The cornerstone of the American mentality is defining life on personal terms. But somewhere between a Norman Rockwell ordering of values and a 'do your own thing' priority for the SELF of the 60s, our national confidence in the integrity of the 'personal' eroded. Meanwhile, back on the talk show, your 11 year-old son got the babysitter pregnant. Your husband sleeps with your step-sister and you've developed an eating disorder. Coming to terms with all this before lunch gives Marines' military work some serious competition.
Marines claim to do more in the morning than most people do all day.
This is the 90s. This is your life. These are America's talk shows. But I believe that this is more than sensationalist television programming. The 'terms' are in the shows' structure and in Tocqueville's American as a private experience of the public world.