Proud to be an American

You don't need to read this, but:


Did you know that Prince Valiant appears in my newspaper every Sunday morning? Prince Freakin' Valiant! I never spend one second on it, although sometimes the drawings are a little weird. Are there people here in the Triangle who eagerly await each week's installment? I should note that the space it takes up is more than any strip, save Opus. The strips on the facing page are Foxtrot and Hagar. And, it takes up the same amount of space as all of Foxtrot and the first row of Hagar! Why?

Well, maybe it's because, according to the "About Prince Valiant" page, "Prince Valiant represents America's lasting contribution to Arthurian legend, one of the most persistent folk and literary traditions of Western civilization." Oh my. Oh my, my, my,my. Read that again:

This strip represents our country's lasting contribution to one of the most persistent literary traditions of Western Civilization.

Is it true? It seems sort of like saying "Gilligan's Island represents America's lasting contribution to the Homeric epic, the Odyssey . . ." And if it's true, God Bless the U.S.A. Our contribution is some weirdly drawn strip, wherein Pete Rose gains hair styling tips. I'm so proud.