1) When people outside the US see images like this, they need to understand the depths to which the "armed individualist" is etched into US popular/political culture. I wrote that these people see themselves as, "unencumbered by petty bureaucracy and restrictive social codes."

2) The self-image is iconic: "strong, individual, physically pristine, self-sufficient and armed," and someone who is, "within his God-given rights to take the law into his own hands, using violence and deadly force if needed (...) He is a pioneer. A settler. A cowboy."

3) Of course, when it comes to the image of the armed, rugged US individualist, non-whites, non-Christians and women were largely excluded from the symbolism. They were/are more than welcome to watch and obey from the sidelines. This is clearly a white, overwhelmingly male space.

4) US Politicians and media tell us that there is still land out there to be settled. Not actual land, of, course — McDonald’s bought that land for intensive farming — but symbolic land: house, home, family, possessions, wealth...all within the warm embrace of the free market.

5) But, a funny thing happened in the way to the American Dream we were promised. For many, it never materialized. So, we had to blame someone or something: "For decades, the natural explanation was a Communism that had infected our politics, popular culture and morality."

6) Then, The Pinko Empire did die. "In the afterglow of the fall of the Berlin Wall, we were regaled with stories of a new era of borderless Capitalism. This was the Age of Globalization. Free from the Red Menace, it was only a matter of time before our rewards would come."

7) But, the fall of the Soviet Union and the Triumph of Capitalism didn't lead to the massive distribution of wealth. But, the guns and pioneer spirit were still there, and politicians still insisted that the treasure was out there for the taking, if only you made the effort.

8) Lacking a monolithic Russian enemy, US fears fragmented. Terrorism. Ebola. #BlackLivesMatter . Islam. Gun control. Physical imperfection. Gay marriage. Politics. Taxes. Feminism. State. Even things like universal healthcare were framed as horrific, collective oppression.

9) What remains forever unstated is how fear that grips many in the US -- crystallized in the image of the heavily-armed citizen -- is linked to the myth of the American Dream, and the loss of any sense of collective belonging and solidarity. It's an orgy of individualism.

10) Blaming greed and profit was always out if the question, so the US became like a group of heavily-armed soldiers, whipped up into a hate-filled frenzy before being sent into battle...only to be told at the last second that there's no war and to take your guns and go home.

11) This is about a society that defines the rich as "winners" and the poor as “losers." About news and politicians screaming about "thugs" and terrorists. About the simplistic, violent language of fear/warfare to frame social/political complexity. About violence as "Liberty."