What the SCV can learn from the last untouched Amazonian Indian Tribe
Written by Jeff on May 30th, 2008Blogs, discussion forums, and news websites have been all a-buzz today over some just-released aerial photographs of what experts are saying is one of the last untouched, un-contacted Amazonian Indian tribes in Brazil.
The pictures, released by an advocacy group in Brazil, show a tiny community within a vast rain forest. In a few of the pictures, the people on the ground are caught surprised by the airplane flying over them; in one photo, two men are clearly aiming bows and arrows at the airplane after dressing up in war paint.
Everyone’s wondering how best to keep this tribe isolated, to ensure that they don’t come in contact with modern man, who may carry a death sentence for the tribe in the form of a deadly cold, smallpox, or other disease.
But I’m taking a different angle. With just these scant, precious few photographs, I’m wondering what these people, these individuals who are humans like us but ignorant of all of our human history, can teach us? In particular, what lessons can we draw here in Santa Clarita from a supposedly primitive people, lessons which we can then use in our discussions about this town.
I’ve thought about it a bit, and here’s what I’ve found.
Lesson One: Local Policing Makes Sense
It’s simple really. When humans don’t have the “benefit” of building a community inside a larger governmental structure, they simply police their own village. When under threat, the members of this tribe dressed up in war paint, got their weapons, and prepared to defend themselves against the foreigner.
There’s no dependency on the much larger tribe two rivers over with the huge bureaucracy and the difficult-to-access tribal council meeting. There’s no competition with other tribes in the same region over village-security resources, and this village doesn’t have to pay whatever hard earned currency (bananas?) they have to that bigger tribe.
Oh sure, I’m certain it costs more to have the members of this tribe drop the hunting and gathering in order to defend the village, but you know what you get for the price?
That’s right. Local accountability.
So chalk one up for these untouched Indians over the SCV. They have a police force that makes sense.
Lesson Two: Huts on a Grid Iron Layout trump Valencia Master Plan
This one’s pretty obvious to anyone even remotely familiar with the history of humanity and who’s glanced at a map of Valencia.
One of these photographs practically shouts out a “Duh!” to the viewer. Even these primitive people, living deep within the dark jungle and without the benefits of education, electricity or planning departments, realize that the best way to layout your village is to build it on a grid.
Mass transit by way of donkey, alpaca, or llama in such a village would never be a problem. All streets intersect, there are no dead-ends and no cul-de-sacs, no gates on public roads that pit one village dwelling against another, and no confusion in the local police force when a domestic disturbance happens in a hut. No dispute about the tribal witch doctor’s dwelling and whether it ought to be expanded or not due to access.
We know most great cities have been laid out in just this way, and today’s photos are like a shot from back in time that prove the wisdom of the grid pattern.
Contrast that with the supposedly modern and advanced design of the Valencia Master Plan. Here we advanced Americans have built a place that’s entirely dependent on the auto, that’s confusing and hard to get around on, and that’s dependent on miniature highways like McBean to feed gas-hungry cars to tiny little streets. Oh sure we have our Paseos, but I’d wager the Amazon village is more pedestrian friendly than Valencia.
Lesson Three: One for the Anti-Growthers among us
Finally, there’s one last lesson these folks in the jungle can teach us. Communities that successfully implement no-growth policies usually end up alone, backwards, and without significant outside contact. Their lives likely are short, brutish and nasty, just as Hobbes said, and they probably lack the time to creat works of literature, art, or music.
So that’s something to consider for the anti-growthers here in the SCV who’d like to seal up the 5/14 Interchange and not allow anyone else in.
Share the love here or try your luck in the jungle!
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Coupla observations: seems to me Valencia was created as a Master Planned suburban bedroom community, not a future legitimate urban center. I’m quite sure everyone who moved to Valencia moved there precisely for that reason. Valencia residents would be extremely hard pressed to disassemble their homes for relocation as opposed to the Amazon Indian’s rudimentary hootches should things grow against the master plan.
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your right CIB.
I don’t know who is advocating No Growth?? I haven’t seen them nor know them. Polarizing those who want responsible development should not be characterized to the extreme to bolster a point. The Sierra Club may be in that group and for that matter they are very Liberal and should like the village concept. Where do their values split or come together? It’s a real quagmire for those who buy into the urban vision in low dense neighborhoods and the “save the environment and stop over population” folks because they’re usually one in the same. After all, aren’t urbanites denser carbon polluters anyway? If we stayed as we are we would be the envy of southern California but if we grew smarter rather then denser we would be coveted by everyone.
Maybe a little face paint and skate boards, with the city seal girded about our loins, lead to a brighter future!!
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this is very funny
WTP, “denser” carbon pollution means less overall pollution because less energy is spent moving about.
A lot of you seem to be in love with Dave Bossert and his Antonvich loyalty but you foget that the worst designed parts of this valley, by your measure or mine or Jeff’s occurred under County rule, and their standards to this day are much looser than that of the city.
How could we be the envy of southern california if we stayed this way when we aren’t the envy of Southern California now?
