After reading some of the questions about the Tomb I got to thinking about DNA test. Some families might find some closure associated with the findings.
2007-05-28 09:53:00 · 9 answers · asked by RWLake 5 in Politics & Government ➔ Military
DNA would work if you had the actual DNA of whom you thought it was.
2007-05-28 09:56:18 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The question is a good one in that it does probably describe a change in the purpose of The Tomb. I doubt that we will ever have 'unknowns' from all wars going forward, and The Tomb of the Unkown Soldier may now be complete.
I assume that any and every found body going forward WILL have a loved one with DNA to match it to, if there isn't a database being created by the military.
2007-05-28 10:04:42 · answer #2 · answered by jeaner 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Good thought & done. The body is Lt Micheal Blassie from the. Viet Nam War & he was identified by DNA but left in tomb to show respect to Viet Nam soldiers with his family's permission.
The Tomb of the Unkown Soldier is to show respect for all the soldiers who have died unidentified or never came home.
There are no living relatives left identified of the other unknowns. There is a lot of DNA in the US & without clues, the rest have not been identified.
2007-05-28 10:06:17 · answer #3 · answered by Wolfpacker 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
That's a good thought, but there would have to be known DNA samples to compare with those taken from the remains. During the times of WW's I and II and Korea, DNA sampling simply did not exist. So there can be no "known" samples.
However, DNA testing did identify the soldier who was once the Vietnam War Unknown, and he was reinterred by his family.
2007-05-28 12:00:20 · answer #4 · answered by frenchy62 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
They have no reference samples from the 30's. Therefor, even if they tested the remains, which will never be done (c'mon, they aren't going to exhume the most famous and respected tomb in the country), they would need samples from every family who had an MIA (Missing In Action) in that era. And after 70 years, closure for the families isn't really an issue.
2007-05-28 10:06:47 · answer #5 · answered by misterinsignificance 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
DNA is great when you have something to compare it to. Some of the remains were later identified and buried elsewhere, but not all of them.
Also, the Tomb is largely symbolic. It stands for all the servicemembers who didn't come back at all.
2007-05-28 10:02:27 · answer #6 · answered by nikaaaay 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
actually they already did that. The remains have been identified and the tomb is currently empty. The tomb is still there, as a monument to remember those who have been lost at war.
2007-05-28 13:16:57 · answer #7 · answered by adhafera23 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Your missing the point of the Tomb.
2007-05-28 09:56:21 · answer #8 · answered by BOOM 7 · 5⤊ 0⤋
They did that with the remains from the Vietnam war and identified them They were removed and buried elsewhere.
2007-05-28 09:56:59 · answer #9 · answered by mnwomen 7 · 4⤊ 1⤋