I propose that instead of the noble eagle, the symbol of the United States should be a large, juicy hamburger. Instead of the stars and stripes—a bowl of ice cream. Replace the national anthem with a Coca Cola advertising ditty and instead of “the land of the free and the home of the brave” we’ll promote the burger selling slogan, “Have it Your Way.”
Americans have been subtly conditioned to see themselves not primarily as patriots or serious citizens, but as customers, and if customers, then consumers. They have happily endorsed the mantra that “the customer is king” and have enthusiastically embraced the idea that therefore each and every one of them is a member of the American royal family which includes everybody with a dollar in their wallet and the desire to buy. With happy faces they flock to have the royal experience at Burger King and Dairy Queen, crowning their experience with a procession if not down the Mall then to the shopping mall.
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