly the American way, but we should learn things for ourselves and make our own opinions

and yes, him, like Thomas Jefferson were some of the biggest assholes in our history, but we still celebrate them and place importance on them (importance isn't always positive)

but no, I do not think that we schould be racist just because our ancestors were
again, we learn from history, it helps us to not make the same mistake

of course, you can try to censor everything you don't want to know and become a liberal stereotype as well, I just hope you don't plan to go into politics with this mindset

Little Death.:

I agree with Steph!

And well, National Holidays don't give me that much at all They're too old and mostly religious, so I don't care but enjoy the non school day..

I love you
you're honest, you aren't trying to be political without being political educated, you have sufficient evidence on your case, you're argument is absolutely genious
if only more Americans could be like you, we would get a lot accomplished

Little Death.:

I agree with Steph!

And well, National Holidays don't give me that much at all They're too old and mostly religious, so I don't care but enjoy the non school day..

well i dont get columbus day off

they have it in germany?

spill_no_sick:

Little Death.:

I agree with Steph!

And well, National Holidays don't give me that much at all They're too old and mostly religious, so I don't care but enjoy the non school day..

I love you
you're honest, you aren't trying to be political without being political educated, you have sufficient evidence on your case, you're argument is absolutely genious
if only more Americans could be like you, we would get a lot accomplished

yes Be is cool

Eh, don't care much. It's celebrated because companies make shitloads of money. I call holidays like these Hallmark Holiday.

spill_no_sick:

Little Death.:

I agree with Steph!

And well, National Holidays don't give me that much at all They're too old and mostly religious, so I don't care but enjoy the non school day..

I love you
you're honest, you aren't trying to be political without being political educated, you have sufficient evidence on your case, you're argument is absolutely genious
if only more Americans could be like you, we would get a lot accomplished

She's actually German, but whatever...
Its still valid.

Little Death.:

I agree with Steph!

And well, National Holidays don't give me that much at all They're too old and mostly religious, so I don't care but enjoy the non school day..

The Best part of national holidays.


*sigh* no bank holidays till christmas.

spill_no_sick:

ST.JIMMYSREALESTATEAGENT:

spill_no_sick:

everyone knows Columbus is an idiotic asshole
so was Jefferson but we all celebrate them anyway

they're our history, whether we like them or not

and besides, admitting that we come from tyranical, biased, stupid, assholes is what seperates us from the French (I'm just kidding you guys, but maybe next time a country has a revolution take less than eight years to help out

so your saying its ok to be rasist and lie to people and have a holiday celabrateing someone who commeted genocide?

that's exactly what I said you closeminded genious

it's our HISTORY
so what I'm saying is we LEARN ABOUT IT
therefore we get the facts and FORM OUR OWN OPINION on it

I know those three steps aren't exactly the American way, but we should learn things for ourselves and make our own opinions

and yes, him, like Thomas Jefferson were some of the biggest assholes in our history, but we still celebrate them and place importance on them (importance isn't always positive)

but no, I do not think that we should be racist just because our ancestors were
again, we learn from history, it helps us to not make the same mistake

of course, you can try to censor everything you don't want to know and become a liberal stereotype as well, I just hope you don't plan to go into politics with this mindset

but the problem is alot of schools arnt teaching the truth.

Therefore, many people arn't educated enouth to fourm there own opinion, That would be like asking a 5 year old if they approve of the war in iraq. If we where able the use columbus day as time to learn the truth it would be different, but some people are still teaching false info.

Until like the 80s many people where afriad to tell the truth, witch leaves millions of americans uneducated about it.

And although i am not sure what Thomas Jefferson did he still made a great conturbution to the world, columbus accualey made very few conturbutions, and he did not even intend to go to the Americas he wanted to go to the indies to get gold, silk, spices and other goods. He thought he was in india the whole time! (this is why native americans where called "indiens" for a while.)

just beacuase i have strong opinions doesnt mean im closeminded, your the one afriad of chance.

ST.JIMMYSREALESTATEAGENT:

spill_no_sick:

ST.JIMMYSREALESTATEAGENT:

spill_no_sick:

everyone knows Columbus is an idiotic asshole
so was Jefferson but we all celebrate them anyway

they're our history, whether we like them or not

and besides, admitting that we come from tyranical, biased, stupid, assholes is what seperates us from the French (I'm just kidding you guys, but maybe next time a country has a revolution take less than eight years to help out

so your saying its ok to be rasist and lie to people and have a holiday celabrateing someone who commeted genocide?

that's exactly what I said you closeminded genious

it's our HISTORY
so what I'm saying is we LEARN ABOUT IT
therefore we get the facts and FORM OUR OWN OPINION on it

I know those three steps aren't exactly the American way, but we should learn things for ourselves and make our own opinions

and yes, him, like Thomas Jefferson were some of the biggest assholes in our history, but we still celebrate them and place importance on them (importance isn't always positive)

but no, I do not think that we should be racist just because our ancestors were
again, we learn from history, it helps us to not make the same mistake

of course, you can try to censor everything you don't want to know and become a liberal stereotype as well, I just hope you don't plan to go into politics with this mindset

but the problem is alot of schools arnt teaching the truth.

Therefore, many people arn't educated enouth to fourm there own opinion, That would be like asking a 5 year old if they approve of the war in iraq. If we where able the use columbus day as time to learn the truth it would be different, but some people are still teaching false info.

