Newspaper Page Text
WEDNESDAY. SEPTEMBER 12, 2007
PAGE 5
The Dead Man's Hand
By Dana Edwards
Staff Writer
dedward I @ my.westga .edit
One pair of aces and
one pair of eights, both in
black suits,along with one
mysterious fifth card, is
the hand in poker no man
desires. This combination
has become legendary
after infamous cowboy
Wild Bill Hickock was
shot to death,
playing that very
set of cards.
“Dead Man’s
Hand” has become
synonymous with
Hickock, whose
dangerous life
and violent crimes
inspired legions of
Hollywood movies
glamorizing his
lifestyle.
The new
movie, “3:10 to
Yuma,” which is
a re-make of the 1957
film, is one movie that
portrays characters
resembling Hickock. It
is almost a crime more
Western movies don’t
star Hickock, whose real
life drama was enough to
fill any film canister.
Born James Butler
Hickock, in Troy Grove,
Illinois in 1837, Wild Bill
got his nickname from his
smooth poker playing.
Over his lifetime,
Wild Bill would claim to
have murdered at least
100 men, making him one
of America’s first iconic
serial killers. He would
also have many successful
attempts at a government
position, including a
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county Sheriff, while
finding time to romance
countless women.
However, there were
many interesting sides
to the persona of Wild
Bill. His father, William
Alonzo Hickock, was
passionate about the
abolition of slavery. As
a young man. Wild Bill
would help his father to
free slaves, something he
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also became passionate
about.
In 1861, Wild Bill
enlisted in the Union
Army and served in the
Civil War. He laterbecame
involved with Calamity
Jane, with whom he had
a brief affair.
Even though he had
redeeming qualities. Wild
Bill was still a callous
cowboy. He was involved
in many shootings, most
of which resulted in his
opponent’s death.
Yet, while he was a
villain in life, Hollywood
would parlay his charm
and charisma into
countless movies and TV
shows after his infamous
death.
On August 2nd,
1876, Wild Bill wandered
into Deadwood Saloon in
Dead wood, South Dakota.
Reportedly drunk, he sat
down at a poker table and
began playing cards. He
was seated with his back
facing the door when a
man named Jack McCall
walked into the Saloon.
McCall had played
Wild Bill in poker one day
earlier, and had
been shamelessly
beaten. McCall,
who was also
reportedly drunk,
sauntered over to
his rival’s table.
McCall, who had
a .45 pistol hidden
under his coat,
shouted, “Take
that!” and shot
Wild Bill in the
head.
Bill had been
playing the
legendary hand of cards
that were subsequently
dubbed, “Dead Man’s
Hand.”
As with many
celebrities. Wild Bill’s
fame grew after his death.
During the early years of
television, many Western
movies were played, all of
which starred a heroic and
villainous main character
resembling Bill.
Without him, movies
like, “3:10 to Yuma,” “A
Fistful of Dollars,” or TV
shows like, “Deadwood,”
would be without their
merciless stars.
Without the life of
Wild Bill Hickock, there
would be no original
cowboy.
What's love got to do with it?
By J.A. Scruggs
Guest Columnist
jscrugg l @my.westga .edu
Last week, I was
certain that my next
column would be
about domestic abuse,
answering a very
controversial question;
can a man still love
his wife, even if he
physically abuses her?
The name of,
the article was
“What’s love
got to do with
it?”
However,
while walking
through the
yard this week,
I was struck
by a disturbing
picture that
was posted up
against a light
pole near the
UCC. It was
the head of an
aborted baby
without the
body, resulting
from a late term
abortion.
wKj
Photo by Jerry Houston
Now whether this
was an appropriate
picture to display, I don’t
know. But what I do
know is that while this
picture is unsettling, it
brings reality to a serious
issue that we deal with
here in America, which
is the support of late
term abortion.
After reading and
researching the process
of this disheartening
procedure, 1 realized
that it is detestable in
every aspect. This is
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why I decided to keep
the title “What’s love got
to do with it?” Because
in my mind I wonder if
someone could really
love life, but yet justify
the destruction of the
human body in such a
way. In essence, the love
1 refer to in the title is
the love of human life.
Many times
depending on the type
of late term abortion
an unborn child’s body
maybe mutilated, like
that we saw' in the picture
in front of the UCC.
Sometimes we may
not realize what we
support, because it’s not
in our immediate sight,
but it may take a picture
or a graphic story, or
even an article to help us
realize what we attach
ourselves to.
1 w as able to witness
a student after an SGA
meeting rant and rave at
Ti If WEST GEORGIAN
how much she did not
appreciate seeing that
picture on the campus
grounds. But people
wouldn’t be able to take
pictures of mutilated
babies if there wasn’t a
procedure that created
such a spectacle.
How far are we
willing to go not to see
the disturbing picture
again?
1 wonder
how many
of us would
support
unprovoked
war if we
realized or
actually
witnessed
the amount
of human
deformation
that goes into
such activity.
Yet I’m
not surprised,
because this
appears to be a
time where we
as a country
spend more
money on the
destruction of life, than
the preservation of it.
A prime example
is that we are willing
to spend hundreds of
billions of dollars on
war, yet we have to
argue for ten percent
of that for health care.
What’s love got to do
with it?
I challenge everyone
to evaluate what it is that
you support and to be
sure that is something
that you want to
support.