Habituated

I complain about the United States not being Athens.  I certainly say we are a very good Roman republic, and the lies are based upon the most advanced techniques of advertising, which is the only art form my country has ever created -- the television commercial -- and we sell soap and presidents in the same fashion.  Once a country is habituated to liars, it takes generations to bring the truth back.

-- Gore Vidal (1925 - 2012), American writer of novels, essays, screenplays, and stage plays, in the documentary film "Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia" (2013)