No, Cluin, I did not think you were serious! ;-) I was just elaborating on the theme, that's all...as you say, "in order to indulge my penchant for didactics". America's economic and cultural colonialism around the world is a subject that interests me, and you gave me an excuse to talk about it.

Mrrzy - Yeah, that's true. Several thousand paranoid guys in some community who are all busy "looking out for number one" and not giving a damn about their neighbours do not make what I call a well-regulated militia... ;-)