Ted, the issues you raise are indeed FAR more important than whether folkies in the US sing Amazing Grace or not. Kudos to you for bringing them up. They are all the more important given that our personal consumption practices in the US have an effect on such things as slave labor in the diamond and silver mines and in Chinese prisons. And Lord knows how our voting practices bear on those issues. Would that we were all as passionate about these issues as we have been about John Newton's greatest hit.   

I trust you will agree with me, however, that since more knowledge is usually better than less we are better off knowing more about Newton than knowing less about him.

That being said, I'm ready to stop talking about Amazing Grace, unless, of course, another interesting comment comes up :-)