The Nerd's Eye View

On a side note, check out this link. I demand full credit for when you post it on the blog
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuba_libre

And as far as the Brits... They may not be very PC, but here we are living in the land of the troglodytes. Heck, they outlawed slavery 30 years before the US, AND their most conservative PM in recent history was a WOMAN!

I see that the Wikipedia reference to troglodytes ( "The troglodytes of western South Carolina coined 'jump stiddy' for a mixture of Coca-Cola and denatured alcohol (usually drawn from automobile radiators...) really caught your attention.

It's true the Brits did do all that though they of course held on to their colonial possessions long after their heyday was over. And need I mention the Suez crisis in '56? They make their fair share of mistakes - and frankly, it's good to know that even with their posh accents they're just as dumb as us.

"Mr Straw explained the impact he thought veils could have in a society where watching facial expressions was important for contact between different people"

I guess that's telephones and internet chatting out of the window then.

Also blog comments, and any conversation where you aren't looking the other person in the face.

I think the distaste for veils is steeped in the culture of the English-speaking world. Veils are masks, and masks, being a means to conceal identity, are thought of as inherently dishonest, to say nothing of the wrench they throw into our seemingly irrational desire to document everything absolutely (note how much of our notion of "security" is synonymous with total observation...see also: http://adbusters.org/the_magazine/66/Arming_Britain_Against_Democratic_Protest.html) This is why it's actually illegal in many places in America to wear masks in public. Masks inhibit the ability of those in authority to recognize, identify, and prosecute.

I don't know if I buy that about the English speaking world. It's been very conservative until very recently (~1940's and on).