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Friday, April 16, 2004

10-Gallon Hats in Bavaria

Militiamen in three-cornered hats march into battle, settlers head west in a covered wagon, and cowboys 'stampede' cattle down the street. Blond, blue-eyed 'American Indians' walk proudly by in full costume, and Hunting Wolf coaxes forward a motley herd of bison. A stagecoach rolls into town, and Big Joe foils a slapstick bank robbery. At one point a few Union and Confederate soldiers rush toward one another on horseback and stage a saber-clashing fight.

Every so often, a fanfare rings out, and two trick riders in star-spangled red, white and blue costumes gallop down the street, one bearing an American flag and the other a Pullman City banner.

I found the show silly but compelling, and I laughed at the antics and applauded the stunts along with the rest of the crowd. The enthusiastic embrace of the cliches and characters of the American frontier dramatically demonstrated how our mythic symbols have become universal.

Universal? Typical myopia. The US and Germany constitute the universe, I guess. Forget about the other 6 billion people on the planet.

Jack Clark 12:20 PM [+]   
Post #108214325469866531