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COLUMN: The Road to Hell is Paved With Good Intentions

No good deed goes unpunished is an expression one hears. The title of this piece is another quote in the same vein. The theory of unintended consequences from an act which one thinks or believes is altruistic or ethical.

No good deed goes unpunished is an expression one hears.

The title of this piece is another quote in the same vein.

The theory of unintended consequences from an act which one thinks or believes is altruistic or ethical.

Much has been said about evangelism and its consequences.

One can recall easily any number of good deeds under the rubric of evangelistic fervour, from the rack to death. All in the name of one god and be sure you know he is your god.

The world is full of messages crying for our attention. Images are thrust at us on a daily basis for consumption - not for chewing, not for digesting, not for understanding or reflection.

“How unjust!” everyone sings in unison and the radio says it is a day for quiet reflection. Town councils all over Canada announce, reverentially, “….We acknowledge  we are on the unceded land of the ……Nation”…fill in the blank.

I think to myself , “ …Why don’t they give the land back?”

It is in words and language that things first come into being and are. Are we in the same room? I think not.

How can we revivify our  language and make it mean what it says?

Reconciliation? What? Be reconciled to accepting you got the short straw? CBC says it takes 25 years for a court action to get land back that is yours…I heard the news today…oh boy…

I sent for the large volumes on the process…massive amount of printing, paper and type given over to the lengthy investigations and reams of documents and first person accounts of something closer to a Reform  

School than the school we knew.

Where are the class photos?

Call it what it is, because for some reason those loyal allies to the Crown and their children’s children have been sorely treated to this day.

What is the native name for this process of reconciliation we hear so  much about ? Has anyone asked?

René Hackstetter September 30, 2021.