I disagree. As an American who has visited both southeastern England and the west of Ireland, I found the cultural differences to be considerable in some ways, such as the social manners, and virtually nonexistent in others, such as foods eaten, clothes worn, entertainment, etc.

It depends upon one's experience (or lack thereof) negotiating cultural differences, I think. Anyone who lives, works, and/or plays in more than one culture group (as some of us Americans in big cities do) knows that while the food and clothing customs can be very important, it is really the difference in social manners which ends up causing the majority of cultural conflicts and misunderstandings. If one is travelling and oblivious to those differences, then one is pretty culturally insensitive anyway.

Like someone else said--Irish people refer to Britain as Britain, to Ireland as Ireland, and to the political state encompassing the northern six counties of Ireland and the island of Britain, as the UK. Just as the British do. And as Declan says, it has nothing to do with superiority/inferiority. It has to do with practicality, and the need to refer to the geographic and political areas correctly. British Isles isn't geographically or politically correct, so people don't use the term British Isles at all. I can't even think of that many Americans who use the term any more, to be honest, even journalists in the mass media don't use the term very often. It is either Britain (even when what they are actually referring to is the UK) or Ireland, British or Irish.