True enough. I've been to Cardiff, Manchester, Edinburgh, Coventry, and other spots and didn't see as much of that blight there, but the last time I was in Cologne and Munich, Germany, I saw it there too. If I were to go anywhere in the UK right now, it would be northern Scotland; I hear the scenery is other-worldly and beautiful, and it's mostly inhabited, if at all, by actual Scots.

But it's the political-social climate I worry most about. I don't want to visit anywhere that might be constantly surveilling my conversations, emails, texts, and thoughts, because I can confidently tell you that my opinions, which I prefer to share widely, would not be welcome in the current climate of the UK.