Sounds good. I would take a copy of all the one's he has recorded. I had one i got from a buddy but someone made off with it. Let me know anything else

thanks again

Hey fossil.

I am a big fan of Wade's music...do you think you could get me some info about gettin some of his music

Thanks

I particularly don't think using the word "force" is the correct term to decsrcibe when having the Hidatsa language incorporated into the curriculum at the schools on the Fort Berthold Reservation.  Doesn't it make sense, in order to honor the language and culture of the peoples who's reservation it belongs to, and simply have a class to acknowledging that?  Of course it's not French or Spanish but I think thats the appeal.  It's local, it's Native, ...it's different than the other languages.  We have a language of our own. 

I myself was a student who took hidatsa language classes when I went to school in Mandaree and where I graduated from in 2004.  The importance of language preservation was stressed but it wasn't crammed in our faces. The fact that the speaking population was declining made it appealing and made me want to learn about it more, and take Hidatsa II before Graduating.  By the time I graduated, I could honestly say that I had a good handle on the language. I am HIdatsa/Mandan, and moved to the Rez from California when I was young and it just so happened that I developed a fascination with learning the Hidatsa Language.  From self-study, I also am familiar with French, and Spanish (being half-Mexican), languages that are not available for study in a class on the Rez, probably because they are not particularly relevant.  I wanted to learn about them in comparision to Native languages, which even if not studied in depth, are obviously quite different.

As for  the Arikara and Mandan being the seemingly "lesser Tribes" thats just a case of Hidatsa being the majority population on the reservation, which is just logical & becoming apparent, and as far as I know, White Shield have Arikara and Twin Buttes have Mandan languages, where the majority of each kind of Tribe resides.

There are people on the Reservation and beyond, who would like to see the language reinstated but mostly i think its just a problem of linguistics.  A lot of Natives languages were spoken and never written down, and even now as last heard of, some of my old language instructors are developing a working alphbet for the Hidatsa language.  Language provides insight to a culture, more than most people realize.  Whether people appreciate it or not, they should respect it.  Especially if its a Sovereign Nation with their own language.

And another thing..aye!! lol I dont know how many of you have little ones...but Baby Einstein has a language dvd/vhs that exposes children to different launguages..spanish, french, japanese, dutch..etc. 

I was married into the military and we had friends that spoke all sorts of languages because they were from other countries and it was very interesting to see it spoken!!  I am also part hispanic but when I was in Texas, I was embarrased because I didnt know how to speak spanish in a predominantly spanish speaking area because I was raised in ND..on the rez.

I see learning new languages as not a problem...we were stationed in a bordertown in Texas and the phrase was..youre in america speak english!! I do have to tell you a little story..

I went to HEB while i was in Texas (store similar to Marketplace or Miracle Mart) and I went to check out my items and the cashier said something to me really fast and I said Im sorry I dont speak spanish..she said very slowly....DID YOU KNOW..THAT..APPLE JACKS..ARE ON SALE TODAY?? I just laughed n laughed!!!

I cannot say that forcing this language on a group of school kids is the right thing to do, but it certainly wont hurt the kids.

There is a theory called the Whorf Sapir hypothesis which basically states that a persons language defines the way a person behaves and thinks. That language itself confines the mind. Language isnt just a way to voice ideas, but that language itself shapes those ideas. This results in many different worldy views by many different languages.

If the Native Americans had some sort of deeper understanding of this world, which was defined by their language, if their very view of the world revolves around language at this hypothesis suggests, then to stop teaching it, or let the language be forgotten is to forget the entire indian way of thinking, way of projecting life and the world.

I dont see a problem with it, i do believe its important to learn more than one language, and i do believe that students should be taught young while it is still easy to learn a new language, whether it be German, french, portuguese, spanish, hidatsa, latin, or wahtever

Hey Andy I was searching for something  and ran across a group for North Dakota home schoolers, I did not join, so can not tell you my opinion on the group, but remembered your topic and want to pass it on. Below is the join page desciption.

This group is to share information and support among home educators in North Dakota. We welcome all home educators, all styles of teaching and learning, all opinions shared in an open and non-offensive way. We do not welcome offensive language, spam, or flames of any kind for any reason. Please treat each other with respect and kindness. All members must write a note to the moderator in order to be approved and allowed into the group. This will prevent computer generated spam sending addresses AND hopefully keep human spammers that are not ND homeschoolers to a minimum. We want this group to be a private and safe place for us to share our personal information, ideas, and files, without having to worry about the group's information just being open to the general public to view. If you have any questions please contact me at tarra@heartl.com Thank you all and Happy Homeschooling!

Link is http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NDHomeEd/?v=1&t=directory&ch=web&pub=groups&sec=dir&slk=8

Just an fyi.

hhb

Sianna, your reply is great, I agree with you. tonchee!!

Come to think of it, almost all the really good comedians are liberals.  Maybe it's because the Repugs give them so much good material to work with.

Hey, some of you check out "the Red State Update" on YouTube, or maybe you have already.  They are hillarious. My favorite Red State Update is "Toby Keith Loves Obama".  Of course, only the libs will enjoy it.