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 Thursday, March 20, 2003
While "High Noon" is an excellent refutation of Tom Friedman's errroneous Western-posse hypothesis, one need look no further than "The Searchers," the greatest Western ever made. John Wayne gets a posse together (the UN) to hunt for his niece, but then ditches them when they don't have the stomach to stalk the Apaches (Iraq) who kidnapped (terrorized) his family (the US and its allies). He takes one cousin (Britain), albeit reluctantly, in a relentless search for his niece, whom he eventually finds while destroying a good part of the tribe that performed the kidnapping (terror). He returns her safely (regime change) to family friends so she can live a normal life (democracy and freedom).
In my very humble opinion, Tom Friedman has not watched enough of the great Westerns. Otherwise, he'd find perfect parallels in these two movies. Whenever anyone calls someone a "cowboy," I think of John Wayne and Gary Cooper -- who better represented our American ideals? Whoever thought of "cowboy" as a term of denigration? It's the highest compliment you can pay an American! While I also agree that The Searchers is the greatest western, this analysis misses some things that render its use for this metaphor somewhat problematic:
- John Wayne (the US) loses sight of his purpose for his search. The search takes years. He becomes more and more obsessed so that by the time he finally finds the little girl ( a great looking Natalie Wood in buckskin) he tries to kill her. She is no longer the sweet white girl he was trying to find but simply an Indian woman. It is only through the intercession of his companion that he realizes what he is about to do and stops.
- The progress of the movie follows Wayne's alienation from the rest of society. Every time he and his companion return, they discuss what has been happening with the small community. But Wayne is always an outsider, while Jeffrey Hunter begins a relationship that eventually brings him into the group.
- The end of the movie is one of the most devastating for the image of the cowboy as hero. With the return of the girl, everyone walks into the house, one by one, until Ethan (John Wayne) is left alone, framed by the door. He grasps his left elbow with his right hand, then turns away, walking into the distance, as the door closes on him. Fade Out.
The hero finishes his quest but it has changed him, preventing him from returning to normal society, leaving him alone and cut off from other human contact. This is one of the great twists in a normally straightforward genre. He got the girl back, 10 years later, without asking her what she wanted. He brought her back but is now fully outside society. In my mind, the hero in this story is not John Wayne, who is so obsessed with his quest that he loses all perspective, but Jeffrey Hunter, who sticks with this madman for all those years and is responsible for allowing John Wayne to retain what little humanity is left. That is why it is called The Searchers not The Searcher.Of all the Westerns to discuss in this setting, The Searchers is a pretty poor choice for the pro-war side. Maybe Fort Apache. Or Shane. Or Little Big Man. 6:29:54 PM 
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Sometimes I wish I could elect Blair President . Very nice speech with a good indication of why this is different. He also gave a personal view of the future. i heard him say this on the radio today. Very nice speech. I do not agree with the means but the ends are worthwhile. I think that it will be a lot longer until we arrive at the future Blair discusses because of the route we are taking now. 5:49:55 PM
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Lots of meetings the last few days. Some for the Foundation and others for possible fun stuff in the future. Writing on Living Code about HIV, RNAs and Matthew 6:3. Check them out. 5:36:21 PM
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