The concept that the law is not black and white, confuses many people, especifically those that are just curious. They haven’t taken the time to work these things out.

Black and White is the foundation also of many liteary themes and a source of conflict in writing.

We misunderstand ourselves inside these processes.

From our origins in the apes developed a few human species that have now combined. In an age of many moons past, we did not all have the same skin colour but the genetic options were much closer. They produced a very narrow distinction between what was lighter and darker skin or darker and lighter skin.

The very white skin and very black skin we see today are both genetic mutations from the original gene set. The most likely source of this development is now thought to be food consumption rather than a response to sun exposure.

Not only in literary development but also religious development we see these distinctions contributing to inferior and superior positions.

This unfortunately can also be seen in our known philosophical development and our appreciation of each other. That may be the foundation of lost opportunity, that early explorers did not take the time to record the Mātauranga of the Polynesian migration and compare this as best we might to the early written records of older social groups.

I don’t have an issue with the exploration of Mātauranga but I do have a concern and it is this.

In the same way that religion interfered with the recording of past cultures it is likely that politics will interfere with the development and recording of Māori philosophy. Influenced by the threatening environment rather than a desire to recognise its integrity.

Like our original skin shades our relative cultural and philosophical positions are probably not that far apart.

But do we want to live in the past?

This idea of circular failure belongs to civilizations not to life itself. And that one circle is not alone, it is many rings that combine to make one. Is is not the law alone, or religion, or philosophy, or science, or biology, or economy, or enterprise.

It is cultures that must operate in an environment as best they can.

This was as much a failure of Brittany as it was a failure for Māori in the final destination of the Pacific.

US, if we cannot identity a culture for this nation, then we risk an inevitable and unenviable mess on a couple of islands at the arse end of the world. But if we played our cards right we could come out on top.

Is that too big a leap for the average punter?

Are we too ingrained in the past to make a future?