The lone rugged cowboy as a symbol of American self-reliance is based on pure fantasy, says Stefano Boscutti in his newsletter, New Old Age:
Ronald Reagan – actor and former head of the actor's union – leaned on the cowboy tropes to propel himself into serving two terms as President of the United States.
George H.W. Bush moved from New England where his father was a banker to Texas where he bought a ranch and became Vice President under Reagan until becoming President himself.
His son, George W. Bush, got an even bigger ranch and bigger cowboy hat to become President.
All the while, the Republican Party patterned their ideal man on this mythology of the American cowboy. Men who could protect their families and communities if only the damn government would get out of the darn way. If only they could buy more guns for chrissakes.
This mythology is killing innocent Americans by the hundreds of thousands.
