Erewhon. Chapter 1

A necessary struggle session by way of a preamble in advance of a problematic illustrated Magic Lantern adventure published in serialized form.

Part 1 of a soon-to-be-award-winning piece of investigative op-ed journalism: In which I smell an ahistorical rat. The facts speak for themselves when appropriately contextualized and extrapolated by me. What they reveal has implications for the past, present, and future of the human race. Enjoy.

The material you’re about to encounter requires context and trigger warnings

These apply to both the message and the messenger.

First, the message.

I am about to publish, word-for-word, the text and imagery of an illustrated Magic Lantern lecture from 1872: the height of the Colonial era.

I think we can all agree that Colonization was a terrible idea that was even worse in practice.

Colonization’s legacy is the genocide of first peoples, the wontan destruction of their environment, and the imposition of unwelcome values and guests.

It should never have happened.

(If you don’t agree it’s advisable to keep that very much to yourself.)

Besides, I believe that grey areas quickly become black or w…