This book I'm reading (look to the left) is fascinating. It's not exactly revisionist history, but it has definitely changed my perceptions about American history. For example, last night I was reading about the American
Lone Wolf archetype. While history celebrates individuals for blazing new trails, it is often groups of people who make significant contributions. Columbus, Fremont, Lewis & Clark, and many other singular trailblazers had a unique talent for gathering and motivating large groups of people for a single purpose. They didn't (and couldn't) do it alone. This might seem obvious, but you always hear about
Columbus sailing to the new world. Or
Fremont crossing the rocky mountains. What about the hundred other people with them making sure they succeeded? Even the "mountain men" fur trappers like Daniel Boone would finish their careers as congressmen or governors because the social and organizational skills required for a successful expedition made the frontier a perfect political training ground.
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