Slight digression but I've never got my head around the 'being proud to be ...... (insert your country of choice) What are these national qualities that anyone of a particular nationality shares and that those of differing nationalities don't have?
I thought, perhaps wrongly, that America was very definately a Christian country
'Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n-rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust":

source: [lyricsondemand.com]

@WizardBill Yes quite unfortunate. Hopefully their stranglehold on our politics will soon be broken.

@WizardBill This program goes out on Sunday at 11am. It is a nightmare for programmers trying to fill up the mandatory hour. Given we are very secular and even if we arent we cannot be arsed with churches except for 3 times. Water, confetti and soil. Myself I quite like a bit of gospel music and belt out a good version of " jesus on the main line " when pissed. Or " mercedes benz " on the way back from the pub. This prog was what we gravitated to in our compulsory religious lessons in state school. Its hard enough to get a load of teenages to do maths or english, let alone religion. So we would debate moral issues such as abortion. Our teacher was a former missionary but it might surprise you that he took the other side of right to life guys. Using the wife in "Alfee" as an example. Good teacher that guy, Mr Briggs

@273kelvin You Brits seem to very very practical about your religion. Is it more of an attachment to history and tradition rather than the actual dogma?

@MsOliver Yes indeed, its very uncool.

@JimmyM Yeah I feel ya, I'm not very patriotic but I am proud of our Constitution and Bill of Rights.

@RoboGraham You got it !!! bullseye no written constitution except what Parliament decides. The Queen is head of state and head of the Church. So no military coups or ayatollahs. An unelected second chamber consisting of landed gentry. life piers and bishops (bit like a chess board). Do we envy republics ? do we f#ck ! Ancient Chinese curse " may you live in interesting times " .

@273kelvin That system has really worked throughout your history. No great social upheavals aside from the civil war which ultimately ended with the restoration of the Stuarts. A long ebb and flow of strong monarchs who advanced the kingdom and weak ones which allowed the power of the crown to be slowly eroded.

Do you think the monarchy serves any practical purpose in this day and age? Would you be in favor of abolishing it?