How else could one explain this country's fascinations and preoccupations with football, hard rock, destruction derbies, scandal magazines, guns, soap operas, long-distance cycle jumps, drag races, celebrities, junk food, cults, astrology, etc.?
Put Ollie North in that endless list of empty American values. North was nothing more than a crook in military uniform who embraced so-called patriotism to excuse criminal actions.
Americans never volunteer to face problems until their crisis stages are reached. Ollie represented a major problem. The crisis was that most Americans supported his actions.
Third-world countries, especially in Latin America, do not place military types under strict civilian controls. In those countries, total controls come from the military types.
Tin soldiers like Ollie routinely ascend to dictator status in third-world countries, using the simple excuse that previous civilian or military leaders don't know how to govern.
Ollie and his third-world countertypes wrap themselves in national flags to excuse their crimes. And the mindless masses always buy it.
Americans really don't want democracy, individual rights or civilian control. They want Ollie and company to protect them from themselves while the modern Roman games and trivial pursuits continue (21 MAR 99)
