> And when I say "American view" I don't really mean to imply that all Americans hold that view, it's more a suggestion that that's the kind of thing that the media portrays more strongly than not and that thus many people would hold such views.

Of course. Imagine turning on the news: "Here are some Americans displaying average amounts of patriotism."

> Just out of curosity do you over there get the same arguments about "We must do something about the shrinking population - have more babies!", while at the same time "We must keep immigrants out unless they're the Right Sort for us (white, good professions, etc), and be careful of those asylum seekers!"?

No, we get "We're overcrowded, so protect yourself when satisfying your urges! And if that fails, you can always avail yourselves of the hit men in white coats!"(Okay, so it's not quite that blatant) while Emma Lazarus beckons. I certainly don't begrudge access to America to someone who's not looking to do harm, but I've a feeling there are quite a few of those already here...

Nyperold