Great article Wolfgang. I am sure the wall upon which you were striking your head maybe bloodied but I doubt dented.

As an aside, I have an American friend who joked when Trump was elected that he had never been so embarrassed to have people on the streets of Barcelona, where I live, know that he was American. He said, 'he told them he was Canadian.'

I, being Canadian, felt a little put out ( not too much - I am a Canuck). I was not offended that it was him, he is an upright character, what offended me was that a talk show misogynist had driven Americans to want to assume another identity and the proletariat let it happen.

Your warnings of propaganda are well noted. I spent many years in Japan and the infectious capability of populist propaganda destroyed that countries ability at critical thought. It has yet to fully recover.