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In 1990, Congress defined "Native American" as someone "indigenous to the United States."

Hmmm, I was born in Pittsburgh in 1966 so next time I fill out a form, I'll put myself down as "Native American" even though I don't live in a teepee and drive a horse to work. (with apologies to Andrew Dice Clay who inspired my comment) B-) The term "Native American" drives me up the wall as it is defined by the PC crowd unless you mean it as all people born here on US soil.

Seriously, we got to check things out and find out things about the past and this is the only way to do it. We've all heard tales of Vikings, Irish Monks, Knights Templars, Phonecians, Atlanteans, and so on running around the Americas from 2000 BC to 1430 AD. Even though Kennewick Man predates the earliest by about 6000+ years or so, I think it is conceivable that "Whitey" could have been running around the Americans in prehistoric times. For some reason American Indians want to suppress that because it doesn't jive with the history of conventional wisdom. There could be and probably have been significant events that occured prior to written history that we should try to uncover. The American Indians who opposed the scientists who want to run tests are not much better than the revisionists who deny the Holocaust because it doesn't fit with their views. If "Whitey" was here the same time as them or even before, so what, I mean I'm hear not too although my ancestors made it here much later from the 1870 to 1910 era. What counts is we live here now. I know myself, I'm a mixture of German, Swedish, Russian, Russian Jew, and Serbian, but since my parents, grandparents and myself were born here on US soil, I'm just as much of a "Native American."

If...and its a very small if...you have have a set of remains tested and proven to be of European origin...and older than 1000 years...then the Indians lose their desired status in America and in the media. There are likely Europeans that did make to America sometime between 1000 and 10000 years ago...in small numbers. They probably were overtaken or wiped eventually by growing numbers of 'Asian Indians'. There is a similiar problem with the recent idea that the Chinese may have actually sailed to America in 1424 and possibly left members on American soil as well. I see no problem in allowing a limited test on every remains we dig up...and then hand the remains back over to whichever Indian tribe wants them. What I do find funny...is that the dead guy (over 6,000 years) may have been a member of a particular tribe...and its another tribe who claims him. It may be this tribe who actually killed him in the first place. Its a goofy law that never should have been allowed.