oh and buckles on the shoes please.

Oh, and Brane, you know there are plenty of documented cases of the Puritans having sex with animals, don't you? No culture is perfect, but during the conflict between Europeans and Native Americans the Europeans were the aggressors who stole land that didn't belong to them. During King Philips War there were numerous reports of Europeans raping Native American women and virtually none of the Native Americans doing the same. For the Native Americans this was culturally repugnant. This is not to say that Native Americans didn't commit atrocities, they did, but their culture had certain moral boundaries the Europeans didn't share. For example, the Native Americans might torture someone, but previous to European contact they would never have massacred the large numbers that Europeans did in America and Europe. Face it, during the middle ages Europe was the most barbaric backwards place on Earth. No one has a monopoly on culture or decency, and that goes double for Europeans.

The reason there is always so much debate over the "nature of the Native American" is that there is no single nature. They differed like European nations, and any attempt to simply group and label is ridiculous.

But to revisit the topic, I do find certain complaints against American history biopics as absurd, simply because they don't show all the "evil" things the white man did. When viewed through the lens of our modern day, every dominant culture of the past was barbaric in a sense, as their views of humanity was based more on the nation or people, and not on the individual. Our culture today says the individual is just as important as the nation as a whole, that is a radical departure from nearly every culture in the history of civilization. So to criticize historical motives based on today's philosophy is ultimately futile.

As for John Adams, from what I've heard of him, he is definitely an unsung hero when compared to Jefferson, Franklin and Washington. I think it's because he wasn't as flashy as the others and wasn't the kind of "celebrity" that they were. I definitely agree that we really have to see a real look at the American Revolution on film. I thought The Patriot would be that film, but it was a Hollywood "blockbuster" instead, demonizing the British, as if the war couldn't be explained without over the top villains. It sounds to me like this will show some of these events as they happened, warts and all. Interesting to see a heartfelt speech from a loyalist guy who doesn't want independence. And, ya know what? The "they were rich, white, slave owners" complaint is so damn old. We get it. Everyone knows it. These men weren't terrorized, abused peasants. That doesn't mean what they did wasn't something special. And if someone has any flaws, we can't praise anything they ever did? I agree that the bad is often overlooked for some romanticization of the Revolution, but we don't have to go the other way and say how terrible the founding fathers all were and how the country they founded is just all a bunch of bullshit. Like no other friggin' countries celebrate their history by focusing on the good. Personally, I don't mind hearing about the less than wonderful parts of these guys' lives. It makes them more human, and I don't think that means they don't deserve any praise. Not to mention the war wasn't just fought by the leaders. I suppose every one of those minutemen were rich, landowners?

Christ, you people have got me ranting like Rush Limbaugh here!

I think even anchorite is tired of you. and that's saying a lot. if you're so moronic that one of the 5 or so conservatives on this site doesn't want you on his side...man, it might be time for a new screenname and a change of pace, kiddo.

Can't wait to see this on HBO. If Hanks and company get this right... holy shit will I be happy.

Do yourselves a favor - read the book and marvel at the eloquence and intelligence of Adams and his peers, and shudder when considering the vast intellectual gulf which separates them from the presidential material of recent decades.

George W Bush isn't fit to shine the buckles on Adams' shoes.

Let's try one more. The plains Indians, such as the Sioux, built their culture around the Buffalo. In fact, they used just about every part of the Buffalo as a means to survive. This was because over centuries their culture "naturally" adapted to their environment unlike those who would attempt to replace them in the span of decades.

By no means do I believe that Europeans are inherently evil. My ancestors are European, but I don't think that makes them Native Americans. There is a difference between the two definitions.