I was no fan of Thatcher, but as Ringer said the full quotation was about who pays for things or solves problems and gives a very different flavour to the usual soundbite: And, you know, there is no such thing as society [to pick up the costs]. There are individual men and women, and there are families.

Of course, exactly the same could be said for other groups of people: nations, for example. I don't remember her ever suggesting Britan didn't exist, only its individual men and women and families.