I have had a few people inquire, so I thought I would let others know that the second part of my study of Robert B. Parker's westerns and the myth of the western in general is now available at Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Stoic-Western-Hero-Westerns-ebook/dp/B008QBH4JA/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1343508492&sr=1-3

The third part of the study will cover GUNMAN'S RHAPSODY, Parker's historical novel on the legend of Wyatt Earp. In the final part of the study devoted to Earp I will argue that, contrary to popular understanding, the myth of the western, and the legend of Wyatt Earp in particular, calls into question the legitimacy of the rule of law instituted by the American constitutional framework as an expression of the social contract theory of sociopolitical organization, that is to say, “rights” politics. To this end, I have already begun correlating specific instances of the justification of the vendetta ride with theoretical refutations of the premises of the US Constitution. I touched upon this in the first part of the Parker study, but in the final installment I will engage in a wide ranging discussion of the nature of the American version of the rule of law, which will necessarily take the form of a critical commentary on the Constitution.

I have also been working on a series of commentaries on western films (THE PROFESSIONALS, THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY, ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST, HOMBRE, LAWMAN, ULZANA'S RAID, JEREMIAH JOHNSON, HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER, PALE RIDER, and the newest 3:10 TO YUMA) which will begin appearing at the end of the summer/early fall.

Best,
Chris