Mick, I don't know if your last comment was directed at me or not. If so, I did not intend to insult any Americans. I like some Americans, don't like others, agree with some, disagree with others, etc. etc. I will confess that I loathe your present administration, which I think is damaging your country to a point from which it will be difficult to recover, and is doing a lot of damage to other parts of the world as well, some overt, some covert.

You are correct: it is not only bad, but ridiculous to make blanket statements about a country. This is where the difficulty arises -- many people seem to confuse the government of a country with the people of the country.

A few years ago I went to China. Some (not many) people I know have asked me how I could go to a Communist country. Guess what -- the government is communist; the people aren't. In fact, some of the ones I met are suffering under communism. The people don't represent their governments. In many cases, the governments don't represent the people either, and I believe that is what is going on in the US right now.

Fair enough?