Everyone knows that George Custer got his ass kicked by my Sioux forefathers but few people know what happened immediately afterwards the Battle of Little Bighorn and how the mighty wild Sioux were eventually tamed. They went from a fierce independent tribe to a tribe that ate cheap processed government issued food and were dependent on this. The change practically ruined the cultural trait of the Sioux and is highlighted in a book called "After Custer" written by Paul Hedren. The author recalls the murders of Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse both of which can be compared to recent shootings of black youth in America that has galvanized African-Americans into action and protest. 
Both of these great Indian legends were killed by lowly zealous officers and low ranking soldiers who caused much misfortune with their trigger happy episodes. The book also covered extensively the decline and slaughter of the Buffalo and how easy meals such as this and the passenger pigeon really is what enables whites to grow much faster than Indians making conquest obtainable. The frontier people were not successful trough hard work but only successful because technology enabled them to achieve a mass slaughter of untapped wild protein that was plentiful and available through the wishes of the great spirit. The construction of the Pacific railroad enabled conquerors and their food to be more easily transported through hostile terrain. Hunting Buffaloes and using every source of this beast gave the Natives a source of pride and achievement that could no longer be continued with being herded onto reservations and being forced fed canned beef. The effect on the tribes of the Great Plains by this sudden shift of power had a devastating effect on Indians that resounded for decades. The US army was eager to end and placid the Indians so they could begin their new era of overseas empire so they poured tons of resources into bringing out both the destruction of the buffalo and the Native Americans in a timely manner . Tis is a great book that looks at the important people and decisions that altered the West forever.
Both of these great Indian legends were killed by lowly zealous officers and low ranking soldiers who caused much misfortune with their trigger happy episodes. The book also covered extensively the decline and slaughter of the Buffalo and how easy meals such as this and the passenger pigeon really is what enables whites to grow much faster than Indians making conquest obtainable. The frontier people were not successful trough hard work but only successful because technology enabled them to achieve a mass slaughter of untapped wild protein that was plentiful and available through the wishes of the great spirit. The construction of the Pacific railroad enabled conquerors and their food to be more easily transported through hostile terrain. Hunting Buffaloes and using every source of this beast gave the Natives a source of pride and achievement that could no longer be continued with being herded onto reservations and being forced fed canned beef. The effect on the tribes of the Great Plains by this sudden shift of power had a devastating effect on Indians that resounded for decades. The US army was eager to end and placid the Indians so they could begin their new era of overseas empire so they poured tons of resources into bringing out both the destruction of the buffalo and the Native Americans in a timely manner . Tis is a great book that looks at the important people and decisions that altered the West forever.
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