Re: oldest American skull found!

From: Erik A. Mattila (emattila_at_oco.net)
Date: 10/11/04

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    Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2004 19:20:53 -0700
    
    

    pwilson wrote:
    > Erik A. Mattila emattila@oco.net wrote:
    >
    >>pwilson wrote:
    >>
    >>>Erik A. Mattila emattila@oco.net wrote:
    >>>
    >>>
    >>>>Imagine how you would feel if you knew
    >>>>that your great aunt was in a display in a museum.
    >>>
    >>>I would feel kind of proud. Wouldn't you?
    >>
    >>No, I wouldn't.
    >
    >
    > Well, I suppose you have a reason to prefer your ancestors be buried
    > forever. Others are not as ashamed of their lineage as you appear to be.

    But that's not true at all, wilson. Do a little research on cemetary
    laws in western civilization. The entire concept of "desecration of
    graves" is a grand cultural tradition. Don't believe me. Well, then,
    just go do some forensic anthropology in your local cemetary and see
    where it gets you.

    >
    >
    >>But then, Roy Rodgers had Trigger stuffed,
    >
    >
    > Trigger was a horse, you dummy, not his great aunt.

    Oh, pardon me. I thought Trigger was Roy's aunt. Silly me.

    >>so I guess it's different strokes for different folks.
    >
    > Yes, it is. It's sort of like the bone reliquiae of various saints on
    > display in churches and museums all over Italy. Initially I found that
    > sort of display to be a bit bizarre and morbid, but hey, when in Rome
    > ...

    Or the mummies of Guanajuato...a tourist attraction.

    > I would feel very fortunate and privileged to have an ancestor deemed
    > important enough to have his/hers bones displayed in a museum. I think it
    > would be great to take your date to a museum and say "Look, there is the
    > shinbone of my great-great uncle - he used it to kick the living *** out
    > of Custer at the Little Big Horn". I would guarantee that alone would
    > mean you'd score that night. And that's pretty much all that really
    > matters, no?

    Probably not, but some seem obsessed with such things. I think it all
    rests on the intents of burial of the deceased family. That ought to be
    respected, don't you think?

    > Quit worrying about the bones of ancestors you never met. Concentrate
    > instead on being a decent human being. That's really all that matters
    > in the end.

    You seem overly concerned with "that's all that really matters." Is
    this some sort of philosopher's stone that you're seeking?

    >


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