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And well, we both like to generalize about each other's nation. The French (or the Germans, or the Spaniards, or the Italians) are all supposed to be this, and the Americans are all supposed to be that.

Read the comments posted by the Freepers who actually went to France, on this very thread : the people they met were, well, normal people. Welcoming people, who treated their guests well and expected to be returned the favor, who loved to talk politics and grumble about taxes or their government, who enjoyed the company of somebody who has lived abroad and yet shared their core values.

All the Frenchmen I know spent some time in the US told the same : they had met, not stereotypical Americans, but nice, congenial people, and enjoyed their company greatly, whether they sought to live in the US or to come back to France.

I hope all the Freepers who, for the last 4 years or so, made a point of making insulting jokes at every opportunity (including some really tasteless ones) or engaged into similar kinds of slur will reflect upon these personal experiences by fellow members. The people they mocked, insulted and ridiculed are the ones who would have welcomed them the way other members were welcomed. and the same goes for my countrymen who engaged in similar behavior.

In the end, who did the most to further the cause of Conservatism and Western civilization ? Those who divided us through slur and insults, or those who brought us together through simple things like respect and personal contact ? I guess we all know the answer to that one.