30 Days....

We had never watched this show before this season. The first installment of this season, however, immediately caught our attention. We bookmarked the episode so we wouldn't miss it. The show's creator, I think, went back to his home state of West Virginia to work in a coal mine. For 30 days. Given we moved to Colorado from an area that is chalk full of coal mines, we lived in an old coal mine company row house, know quite a few people who have worked or still work in coal mines, were touched deeply by the Quecreek and Sago accidents (Sago was very close and hit our community & home very hard) we had to watch. And we were quite impressed! Thankful for Morgan Spurlock to be so blunt and brave. It was even an episode we've been tempted to buy the DVD of...something that says a LOT.

Last night Morgan hit another subject and area that is very near and dear to my heart. He spent his 30 days on an Indian reservation. The Navajo Nation, to be exact. The same one I have visited multiple times while growing up. So many people believe there is wealth in the reservations because of casinos (they are few, not on every reservation, and a source of conflict among the entire of the Indian Nation). They believe the government has made right for the atrocities committed 150 years ago. They believe wrong. There is no more impoverished people in our nation than those of our native inhabitants. Most do not have running water, plumbing, electricity, or even a way to get a job, Welfare exists, but on a minimal scale....something that is different in all other circles of our society. Mr. Spurlock was successful in demonstrating this at just one reservation. He lived, for 30 days, in a Hogan with no running water, no indoor plumbing of any kind, and no electricity. He learned to speak the dying language. He cleaned his soul and body with a sweat ceremony, he gained the love and respect of the elders, and he cried when his time to go home came. He showed a big part of why I am so passionate about the American Indian and the way they are treated.

Bravo Zulu, Morgan Spurlock. You've gained a fan for life....