If I were either starting from the beginning or had the power to wipe out memories I'd get rid of all the American myths. (Rugged individualism, Manifest Destiny, American Exceptionalism, Calvinist morality...)
I think American myths are at the heart of most of the problems with the United States, not just the selfishness and the celebration of stupidity but also such things as absolutism including (or especially) zero tolerance.
I believe that when we were first forging this new frontier, we needed those qualities you mention, especially rugged individualism. Now, we are living in a new world and new norms are required. The new frontier is more people-oriented, socially friendly, and efficient in modern technology. I think we need to focus on that.
Oh sure, there is a reality to the notion of 'rugged individualsm' as well, especially prior to the founding of the United States and the early era of the U.S.
The 'myth' is that all of the forging of the new frontier was done entirely by these 'rugged' individuals themselves. I certainly don't dispute that farming/ranching now as then is very hard work and that successful farmers and ranchers are essentially self taught engineers, however, the government was involved in assisting Western expansion pretty early on.
1.The government divided the land into sections which was then given to the farmers.
2.It was the government that provided protection to the settlers from the natives.
3.Western expansion really took off with the construction of the railways:
from Wiki: A dramatic expansion in farming took place from 1860 to 1910. The number of farms tripled from 2.0 million in 1860 to 6.0 million in 1906. The number of people living on farms grew from about 10 million in 1860 to 22 million in 1880 to 31 million in 1905.
4.Not initially, but shortly before 1860, the government assisted in agricultural research: From wiki: In 1837, Henry Leavitt Ellsworth became Commissioner of Patents in the Department of State. He began collecting and distributing new varieties of seeds and plants through members of the Congress and local agricultural societies.
With the decline of the population of rural America, I argue that President Reagan, who played a cowboy in movies, metaphorically passed the torch of the 'rugged individualist' from farmers and ranchers to small business owners.
I think we got a sense of this about 10 years ago when there was the moral panic in some quarters when President Obama was (deliberately) misquoted over saying "you didn't build that."
This is where the myth of rugged individualism shows up in the American psyche. The outrage! that these small business owners weren't completely self-made, but that somehow their success was also assisted by governments.
So, the myth of rugged individualism shows itself in terms of:
1.That successful people are completely self made and don't owe anybody else or society collectively anything in return.
2.That rugged individuals have common sense and intelligence well above the 'pointed headed' intellectuals and the so-called 'experts.' This is part of the celebration of stupidity I mentioned.
