Wednesday, June 08, 2005

Churchill: Hell I ain't no scholar

Favorite quotes from Rocky v. Churchill IV today.

That the [U.S.] government's goal was to eliminate Indians by diluting their blood through intermarriage is also self-evident, Churchill said.

'Can you do arithmetic?' he said. 'Sometimes the "duh" factor gets so loud. I really have to cite this to people who are capable of tying their shoes without instructions?'

Then Churchill outs with this gem of comparative scholarship:

In talking about the frequency that his own scholarship is cited compared with LaVelle's [a professor who has debunked Churchill's "blood quantum" claims], Churchill said that one annual report showed him with "145-odd law review citations out there. . . . John LaVelle's got about, oh, I don't know, 16, 18.

This seems to be a popular argument in Ward's defense. His ethnic studies colleague at CU Arturo Aldama once offered this variation:

He's impeccable on his sources and known for his empirical and archival-based methodologies. Whether you agree with it or not, it's always been praised for academic rigor. He has 400 footnotes per chapter.

The argument from footnote volume--sure to be welcomed by leftist academics everywhere.

Update: Pirate Ballerina calls Ward Churchill the "ghost dancer" of an illusory Indian paradise.

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