Well done, Dick, you have clarified your argument and I cannot disagree with any point but your last. However, as that is a world issue and not specifically UK politics I will not address it here.

Whether we agree with it or not, it is Mudcat policy to keep UK politics on one thread. Because of that it is important to keep that one thread on track. US and world politics can have many threads so please feel free to start another one about Russian sanctions or any other world issues thst you need to get off your chest.