History. It Ain't So.

 I keep reading this sort of stuff, in damned near everything published in New Zealand:

  Māori have a rich cultural heritage and a deep connection to their land and natural resources. Their identity is rooted in a unique worldview that emphasises the importance of kaitiakitanga, guardianship, over the environment, demonstrated in their commitment to sustainability and community wellbeing.

 That came from an item on BreakingViews.co.nz but, with very minor variance, is to be found in almost every news and current event comment.

Problem is that it is a load of utter bullshit.

History (before racist embellishment) tells us that most maori had no land at all, just territory they controlled through might. They had no "worldview" because they didn't know of a World.

Most existed in small, itinerant tribes moving where they could, raping the land they came across before hunger, or a stronger group, moved them on. Even when tribes were larger different factions were separate entities combing only occasionally for trade (eg Southern Ngai-tahu were very different from Canterbury Ngai-tahu, not even thought of when Canterbury Ngai-tahu were decimated by Wanganui cannibals in the 1930s. The Canterbury tribe looked to whalers/traders to repopulate their territory.).

Hunter/gatherers with the handicap that they quickly destroyed anything worth hunting except themselves - and after they obtained better weapons they damned near did that as well.

As such they also made no advances in technology from when they were delivered to these shores.

The above quote is simply the invention of greedy, mainly white, thieves intent on gaining yet another way to relieve you of your hard-earned goods.

Lock those thieves up, shoot every pollie left of NZF, decapitate every "leader" and hang every "teacher" and NZ will suddenly find the part maori remaining are bloody good guys.