One aspect of American* culture that constantly amuses - and occasionally frightens - me is the macho display.

I draw a special smirk when the display in question seems utterly pointless. For example, take automotive detailing. The prevalence of such items as spinning rims and boastful decals illustrates my point.

Don’t even get me started on those &%@/^# rims. But, I wanted to touch on decals for a moment.

Driving to the laundromat today, I got behind a blue Ford F-250 with “Big Daddy Romance” announced in script-type decals on the rear window. Impressed? I know I am.

Last summer, on the boulevard running through town, a low-end monster-wheeled pickup followed me for a stretch. The decal emblazoning the top of the front window read “My Dick’s Enormous,” backwards so it couldn’t be missed in the rearview mirror. I don’t know about you, but that’s the first thing I want to know about people tailgating me.

What causes these vulgar displays? They’re not meant ironically, are they? What goes on in the mind of a man who’d put phallic boasts on his pick-up truck? Aren’t the four-foot high tires enough?

Mankind may never fully appreciate the humor and paradox of the actions of man. These questions may never have answers

* I say “Americans” from my own frame of reference; these types of displays likely outstrip borders and ethnicities.