More often than not, actions carried out without much thought have unexpected and unintended consequences.
We have a perfect example of this with Chief Teresa Spence and her Idle No More bunch of protesters.
I found it somehow embarrassing to watch the chief try to talk her way around audit reports and revelations about her boyfriend receiving $850 a day to manage a band which has obviously failed.
Then, her hunger strike wasn't really a hunger strike, but rather a liquid diet. Her vehicle was expensive and equipped with seat-back DVD players and, of course, she stayed in a nice hotel.
The rhetoric she and her people spewed wasn't able to convince us of her veracity or her cause.
Instead of gaining support, she has lost a lot of good will that existed among Canadians.
Within the Assembly of First Nations, a political battle has been underway for some time. It's a complex struggle, and it's fair to say that a majority of First Nations leaders want to solve problems, create jobs and provide a better future for their members. There is another group that wants nationhood outside of Canada.
We have had politicians aligning themselves with the extremist group within the community of First Nations.
Justin Trudeau is a good example of an immature politician inserting himself into the politics of First Nations without understanding what he was doing.
Spence's actions have harmed all First Nations people. For Trudeau, well, I guess we will be forced to watch this young man make a fool of himself, again and again. That's just part of his growing up.
Peter Neville,
Kelowna