Opinion

Military.Com: Joe Medicine Crow one of most fearless soldiers





Military.Com names Joe Medicine Crow, a member of the Crow Tribe of Montana who received the 2009 Presidential Medal of Freedom, as its Badass of the Week:
"War Chief of the Crow Indians" isn't a title that's just randomly thrown around to any jackass who happens to own a gigantic, awesome-looking headdress and a really bitchin' traditional-style wooden bow made out of the bark of dead Treants. You don't become a War Chief just because you're the oldest dude in the tribe, or the most badass hunter, or the only guy in your zip code capable of bench-pressing an automobile. It's an ancient, prestigious honorific bestowed only upon the bravest, the strongest, and the most hardcore asskickers around, and the only way to attain this hallowed title is by proving yourself in combat and unlocking the four achievements the Crow believed to be the most insanely-difficult things a warrior can attempt in battle – leading a successful war party on a raid, capturing an enemy's weapon, touching an enemy without killing him, and stealing an enemy's horse. None of this shit is easy, and pretty much all of it requires you put your life on the line by voluntarily bringing yourself face-to-face with at least one warrior who is presumably in the process of actively trying to rip you limb from limb with a bowie knife and then splatter your corpse across the countryside with a well-placed headbutt. It's like the Crow Indians' way of making sure they don't have any suckass weaklings leading their tribe into combat.

At 98 years old, Joseph Medicine Crow-High Bird is the last surviving War Chief of the Crow Indians. He is a hardcore, fearless, neck-snapping warrior who has accomplished all of these tremendous feats of bravery in combat and has proven himself a step above the majority of humanity on the badassitude scale.

And he did it in World War II.

Get the Story:
Badass of the Week: Joe Medicine Crow (Military.com 10/10)

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Medicine Crow awarded Medal of Freedom (8/13)
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Joe Medicine Crow to receive Medal of Freedom (7/30)

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