Before the European colonists came to the continent now known as America, the Sioux in the plains region had a well established governmental structure. Some even believe that highly organized Native governments such as these were the model the founding fathers looked to when creating what is today the United States government, with separation of po…

Today on the NativeTalk.net radio podcast, Cliff and Brandon join with Jeff from the SageHawk foundation, available online at sagehawk.org, to discuss many of the economic barriers preventing Natives across the country from achieving gainful employment, and how Sagehawk is teaching those folks how to change their lives for the better. They do this …

On today's nativetalk.net, we discussthe Sioux daily life and compare it to Brandon's. It turns out while he typically plays a lot of video games and watches television, the 7 tribes of the Sioux were actually being productive. Also, while they have a fearsome reputation as warriors, not all of them were (shocking) Then in the 2nd segment we discov…

We begin the show today discussing the importance of names for plains indians, and how bad English translations enabled rival tribes to make fun of, for example, the famous Sitting Bull. We also go over naming traditions for plains boys and girls, and how a name could be sold, given away, or discarded at will.Then with the superbowl just around the…

Ok, so far be it from me to mention in passing Elizabeth Warren's Cherokee heritage claims. Seriously, I intended for it be a throwaway comment.. I certainly neve intemded for it to be a TWENTY FIVE minute conversation. I had WAY more planned for this week's show than what we got to. but hey, good news right? I dont have to prepare for next week's …

On todays NativeTalk.net radio program, we begin with the Plains Indians and the fact that not ALL of them were nomadic. Some actually stayed back and farmed, and built permanant structures. We talk about what they farmed, how they built their homes, and about some of the festivals they had. Then we discuss the dismal graduation rate in North Dakot…

Today on the NativeTalk.net radio podcast, we begin with the Plains Indians. As some of you may know, the horse is not a native animal to the American continent. This meant the Plains Indians way of life did not include use of this animal. However, the Spaniards did bring horses with them, and some of them escaped. This changed things dramatically,…

So, each week on the NativeTalk.net radio podcast, we encourage people to email podcast@nativetalk.net, or give us a call and leave a message at 970-278-5791. Well, a woman named Nancy took us up on that, and wrote in to tell us how much she hates our show. The best part is, according to the letter she actually liked us until she visited our websit…

Today on the NativeTalk.net radio podcast, we...don't have anything new Native for you. However, we DO have classic Cliff & Brandon from the podcast we used to do before this one with nothing but fun talk about interesting topics to help pass the time! So today we bring you 80's talk, the best possible age to be, a crazy plastic surgury woman, Gun …

On today's NativeTalk.net radio podcast, Cliff & Brandon discuss why native tribes are legally barred from creating their own whisky or any other microbrewery - even though everyone else can. Plus talking about liquor never gets old. Then in the second segment we talk about the Plains indians and how they used to communicate. After all, if you don'…

Recently we've been talking about Alaska, and this week Cliff shares his experiences with the visit, what happened, what he saw, and a whole lot more. So if you've ever wanted to visit Alaska, or just want to know what someone else thought of life up there - this is a good one to listen to. Hope you enjoy the audio file, and if you have any comment…

Today we continue the fascinating stories of Cliff's trip to Alaska, this time starting with traditional Yupik Alaskan Native legends. These stories include the story of how to "hook a man". In this case literally, with the moral I think being not to care so much about looks. This theme continues with the story "The Big Mouthed Baby" and we finish …

On today's NativeTalk.net radio podcast, Cliff & Brandon welcome both our sister Brittany and our mother (who both happen to be accredited elementary school teachers) to the show to discuss the rising costs of a university education, and the steps Idaho State University has taken to reduce tuition costs for their Native tribes from $3,700 a semeste…

On today's NativeTalk.net radio program, Cliff and Brandon read listener mail, first from a depressed and formerly suicidal Native woman with advice for folks on preventing suicide in people that you know. Then we read an email from Matthew in Tempe Arizona who has a Bachelors degree in American Indian studies and helps us with some clarification o…

Today on the nativetalk.net radio podcast, Cliff & Brandon live from Washington State discuss the recent epidemic of suicide, what causes it, and how to help people suffering from depression. We talk about some of our own experiences and attempt to help anyone considering such action realize they are not alone and help is out there. We finish with …

On todays podcast, Cliff & fellow Puyallup member Danelle Reed discuss gun violence. Does limiting or enacting tougher gun laws really reduce violence and crime? If not, why? What is happening in countries where guns have been essentially banned? Then in the second segment we stick with guns, but this time turn to self- violence, which is to say su…

On today’s NativeTalk.net radio program, Cliff & Brandon begin with the dangers of raising the rent on unstable tenants, especially ones with guns. Then we go into our weekly feature on the Plains Indians, this time discussing the buffalo. Why were the buffalo so important? What did they use them for besides food? How did they hunt the buffalo befo…

On today’s NativeTalk.net program, Cliff& Brandon discuss the Plains Indians and how they lived before the Europeans arrived. Today, we talk Arts & Clothing, including Star Quilts and using porcupine quills instead of beads. Then, we discuss the rampant homeless problem in Seattle, where Natives make up 1% of the total population, but 6% of the hom…

Today on the NativeTalk.net radio podcast, Cliff joins with fellow Puyallup tribal member Danelle Reed, PhD in clinical psychology to discuss May Mental Health Moth. Mental health is an issue that affects every American, and particularly Native Americans. Natives living with a mental health condition numbers at 28% vs other nationalities which rang…

On today's NativeTalk.net program with Cliff & Jason, we start with National Penguin Day including a few fun penguin facts. Then we dive into the new Trump administration idea of reclassifying Native Americans as a 'race' rather than sovereign tribal citizens for the purposes of Medicaid. This would allow states with rules requiring 20 – 80 hours o…

On Today's NativeTalk.net radio podcast with Cliff & 6 year old Jason, we talk about three precedent setting all new stage plays, in the three biggest Oregon theater companies written by Native Americans. We go over what they are about (Trail of Tears, Thanksgiving, & The Lenape Lose Manhattan) and why they are interestingThen we continue last week…

Today on the NativeTalk.net radio program, we invite 6 year old Jason on the show to discuss the differences between how city kids, Native city kids, and rural Native kids see the natural world. There are some striking differences, and it all boils down to how they were raised. In the past, researchers used a one-size-fits-all test that did not acc…

Today on the NativeTalk.net radio podcast LIVE from the reservation in Tacoma Washington, Cliff & Brandon discuss the TRUTH about cold weather (that THEY don't want you to know!). We also go back in time to the old tribal ways, when governments ruled by wealth, the fur trade made them even richer, and slaves were in abundance. In the second segment…

Today on the NativeTalk.net radio podcast, we begin with a totally mature discussion of why Daylight Saving Time is terrible, how it began, why we continue doing it today, and other general facts including who (including Native American tribes) does and does not observe it.Then we get into the new proposal by President Trump to cut food stamps by 2…

On today's NativeTalk.net radio program, we start with why Brandon is wrong, wrong, wrong when it comes to Totem Pole locations. We continue with a new study on how not sleeping enough is worse for your health than ever previously thought, and finish the first segment with the ancient Pacfic Northwest Indians hunting whales from canoes. It took sev…