Independence and The Lone Ranger

This never quite got finished back when I began it in July, but now it is.

Today, I had to abandon my recently established 4th of July tradition of going kayaking and getting Indian take out as some of the muscles in my back are not at all happy. I did go to a movie, last year's add-on to the tradition. I decided the most American movie I could go see was "The Lone Ranger".

When I first heard there was going to be a Lone Ranger movie, I had no interest in seeing it. Until I heard Johnny Depp was going to be in it. But even then, I didn't think I'd go. Until I saw the trailer.

There's not much new in the movies, but a horse riding atop a train and a crashing steam engine thrilled me. Although I was still concerned about Johnny Depp playing Tonto, especially given the trailer, the Comanche Nation adopted him so I'm certainly not going to argue the point (a friend shared his hope that it would turn out he was pretending to be Native American, which would have worked for me).

I'd heard two reviews before deciding to go today. One said that if you liked the first 'Pirates of the Caribbean' movie, you'd like this The other was a scathing condemnation of the movie from every aspect, especially socio-political. The latter actually made me more interested in seeing the movie, especially given the first review (I loved the first 'Pirates of the Caribbean' movie).

The movie really represented so much of what America is about: big spectacle, over the top action, bad puns, and the fate of all sorts of people woven together by progress and greed.

I believe I saw an episode or two of the TV show in reruns when I was growing up, but the Lone Ranger never interested me very much. I knew nothing of the origin story, which this movie focuses on. Driving home after, I heard a radio story about the Lone Ranger, done 5 years ago for the 75th anniversary of his premier. It answered one question I had--why was he called the Lone Ranger when he had Tonto with him. Tonto showed up in episode 11 of the radio show as they'd found the lone part difficult when it came to radio content. Much better to have someone to talk to, even if replies were minimal.

This ties into the thoughts I was having on Independence Day. I've started to wonder if part of the problem we are having in this country is our attitude towards Independence. That perhaps we value it more than is good for the common good. Perhaps we have lost sight in our reverence for lone wolfs and others who purport to be self-reliant that we need to work together to live together. And, for the most part, Americans are civil to one another, at least outside of Internet comments and reality television.

Our national mythos comes from the events of 237 years ago, when our Founding Fathers declared our country's independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. Our fighting for our Independence began an identity of American self-reliance, despite the fact the French and Spanish helped us defeat the British to gain that very Independence. The fact that our country grew from sea to shining sea, encountering little of the trappings European Americans associate with civilization bolstered our sense of divinely-inspired dominion for our country and its (white) settlers. And while there is this romance the reality, shown in this movie, is that the American trailblazers and pioneers who spread out from the Eastern seaboard, or even those who came up from the Gulf coast, relied on the Native Americans and previous settlers they encountered along the way. Or they at least relied on one another to survive in the Wild West. Only a rare few, even in our modern society, can survive alone, and they rely heavily on the fates that not everything will go wrong.

Being truly self-reliant means living on a dangerous edge. Humans are not meant to be lone wolves. We are pack animals, social beings who evolved in tribes and flourish when we support one another, regardless of race, religion, or social status.

If America wants to celebrate the Individual as part of its identity, then shouldn't that Individual be able to be whoever he/she wants to be? Isn't that the true Independence that all Americans want to live under? We don't have to agree on politics or movies, but as Independent Americans, shouldn't we be want everyone to have the right to disagree?