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02-20-2006, 02:27 PM | #1 |
Radical Centrist
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: Cottage of Prussia
Posts: 31,423
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2/20/2006: Wake for an Indian warrior
The hearse is exchanged for a wooden wagon. xoB sends along this touching and interesting slideshow from the Rocky Mountain News, in which a 22-year-old Marine and American Indian is saluted after his combat death. I defy anyone, pro- or anti-war, lefty or righty, patriot or hater, to read the full story and not have a tear in your eye by the end of the last segment. As a preview, here's something from a middle segment: Upon their return from Iraq, tribe members receive the highest honor for bravery: an eagle feather. If they are injured in combat, the feather may be stained red with blood. Before the first night's ceremony began, a 65-year-old Vietnam veteran named John Around Him looked at the staff, and then at Brett Lundstrom's flag-draped casket. "He earns the American flag from his government," he said. "He earns the eagle feather from his people." Near 11 on Saturday night, the gymnasium fell silent. Along with his first and last eagle feather, Cpl. Lundstrom was about to receive something even more enduring. "This evening I want to take a few minutes of your time to name my grandson," said Birgil Kills Straight, Cpl. Lundstrom's great-uncle. "Before he enters the spirit world, it's important for him to have an Indian name, because that's how the ancestors will know him," he said. Earlier that night, Kills Straight had gone to an Inipi, a sweat lodge, to pray for the name, and to ask the spirits to guide the fallen warrior. After the ceremony, long after midnight, the Marines would take Lundstrom's body into the tepee, where Lakota beliefs hold that the spirits of Lundstrom's ancestors would communicate with his. First, Kills Straight said, they needed to know who he was. "His name is Wanbli Isnala," Kills Straight said, and then translated: "Lone Eagle." With that, he took the eagle feather, walked to the open casket, and placed it on the Marine's chest. "He, alone, above everything else, is an eagle," Kills Straight said. "He will fly to the highest reaches of the universe. He may bring back news to us in our dreams." |
02-20-2006, 02:49 PM | #2 |
Blatantly Homosapien
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 6,200
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Very good.
Touching. Other than that, well, I'm speechless. May God rest my brother's soul.
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02-20-2006, 02:51 PM | #3 |
still says videotape
Join Date: Feb 2001
Posts: 26,813
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Thank you Bruce.
Thank you Marine.
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If you would only recognize that life is hard, things would be so much easier for you. - Louis D. Brandeis |
02-20-2006, 03:15 PM | #4 |
The future is unwritten
Join Date: Oct 2002
Posts: 71,105
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One of those throat lumping things that I feel everyone should see.
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The descent of man ~ Nixon, Friedman, Reagan, Trump. |
02-20-2006, 03:41 PM | #5 |
Expectorant Inspector
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 31
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Simply an amazing event.
Thank you |
02-20-2006, 04:41 PM | #6 |
Professor
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Houston TX
Posts: 1,857
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Lucky for them his body was transported back by the marines, many indian tribes bury the heart of the deceased warrior in the homeland if that is all they can bring back from the battle. Rather a messy enterprise.
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02-21-2006, 12:21 AM | #7 |
lobber of scimitars
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Phila Burbs
Posts: 20,774
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Sad, but beautiful. The combination of traditional and modern is interesting, to say the least.
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wolf eht htiw og "Conspiracies are the norm, not the exception." --G. Edward Griffin The Creature from Jekyll Island High Priestess of the Church of the Whale Penis |
02-21-2006, 09:22 AM | #8 |
go ahead, abbrev. it
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Lawrence, KS
Posts: 2,623
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It's a good day to die -- Crazy Horse
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02-21-2006, 09:38 AM | #9 | |
Professor
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Houston TX
Posts: 1,857
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Quote:
Actually it is a pretty neat statement, kind of like the 1835 battle flag of the Texans after Santa Ana tried to disarm them at Gonzales. |
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02-21-2006, 12:37 PM | #10 |
When Do I Get Virtual Unreality?
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Raytown, Missouri
Posts: 12,719
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We should all be so lucky to receive such an honored and beautiful sendoff.
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"To those of you who are wearing ties, I think my dad would appreciate it if you took them off." - Robert Moog |
02-21-2006, 01:13 PM | #11 |
lobber of scimitars
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Phila Burbs
Posts: 20,774
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That Texas Battle flag probably has classical roots ... Molon Labe!
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wolf eht htiw og "Conspiracies are the norm, not the exception." --G. Edward Griffin The Creature from Jekyll Island High Priestess of the Church of the Whale Penis |
02-21-2006, 03:07 PM | #12 |
The future is unwritten
Join Date: Oct 2002
Posts: 71,105
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Or it could have been short for "keep your taco picking hands off my shit or I'll refry your beans".
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The descent of man ~ Nixon, Friedman, Reagan, Trump. |
02-21-2006, 04:57 PM | #13 | |
Blatantly Homosapien
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 6,200
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Quote:
Also from the 80's movie 'Flatliners'. Spooky
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Please type slowly. I can't read very fast............... and no holy water, please. |
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02-22-2006, 05:19 PM | #14 |
The future is unwritten
Join Date: Oct 2002
Posts: 71,105
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Here is an expanded description of the funeral and his life.
This link is the story of Maj. Steve Beck as he takes on the most difficult duty of his career, casualty notification, along with his comrades at Buckley Air Force Base.
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The descent of man ~ Nixon, Friedman, Reagan, Trump. |
04-08-2006, 12:40 AM | #15 | |
Read? I only know how to write.
Join Date: Jan 2001
Posts: 11,933
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Marines may get this honor . But apparently soldiers do not. From the Washington Post of 7 Apr 2006:
Quote:
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