Why has American pro sports become so tied up with garish displays of patriotism? “In many cities, your average Sunday NFL game contains more patriotic overkill than a USO show in Kuwait. In addition to becoming a profitable form of mass entertainment, pro sports have become an effective means for the political and financial elite to package their values and ideas. This is why sports in this country reflect a distinctly US project, rooted in aspirations for greatness as well as conquest and oppression.”