This will be a shortie. The test I propose is a measure of true as opposed to phony patriotism fed to the American public on this solemn holiday honoring our fallen men and women in the battle to preserve democracy. I'll begin with the hypothesis that when patriotism is mixed with monetary gain, its sincerity is open to question, just as acts of heroism are seldom done for material reward. Therefore, when we hear appeals to our higher duty to the country mixed with inducements to buy some unrelated product, we might have reason to doubt the sincerity of the appeal. Of course, this is equally applicable to religious and famiily hoidays, like Easter or Mother's Day.
We'll finish after the break...
The test itself is easy. Just count the number of stories , pictures or other images of patriotism or heroism you see or hear. Then subtract those that con't also involve an attempt to sell you something. This should reveal the measure of respect for the country as opposed to the respect for money.As previously mentioned, this test also applies to every occasion that's worthwhile or that could improve the image of America as something other than a greedy money-grubbing former image of liberty.
The real tragedy of this test is that there aren't necessarily black hats or white hats involved. We are not dealing with good vs. evil. There are people who feel the dollar sign IS America, just as there are those who feel money is speech. Coupling patriotism with commercials is therefore natural and proper. Maybe the USA is really the U$A.
Ask yourself. Take a precious thing. Then shake it until money comes out. Sound familiar?