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First, the Jews; Now Gibson Angers the Maya
IMDB.com ^ | 7 December 2006

Posted on 12/07/2006 7:11:02 PM PST by paudio

Some descendants of the Maya tribes depicted in Mel Gibson's Apocalypto have denounced the movie as racist and not representative of their ancient culture. In an interview with Reuters, Ignacio Ochoa, director of the Nahual Foundation, said, "Gibson replays, in glorious big budget Technicolor, an offensive and racist notion that Maya people were brutal to one another long before the arrival of Europeans and thus they deserved, in fact, needed, rescue." Lucio Yaxon, described by Reuters as a 23-year-old Mayan human rights activist, added, "Basically, the director is saying the Mayans are savages." Today's (Thursday) Los Angeles Times noted that archaeologist Richard Hansen was on hand throughout the shooting of the film, lending his advice to the production team. Production designer Tom Sanders told the newspaper, "It was really fun to say [to Hansen], 'Is there any proof they didn't do this?' When he said, 'There is no proof they didn't do that, ' that gives you some license to play."


TOPICS:
KEYWORDS: apocalypto; gibson; maya; mel; melgibson; savagebeasts
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To: blam
All the killing was about protein. They ate the victims because there weren't any large animals to provide the needed protein.

You usually research things pretty well. What do you base that statement on? I've studied the Maya a lot and have never heard such a thing.

61 posted on 12/07/2006 9:10:31 PM PST by Bernard Marx
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To: Dog Gone
I've had Mayan tourist guides at both Tulum and Chitzen Itza describe the culture apologetically, and I don't need an apology.

Ditto. I remember standing in front of the large sacrificial table at Chichen Itza with skulls engraved all the way around the table while the guide tried to say that maybe 20 or 30 people were sacrificed. Total.

62 posted on 12/07/2006 9:18:22 PM PST by the808bass
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To: Marysecretary

Vikings could be savages, too, but I'm not offended by that fact. People need to get a life.

But but you are supposed to feel guilty because 700 hundred years ago...

silly isn't it?


63 posted on 12/07/2006 9:20:17 PM PST by padre35 (We are surrounded, that simplifies our problem Chesty Puller)
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To: Bernard Marx
"You usually research things pretty well. What do you base that statement on? I've studied the Maya a lot and have never heard such a thing."

It was a belief of anthropologist Marvin Harris.(Bless his soul)
He said there was a whole heirachy of butchers and processors and that selected parts went to the elites and all other parts were distributed to the lower ranking, etc.

64 posted on 12/07/2006 9:21:53 PM PST by blam
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To: blam

So are you saying that the Mayans were the original proponents of the Atkins Diet?


65 posted on 12/07/2006 9:24:21 PM PST by dfwgator
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To: Bernard Marx
I believe it was stated in this book: Cannibals And Kings
66 posted on 12/07/2006 9:34:44 PM PST by blam
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To: Luigi Vasellini
I remember reading years ago about 1 mayan king that sacrificed 8000 innocents in 1 year to dedicate a single temple. They were precursors to TROP!!

We still sacrifice over a million+ to the abortion temple each year. Savagery is in the eye of the beholder.
67 posted on 12/07/2006 9:53:53 PM PST by kenth (I wish compassionate conservatives were more compassionate to conservatism.)
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To: blam
All due respect, but that book is 30 years out of date and was probably based on much earlier thinking. That 30 years encompassed the biggest surge ever in Mesoamerican archaeology, including the ability to read most of the Mayan pictographs.

Mayan culture probably collapsed as a result of incessant inter-city warfare combined with a long period of severe drought, according to modern sources. While they certainly performed plenty of bloody sacrifices they were for religious purposes, mainly related to rainfall and crop fertility. The majority of the victims were prisoners of war, often aristocrats from opposing cities. Any cannibalism I know of involved prisoners and was strictly ritualistic.

Considering the non-cannibalistic excesses of the Roman circus and the persecution of Christians and many others, it's hard for me to vioew the Maya as much more barbarous.

