[fabsroman]

That is true, the French did help us win the Revolutionary War, but thngs change over 200+ years. Just because somebody helped me 10 years ago doesn't mean I should like him when he stabs me in the back 9 years later (i.e., a year ago). Countries change over time. Their politics change, their people change, their technology changes, etc. 60+ years ago, we were at war with Japan. After destroying them we helped them rebuild and then they kicked our rear in trade. I am still pretty mad that none of the domestic car makers have anything that gets 40+ mpg.

I am working on building a new road bike and have thought about making it from 100% American parts/frame. Problem is that the American parts/frame are few and far between, they cost just as much or more than the Italian parts/frame, and they aren't better than the Italian parts/frame. I refuse to have any Japanese parts on the bike.

I follow the Tour de France every year, and the countryside is utterly amazing. Same thing goes for Italy and Switzerland. Yeah, France has good wine, but so does California and Italy. Maybe not quite as good as France, but good enough such that anybody but a wine purist would ever know the difference. My favorite wine, a Riesling, comes from Germany, but I have had some pretty good ones that come from California.

My dad has despised the French as long as I can remember. 9/11 just added fuel to the fire for him. I believe he thinks the people are snotty/stuck up. They hated to have an American (i.e., Greg LeMond) win the Tour de France, but they finally ended up liking Lance. Another American stands a good shot at winning the tour this year.