Derek, I think the reason some of us get aerated about the USA is that it has so MANY double standards! It champions itself in blaring self-righteousness about being the 'land of the free', yet in a blink of an eye it imposes its military will on anyone who offends it - or that it thinks might offend it (well, offend its right to an unending supply of oil, anyway). It prattles empty words about 'democracy' and yet we know that Bush's election was manipulated to exclude huge swathes of potential voters, and all of its 'democracy' is BOUGHT by those best able to fund huge election campaigns. It talks about tolerance, yet it continues to display nothing but intolerance towards other countries who don't toe its line, and especially where its troops or police ever get hold of 'people of colour' or of distinctly different ethnic or relgious traits.
It's hounded American communists for their beliefs and ruined lives through its mad obsession with stamping out all forms of internal socialism. It continues to kill its prisoners using gas, electricity and euthanasia, yet it hasn't legalized euthanasia for the desperately ill who'd like it to end their suffering, and prates on about its humanity.
I don't mind a country so much which, up front, tells you that it'll leave everyone else alone, it won't invade or seek wars, it won't tolerate certain behaviours, and some of its punishments are harsh, but it isn't going to try to force its ways on everyone else. Of course there are 'other countries', and many of them behave very differently to the UK, Europe, Scandinavia and the USA. Perhaps if most of us aspired to live more like Tongans than Americans, we'd be a lot happier and far more relaxed and tolerant. I'm sure Tongans have a code of conduct which stops the most outrageous behaviours, but so far I can't think of one country which has been adversely affected by Tonga's existence. And I can think of dozens which have been very much so by America's.