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I knew Someone would say that. Ya, in their little boxes, cranking the AC, driving to the valley or across town for work, shopping the mall-Best Buy-castco, and not to mention - breathing to much. Come on, be serious, we live in a gun shot scattered southern California. Not Whoville! To argue that 3% of 300-500 or 1000 people living in the Avenue would be stationary living working residents is a stretch of stretches. Density here will not reduce vehicle trips to the store or anywhere else. Pod sopping centers will relieve that problem, Not congesting a geographical area. Minus driving to work, if either scenario is a wash with local traffic then the only thing you’ve done is congested the snot out of a valuable community that was valued and as relatively traversable breathable place. That’s what we mean. But don’t try to convince people that less driving results from density building. It only congests.
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I can tell you one thing, I sure didn’t move my family here from the SFV 20+ years ago expecting this community to morph into the SFV. If I lived in a litle Amazon hootch, I’d just relocate to the outer village perimeter. The idea that people will buy homes & work right there is B.S. Developers will unload condos on every buyer who shows up without any consideration whatsoever to their employmant location.
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I didn’t say anything about The Avenue, just correcting an incorrect assertion.
But to make a broader point, I’d like to note that nearly all the vocal preservationists I hear from live in Newhall or Valencia. There are entire seas of homes with no jobs, no hospitals, no stores, no libraries, no paseos, etc. in the northern and eastern parts of the Valley that are the size of Newhall - that’s where the real sprawl has happened, and of course, something like The Avenue wouldn’t help that one bit.
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Your right mike. Those homes are also never paid for by careers that are local walking or little drive to work by the way.
I only used the Avenue as a current example is all. It is the first of many projects that are are going to get proposed and the effects of them, for various reasons we all know, are by greedy people who would love to have a sympathetic city general plan and city manager who would give them the green light to make millions at our expense.
That’s the issue case and point. We want a city mentality and general plan that says to a developer, “you better have a respectful neighborhood enhancing project that won’t strip mine the quality of life from our citizens or don’t bring it.” Not a mantality that tries to go around the people and our concerns.
The Avenue would be cool in Glendale or NoHo. If you’ve ever seen the new Americana you would know what I mean.
I don’t get why anyone here would be blindly supporting this big valley expansion stuff. It’s weird to me. I think it’s just to play devils advocate or their being payed to be a lobbyist with out an employment contract. Who advocates for that stuff unless your a financial stake holder? Most are just addicted to the belief that they have to take an apposing side or something. I just don’t know. Anyway, That’s all.
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Yes indeed. So, can you only imagine, as Pauline pointed out, our City leaders implementing that terrible general plan resulting in the doubling of our population into hi-density housing? It’s frightening.
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Jeff,
It was a funny article though Jeff. You have a good sense of Humor even though you had bit of reality mixed in there.
Interesting template you were experimenting with last night. Are you going to change your format?
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This “we must have growth” debate is all about greed! The question is, when is enough enough? China is a growth country, would that lifestyle satisfy you? When we have the estimated 500,000 people living here, will you then be happy?
Pulskamp needs to go, or community members need to challenge his every move. The council won’t do this because they are in the developers pocket. When Pulskamp started advertising for the car dealers, I lost all faith in his ability to use good judgement. It is clear Ken has given Paul B. the go ahead to drive for greater density.
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Your right Cash, I don’t know who’s scientific method is being employed to prognosticate our future population. It’s a pie in the sky number and people are buying into it Hook line and sinker.
Some feel just because someone says it it must be true, so lets gear up to house them all!!!
House them all? House who? This mythically driven belief that we will have hordes of people living here by some future date is sickeningly manipulative. People have a real case of socially manipulated conceptions of our growth and they’re going to bow down to the ever so big Government, who knows all, while they pack them into a urban corner. That’s what an uninformed city will turn into and that’s what developers prefer everywhere.
Why? Because environmental groups and lobbyists have legislated, across the country, hefty incentives to developers for building tight density developments and it’s happened all under our noses. What do you think the Sierra club is doing when their not day hiking on the Open Space land they got tax payers to buy? They’re trying to shift our national concept of the American dream from home ownership to urban comunal living, as if everyone likes having a smoker on the other side of the wall in your conjoined urban wonderland.
Then people start wondering why they have less time at home because they can’t drive down the street without it taking forever. They’ll start buying more drugs to calm their nerves and yelling at their kids because they hate going somewhere without 10 lights and traffic jams. Tight dense populations will have less respect for community and start living a more self centered life and stop caring for their surroundings. No? What has happened to large portions of the SF Valley? That very thing. People need space. Personal space if you will. People want a house and a home, not a box in a box community. That is what the smart growth crowd nation wide is trying to sell on the American people as the next American dream. Not your own home on your own piece of land. Thats why the density movement is failing over and over again across the country because Americans want a house and we always will want our own houses. To be told and legislated into living in these green, urban, high density locations isn’t going to satisfy our need for space and home ownership. UNLESS it’s a properly situated piece of land that isn’t going to effect existing populations then build away as a simple lifestyle choice.
This is what I’m talking about
http://www.tndtownpaper.com/neighborhoods.htm
Thank you for reading my Sunday meanderings. I hope you all had a good weekend.