If anyone wants to know what is wrong with the sheeple...this is it

[cynatnite]

PITTSBURGH - James Henry Smith was a zealous Pittsburgh Steelers fan in life, and even death could not keep him from his favorite spot: in a recliner, in front of a TV showing his beloved team in action.

Smith, 55, of Pittsburgh, died of prostate cancer Thursday. Because his death wasn't unexpected, his family was able to plan for an unusual viewing Tuesday night.

The Samuel E. Coston Funeral Home erected a small stage in a viewing room, and arranged furniture on it much as it was in Smith's home on game day Sundays.

Smith's body was on the recliner, his feet crossed and a remote in his hand. He wore black and gold silk pajamas, slippers and a robe. A pack of cigarettes and a beer were at his side, while a high-definition TV played a continuous loop of Steelers highlights.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/fbn_fan_s_farewell

[RobertSeattle]

1. I have no problem with this

I'm kind in the George Carlin school of let's get over all the macabre BS involving burying a dead human body - have fun with it.

[enigmatic]

2. Why?

I'm as left as they come and I'm also a hard-core Cleveland Browns fan, and I think this is great; hell, I'd consider doing this myself.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

3. Couldn't that have had a recording playing...

Of him bitching out Cowpher and yelling at the wife to "red up the hawse"? ;-)

[Redstone]

4. I think it's pretty cool, actually. And I'm not being sarcastic.

Why would you think this is indicative of any larger social problem in America?

Redstone

[cynatnite]

5. I think it's weird

To each his/her own, but this just struck me as part of what's wrong in this country. His viewing was of him watching a football game. His wife said 'nobody does anything until the game is off'.

Bury him with steeler memorabilia or something, but to have everyone's last memory of him watching TV? Sorry, that's just too much for me.

My uncle wants to be cremated and when his ashes are brought to the front of the funeral home, he wants the urn dropped, then vacuumed up. It's his idea of going out with a laugh.

[enigmatic]

7. Other people would think that's weird, too

and alot more crazy than what this guy's family is doing. but in the end, it's just a body; the irit isn't there.

I'm a Buddhist, and when I die I'm being cremated and part of my ashess being flushed down the toilet. It's just a body,a vessel that's not being used anymore.

[cynatnite]

8. Everyone made a good point

It was my personal 'ick' factor kicking in. I called my mother and told her about it. She just laughed and said if my stepdad had thought about it, he would've been propped up with a fishing pole and a beer.

[enigmatic]

10. That would be cool...

I can see my wife doing that!:)

[H2O Man]

6. It's cool.

It's a modern update of the wakes for the Irish railroad workers that my father used to tell me about. They'd sneak in the evening before, prop up the corpse, and put things like a bottle of whiskey in each hand.

There is not only nothing wrong with what this family is doing, it is a great way to pay their respects and deal with his death.

[corker]

9. he who lives by the tube dies by the tube

[Just Me]

11. That's hardly a "sheeple-like" funeral. They showed,...

,...their love for this man and his life in an especially unique way. Is that bad? :shrug:

[OrlandoGator]

12. There's nothing wrong with it.

I want people to laugh when they reflect on my life.

[BuelahWitch]

13. The end of the article says he'll be buried in a casket

How they gonna do that when rigor mortis has set in with him in a sitting position? Break his back?

[okasha]

14. Rigor isn't permanent.

It usually relaxes withing 6-12 hours.

[BuelahWitch]

15. Wow, learn something new every day!

I thought once you were stiff you were stiff for eternity...