What new thing have you learned today ?

[DanaC]

Cowboy doesn't just refer to a lack of scruples, it also suggests a haphazard, amateur approach.


[eta] I was wondering why we have that usage, so I did a bit of googling. According to wiki:

In the Tombstone area in the 1880s, the term "Cowboy" or "cow-boy" was used pejoratively to describe men who had been implicated in various crimes.[14] One loosely organized band was dubbed "The Cowboys," and profited from smuggling cattle, alcohol, and tobacco across the U.S./Mexico border.[15][16] The San Francisco Examiner wrote in an editorial, "Cowboys [are] the most reckless class of outlaws in that wild country...infinitely worse than the ordinary robber."[14] It became an insult in the area to call someone a "cowboy," as it suggested he was a horse thief, robber, or outlaw. Cattlemen were generally called herders or ranchers.[

So, I guess we got the usage from there.

[Sundae]

Originally Posted by Nirvana

Do the Brits think of a Cowboy as an unscrupulous business person?

Originally Posted by DanaC

Cowboy doesn't just refer to a lack of scruples, it also suggests a haphazard, amateur approach.

My favourite use was outside a garage in Bradford - "You've tried the cowboys, now try the Indians".

Saw the same outside a fast food place in Leicester, but it didn't ring quite as true. I know, I ate there once.

[limey]

Originally Posted by Sundae

My favourite use was outside a garage in Bradford - "You've tried the cowboys, now try the Indians".

Saw the same outside a fast food place in Leicester, but it didn't ring quite as true. I know, I ate there once.

[cultural interpreter] Bradford and Leicester are towns with a significant immigrant population from the Indian sub-continent. [/cultural interpreter]