Until like the 80s many people where afriad to tell the truth, witch leaves millions of americans uneducated about it.

And although i am not sure what Thomas Jefferson did he still made a great conturbution to the world, columbus accualey made very few conturbutions, and he did not even intend to go to the Americas he wanted to go to the indies to get gold, silk, spices and other goods. He thought he was in india the whole time! (this is why native americans where called "indiens" for a while.)

just beacuase i have strong opinions doesnt mean im closeminded, your the one afriad of chance.

then the issue isn't Columbus day, it's education
so saying that there should be no Columbus day because people are uneducated does make you closeminded

we still have elections every year even though no one is close to informed enough to vote

it's like asking anyone about what they think about the war in Iraq, they don't know
does that mean we should stop trying to educate?

no, if anything, we should have a Columbus week so that way people will learn more

no we shouldn't have a whole week dedicated to the bastard, but we should still have a day saying, "this guy accidentally stumbled upon new land, he didn't handle it right, he died thinking he made it to the Indies (which is why he called them IndiAns....with an A) but it had a lot of oppurtunity....etc)

I'm not afraid of chance, I'm just attacking you for giving only one side of the information

yes, he's an asshole
but yes, because of him we are here today, able to say, "yes, he's an asshole"

it's part of history, we still celebrate Thanksgiving, which is about both betraying Nativa Americans and reducing them to .2% of the population in their own country, and it's also about gluttony

but it's still history and we should still learn about it

Bloodraine:

spill_no_sick:

Little Death.:

I agree with Steph!

And well, National Holidays don't give me that much at all They're too old and mostly religious, so I don't care but enjoy the non school day..

I love you
you're honest, you aren't trying to be political without being political educated, you have sufficient evidence on your case, you're argument is absolutely genious
if only more Americans could be like you, we would get a lot accomplished

She's actually German, but whatever...
Its still valid.

If that wasn't sarcasm, thank you

Little Death.:

Bloodraine:

spill_no_sick:

Little Death.:

I agree with Steph!

And well, National Holidays don't give me that much at all They're too old and mostly religious, so I don't care but enjoy the non school day..

I love you
you're honest, you aren't trying to be political without being political educated, you have sufficient evidence on your case, you're argument is absolutely genious
if only more Americans could be like you, we would get a lot accomplished

She's actually German, but whatever...
Its still valid.

If that wasn't sarcasm, thank you

it was 100% sincere

Columbus Day should SO be a holiday! I mean, we get Lincoln's birthday off at school! We should get Columbus day off as well!

spill_no_sick:

ST.JIMMYSREALESTATEAGENT:

spill_no_sick:

ST.JIMMYSREALESTATEAGENT:

spill_no_sick:

everyone knows Columbus is an idiotic asshole
so was Jefferson but we all celebrate them anyway

they're our history, whether we like them or not

and besides, admitting that we come from tyranical, biased, stupid, assholes is what seperates us from the French (I'm just kidding you guys, but maybe next time a country has a revolution take less than eight years to help out

so your saying its ok to be rasist and lie to people and have a holiday celabrateing someone who commeted genocide?

that's exactly what I said you closeminded genious

it's our HISTORY
so what I'm saying is we LEARN ABOUT IT
therefore we get the facts and FORM OUR OWN OPINION on it

I know those three steps aren't exactly the American way, but we should learn things for ourselves and make our own opinions

and yes, him, like Thomas Jefferson were some of the biggest assholes in our history, but we still celebrate them and place importance on them (importance isn't always positive)

but no, I do not think that we should be racist just because our ancestors were
again, we learn from history, it helps us to not make the same mistake

of course, you can try to censor everything you don't want to know and become a liberal stereotype as well, I just hope you don't plan to go into politics with this mindset

but the problem is alot of schools arnt teaching the truth.

Therefore, many people arn't educated enouth to fourm there own opinion, That would be like asking a 5 year old if they approve of the war in iraq. If we where able the use columbus day as time to learn the truth it would be different, but some people are still teaching false info.

Until like the 80s many people where afriad to tell the truth, witch leaves millions of americans uneducated about it.

And although i am not sure what Thomas Jefferson did he still made a great conturbution to the world, columbus accualey made very few conturbutions, and he did not even intend to go to the Americas he wanted to go to the indies to get gold, silk, spices and other goods. He thought he was in india the whole time! (this is why native americans where called "indiens" for a while.)

just beacuase i have strong opinions doesnt mean im closeminded, your the one afriad of chance.

then the issue isn't Columbus day, it's education
so saying that there should be no Columbus day because people are uneducated does make you closeminded

we still have elections every year even though no one is close to informed enough to vote

it's like asking anyone about what they think about the war in Iraq, they don't know
does that mean we should stop trying to educate?

no, if anything, we should have a Columbus week so that way people will learn more

no we shouldn't have a whole week dedicated to the bastard, but we should still have a day saying, "this guy accidentally stumbled upon new land, he didn't handle it right, he died thinking he made it to the Indies (which is why he called them IndiAns....with an A) but it had a lot of oppurtunity....etc)

I'm not afraid of chance, I'm just attacking you for giving only one side of the information

yes, he's an asshole
but yes, because of him we are here today, able to say, "yes, he's an asshole"

it's part of history, we still celebrate Thanksgiving, which is about both betraying Nativa Americans and reducing them to .2% of the population in their own country, and it's also about gluttony

but it's still history and we should still learn about it

are you even reading what im saying?