At some point in the dim past grey squirrels were introduced into the UK from North America. It seems that these immigrant squirrels were more successful in their new environment than the native red ones. It is a commonly held belief here that the greys beat up or killed the reds. In fact, they were just better at eating and breeding in England. Over time the grey squirrels gradually displaced the natives to the point where there are very few of the latter left. This situation makes the grey squirrels a convenient and much used metaphor for Americans in general. The subject of red (good) vs. grey (bad) comes up several times every year on BBC Radio 4 and sometimes in nature programs on TV as well.
The recent big news story of Amanda Knox is a case in point. Ms. Knox, an American, was convicted four years ago in Italy of murdering her university roommate, Meredith Kercher, a British subject. This week, in a re-trial, Ms. Knox was found, on the basis of faulty evidence, to have been wrongly convicted and was released from prison to return to her home in the USA. This has been on the front page in the papers and the lead story in the broadcast media all this week. The tone of these stories suggests, subtly, of course, that there might be something wrong with the new court ruling. After all, she is an American accused of killing a Brit.
Grey squirrel vs. red squirrel all over again!
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