Big, juicy simile

I love this. I absolutely love this. "Love what?!" you say. Oh, nothing. Just a freaking awesome SIMILE!!!!!
The chapter entitled "stockings" (pages 111 and 112) in pretty much one big simile party. When discussing Henry Dobbins, O'Brien tells us that "in many ways he was like America itself, big and strong, full of good intentions, a roll of fat jiggling at his belly, slow of foot but always plodding along, always there when you needed him, a believer in the virtues of simplicity and directness and hard labor." The rest pf the chapter continues talking about him, but I was quite intrigued by this sentence. O'Brien is able to describe his view on the country and the war by comparing them to his characters. He thinks that the country isn't the most efficient or successful in their wars, but they always go in for the right reasons. The Vietnam War was a very controversial one, so this was a very tactful way to express what he thought about the war. He shows the reader that all of Henry Dobbins actions will parallel with those of the U.S. by starting the chapter with that very clear simile.
I would also like to add that I am trying to see what O'Brien wants us to get from the creepy pantyhose story, but I just can't figure it out. Any help there would be awesome. Maybe it's just a weird story with no hidden message, but I'm not sure.