Some years ago my wife, my younger daughter, Martha, and I stopped for the night in the ancient town of Nettuno, on the west coast of Italy. It happened to be the feast day of La Madonna delle Grazie, a major festival featuring carnival rides, various team competitions and games of chance along the esplanade, followed by a parading of the enthroned Madonna by hundreds of costumed celebrants. (It was also the scene of a bizarre incident in which an Italian cop, who wouldn’t let me drive to our hotel because of temporary one-way signs, allowed me to back up two blocks instead. But that’s another story.)

We were in the crowd later to watch the procession, during which I realized that Federico Fellini’s films are not fantasy, but rather cinéma vérité. As the ornate shoulder-borne icon approached, a phalanx of serious men in dark suits preceded it.

I turned to the man beside me and in my fractured Italian asked if these were city officials. “Ja,” he said, “die Bürgermeister.” Aha. He thought we were German.

“O, lo non tedesco! Sono Americano!” Half a second later I was gripped in the most enthusiastic abraccio I can remember. “Hey!” he cried to his friends and the crowd in general. “Americanos!” More hugs, slaps on the back, and Italian bonhomie. The Lady of Grace was just passing. I think she must have been pleased at the love-fest occurring on our side of the esplanade.

Next day we visited the American War Cemetery, located on the edge of Nettuno. Almost 8,000 Americans who died freeing Italy from fascism in the Sicily and Italy campaigns are buried there, in neat rows reminiscent of Arlington. It was easy to see why the citizens of Nettuno, polite to folks they thought German, loved Americans.

How far the United States has come in just over 80 years! There are more countries now than in 1944 to which Americans can either not travel or at least travel at their peril. The Marshall Plan, criticized at the time as over-generous to erstwhile foes, set the tone for our leadership of the free world during the Cold War. I doubt many high school history students have even heard of it. George Marshall, by the way, lost a stepson in battle following the Anzio landings.

What they have heard of (though perhaps not in school because of recent strictures on content in history classes) is the difficulty faced by current members of our administration in visiting territories beyond their immediate control. JD Vance’s recent foray into Vermont for a skiing weekend was a small domestic example of the chilly reception they receive.

I described the administration at the time as “tin-eared.” They must not have gotten the message; for in the past week, after President Trump opined publicly that his tenure would see the acquisition of Greenland “one way or another,” he was told in no uncertain (and reportedly profane) terms to go pound sand.

Then some genius in the busy back rooms of the White House dreamed up the brilliant idea of sending the vice-president’s wife, Usha, on a sweet, tea party visit to the vast island, on a government jet and, of course, surrounded by security, to visit a few gift shops and take a ride on a dog sled (imagine the security for that one!). Advancemen found that nobody there would even consider such a visit; so JD ended up going with her to make it official, and they visited only the US base that we’ve had there since 1951. Another victory for American foreign relations.

Clearly frustrated by the intransigence of both Greenland and Canada, both of which seem rather firmly disinclined to avail themselves of the United States’ protection and prosperity (“You’ll be richer than you can believe, trust me.”), the president is now focused on the nation of Panama, which is, like everyone else, “ripping us off.” If it doesn’t give us back our canal (which is, by the way, suffering from possibly fatal developments related to global warming), “something strong is gonna happen. We’re gonna get the Chinese out and get it back.”

How I miss my old friend Prof. Shewmaker! His specialty — he was brilliant — was American foreign policy. He might be able to make some sense of this confusion. We spent many an hour while fishing talking about his particular subject, and bonded for life by losing ten dollars apiece when Dukakis lost to Bush.