At 04:48 PM 10/22/2002 -0400, you wrote:
When I brought that up, the candidate replied that non-first nation People cannot possibly measure native issues with our methods of doing research, and we have no idea of what a circle really is and what happens in one.I would ask the candidate what criteria would be necessary to show that "circle sentencing" was effective or ineffective? Is it simply based on a belief that it works so therefore we aren't allowed to ask the question? If so, how can he support a claim that it does work without any evidence? If he relies on anecdotal evidence (person A didn't commit another crime), you can supply anecdotal evidence to the contrary (person B did commit another crime). This might lead to a question of which side has more anecdotal evidence... in other words, did more people commit another crime after the sentencing or not?
Also, I would question whether what happens in a circle is important or if it is the outcome that we are more interested in. The question that he responded to was not the one that was asked. The question was what is his stance, given that people who are given circle sentences continue to commit crimes. The question had nothing to do with what happened in the circle, only about the outcome. And, how is a question about the effectiveness of a punishment for a crime a "native issue?" To me the effectiveness of the justice system to prevent future crimes is an issue for everyone that must live under it, regardless of whether they are "native" or not.
It has always amazed me how often people feel that "culture" is an excuse to not use good, scientific methods and sometimes to not even ask the question. Science, as a method, is not biased... admittedly, application of the method can be biased at times, but the method itself is neutral.
- Marc
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G. Marc Turner, MEd, Network+, MCP
Instructor & Head of Computer Operations
Department of Psychology
Southwest Texas State University
San Marcos, TX 78666
phone: (512)245-2526
email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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