68 posted on 12/07/2006 10:08:57 PM PST by Bernard Marx
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To: what's up
Isn't the savage Chavez a Mayan descendant?

Hugo Chavez is mostly Indian with some Black blood and white blood. What kind of Indian I don't know.

69 posted on 12/07/2006 10:14:07 PM PST by dennisw
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To: what's up
Isn't the savage Chavez a Mayan descendant?

Hugo Chavez is mostly Indian with some Black blood and white blood. What kind of Indian I don't know.

70 posted on 12/07/2006 10:14:12 PM PST by dennisw
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To: what's up
To the sputtering fury of a Bush administration who has repeatedly conspired with Venezuela's elite to drive Hugo Chavez from power, the Black Indian President of this oil-rich nation has scored a decisive 59% victory over a recall effort. Chavez now sits more comfortably than ever atop a fourth of the world oil supplies -- equal to that of Iraq -- and he supplies a fifth of US oil needs. In addition, he is current leader of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OPEC. George W. Bush would prefer his friends in Saudi Arabia rather than Chavez set global oil prices. US attacks on Chavez caricature him as a tyrant in the class of Saddam Hussein, or a Marxist, or a ferociously anti-American clone of Castro. Actually, his populist uprising springs from multicultural grass roots that pre-date the foreign invasion of the Americas that began in 1492.

Like four-fifths of Venezuelans, Chavez was born of poor Black and Indian parents. Since the days of Columbus descendants of the Spanish conquistadores have supplied the governing classes of the Americas, and have denied indiginous people a say in their future. Chavez represents a strong challenge.

Chavez is not only proud of his biracial legacy, but........

http://72.14.209.104/search?q=cache:Nd5DEG77OIsJ:www.counterpunch.org/katz08242004.html+%22Hugo+Chavez%22+indian&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=1

 

71 posted on 12/07/2006 10:18:17 PM PST by dennisw
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To: Luigi Vasellini
I remember reading years ago about 1 mayan king that sacrificed 8000 innocents in 1 year to dedicate a single temple. They were precursors to TROP!!

That was the Aztecs. 
The Aztecs engaged in lots more human sacrifice than the Mayans. I haven't seen Apocalypto but it seems to me Mel Gibson jammed Aztec human sacrifice into a movie about Mayans and their savagery. Rush Limbaugh liked the movie so I just may see it

72 posted on 12/07/2006 10:23:21 PM PST by dennisw
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To: blam
"The cocoliztli epidemic from 1576 to 1578 cocoliztli epidemic killed an additional 2 to 2.5 million people, or about 50% of the remaining native population."

Not to mention the sacrifices to ward off the pestilence.
73 posted on 12/07/2006 10:24:04 PM PST by BIGLOOK (Keelhauling is a sensible solution to mutiny.)
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To: Luigi Vasellini

http://72.14.209.104/search?q=cache:dAgkGtl73VgJ:en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_sacrifice_in_Aztec_culture+mayans+aztecs+human+sacrifice&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=1


74 posted on 12/07/2006 10:39:58 PM PST by dennisw
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To: bvw

No-actually live in Ohio-digging out from about 3" of snow today. I find Miller's commercials good but their beer bad-I prefer a nice Porter or Yinglings Black and Tan.


75 posted on 12/08/2006 4:25:30 AM PST by mrmargaritaville
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To: Bernard Marx

They were barbarians. You can rewrite history all you want, but it doesn't change history.


76 posted on 12/08/2006 6:47:26 AM PST by bboop (Stealth Tutor)
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To: bboop
They were barbarians.

Why don't you define what you mean by "barbarian?"

77 posted on 12/08/2006 8:03:29 AM PST by Bernard Marx
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To: Bernard Marx

no thanks.


78 posted on 12/08/2006 8:06:08 AM PST by bboop (Stealth Tutor)
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To: paudio

That leaves as fair game only white males. Nothing that can be said about them will be criticized.


79 posted on 12/08/2006 8:20:13 AM PST by TruthWillWin
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To: paudio

Everybody knows the Maya run the world by proxy.


80 posted on 12/08/2006 8:21:25 AM PST by cicero's_son
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