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comment by Isherwood
Isherwood  ·  2381 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: End of the Road: Will automation put an end to the American Trucker?

Did you know cowboys were only really a thing for about 50 years? The profession mostly died when barbed wire was invented and major cattle paths were cordoned off on the cheap.

It seems wild to me, 50 years. The way we talk about them in our history and culture, especially to young people, makes it seem like it was a huge, spanning part of our history.

It makes me wonder what kind of crazy cultural worship is going to exist around truckers 50 years from now. The interstate highway was approved in 56, which gives truckers that same solid 50 years of operation. The concept is hugely American, unique because of our size and love of big cars. Are we going to have trucker tall tales in schools where we talk about mythical truckers who could wrangle a V16 with their bare hands?

Oh god, Ice Road Truckers is the equivalent of Buffalo Bill's Wild West show...





Gem  ·  2380 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I bet you're right. Isn't there already a trucker-specific brand of country music?