but just to be the devil's advocate here: you tihnk the British might actually deserve their authoritatianism? British chav culture, pikeys, soccer hooligans, happy slapping, animal rights terrorists, the IRC, and yes ISLAMIC MILITANTS. For all the horrible failings of the United States, most of the British insanity just doesn't happen in America. As for the Monarchy, Japan has one and they seem to be okay.Wait, who exactly is "we"? A lot of Americans (hopefully not the majority) actually SUPPORT the idea of a more authoritarian government (often the same types who insist that "the troops are in Iraq to keep the terrorists from bringing the war to our soil!").