November 02, 2008

Billy Mills defines "warrior"

From an e-mail I received:Being A Warrior

If you have a chance to make life better for others, and fail to do so, you are wasting your time on Earth. No matter what our station in life, we are here to serve, even if that sometimes means making the greatest sacrifice of all.

A warrior is challenged to assume responsibility, practice humility, and display the power of giving, and then center his or her life around a core of spirituality. I challenge today's youth to live like a warrior.

--Billy Mills
Comment:  Like Sitting Bull, Mills doesn't define a warrior in terms of how strong or brave he is, whether he wins or loses, etc. For Mills, being a warrior means serving and sacrificing. That arguably fits with such professions as soldier, sailor, police officer, and fire fighter. It doesn't fit with the typical athlete on a sports team. So the typical warrior-style mascot doesn't represent what being an Indian warrior is all about.

For more on the subject, see Winning Through Nonviolence.

Below:  I'm reminded of the song "In the Navy," which reminds me of "YMCA," which reminds me of the Village People's Indian chief. I could do a whole posting on how the US military's fear of Indians has transformed into a fear of Muslims and Arabs overseas and women and gays at home.

It's all about the testosterone, the masculine pride. In other words, how the mighty "warrior" can't let anyone challenge his top-dog status.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Athletics and professional sports are simply not that important in U.S. society anymore as young people are successfully utilizing their gifts of intelligence to gain access to the American Dream and beyond.

In fact, MLB head honchos are very alarmed at the decreasing numbers of blacks joining their ranks as they (young blacks) realize the value of pursuing, first and foremost, a college education rather than a very fleeting sports celebrity status. I salute them!