National pride/Patriotism
I think the B 52's are still in operation to provide th US public with a sense of security.In this day and age,sureley the job of the heavy bomber is long gone.Sad,for the aviation fan,but I think true.It still rankles that our government,against the wishes of a great many of it's electorate/servants refused to keep 558 as a flying museum to educate coming generations of the fear that many of us felt during the Cold War.I am 35 and lived my childhood next to the twin bases of Bentwaters and Woodbridge and remember well visits from the Vulcan,F 104,F 4,SR 71(Very occasionaly,in fact twice!That I saw,must have been more with Mildenhall just up the road.),Jaguars,Mirages,F 5's A 7's,TR 1's,F111's and so on.E 3 AWACS were everywhere,US and NATO/OTAN.It kept us on our toes.I even remeber a tale that the F 117 was sent here for a deployment,with Corsair II's as daytime cover,as the engine note was almost identical!!!Probably nonsense but who knows?Very little pride left in this country,I'm afraid.