> the colonies that became America were British colonies, not French or Spanish or Portuguese or Dutch colonies. Some of them were British from the outset, but

> the colonies that became America were British colonies, not French or Spanish or Portuguese or Dutch colonies. Some of them were British from the outset, but not even all of the original 13 Colonies were originally British: - Parts of New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Connecticut were Dutch before they were British ("even old New York was once New Amsterdam / why they changed it, I can't say; people just liked it better that way") - Parts of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania were Swedish before they were Dutch before they were British And that's to say nothing about the various Spanish (and later Mexican), French, and Russian colonies annexed throughout the US' post-revolutionary history. If we're gonna assign credit for the Internet to old European imperial powers, Spain in particular probably has just as much (if not more) to do with it than Britain, given that California was originally a Spanish colony (and then a Mexican colony, and then briefly its own country before the US annexed it).