Being in America, it is almost impossible not to discuss the "maddening buffoonery" of the billionaire, real estate tycoon, Donald Trump. Buffoonery is not the right word; it is a combination of cheeky insolence and contemptuousness. His rhetoric about banning Muslims from entering the United States and deporting the eleven -- or is it twelve -- million Muslim residents in America somewhere south of the border did not create an outrage; it was cheered vociferously, by not only his supporters but many other sober citizens who find it refreshing that a politician had dared to say what he thinks.

Trump advances in popularity every time he derides individuals and nations. What one cannot help feeling is that America is heading towards a political autocracy. For everyone’s sake I hope this does not happen, but it is an indication of our times that Americans are willing to entrust their party, the party that Abraham Lincoln is associated with, to a person "who is, at best, dishonest," to quote one newspaper.

There have been in the past many bigoted short-sighted politicians who ran for the presidency -- Barry Goldwater, to name just one -- but good sense prevailed and they were defeated soundly.

Trump criticises the individuals whose position he craves. He assumes that most voters are gullible. He is right on this point, of course, because presidential campaigns have now been transformed into years of entertainment programmes that feed on controversy. Media personalities -- all of whom are regular dinner party guests at the White House and other venues -- encourage features that tend to bring out the worst in everyone.

He fills convention centres and halls which seat seven to eight thousand people. Thousands more wait outside such halls in sub-freezing cold. Given these crowds, high television ratings, an unsinkable run at the top of the polls, even those Republicans who vehemently opposed the idea of awarding Trump the nomination as a Republican candidate for US presidency are beginning to feel that they might have to swallow their pride and accept him as the front runner.

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When protestors interrupt his rhetoric about ‘enemies lurking everywhere’ and about denouncing foreigners, he commands his security men to "get ’em outta here", who then jump upon them, thump them and punch them much to the delight of those on the Trump bandwagon. The roaring applause of his supporters is louder than that of a crowd watching a fixed wrestling bout.

The theme of the hidden threat ‘lurking in our midst’ is part of what is making Trump into a fitting prophet of a fearful tribe of Moonies. "I am the Power" he bellows, and the crowd laps it up. ‘He is shocking, he is aggressive, and he is foul-mouthed’.

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Time magazine, which ran a cover story titled ‘How Trump Won’ dubbed him as a ‘Michelangelo of ballyhoo’. According to David Von Drehle, who wrote the cover story, "Other candidates work to relate their lives to the struggles of ordinary voters, Trump does the opposite, encouraging Americans to savour vicariously his billionaire’s privilege of saying what he damn well pleases".

It is ironic that a presidential candidate utters anti-immigration rhetoric in a land founded by immigrants and whose prosperity depends on newcomers.

Mr. Trump has been advised to strike a more presidential tone, (he has already branded Hillary Clinton as yesterday’s woman) moderate his criticism, submit his politics to more scrutiny and try to put an end to vagueness and bluster. So far he has thrived on crowd-pulling offensiveness against minorities and women. Almost every day some op-ed article in one newspaper or the other reminds of the basic prerequisites for a presidential bid. He might yet change his tune, but the rabble-rousing body of voters that he has motivated is going to be a trouble for any future American president.

David Von Drehle has posed a soul-searching question in his article: "Is the US the sort of country that would elect him? Since when do we hire a President from the tabloids, Twitter and Reality TV?"

My friends in America seem to be pretty sure that (a) Trump is not likely to get the nomination and (b) even if he does, he will not be able to defeat Clinton who is ten to fifteen percent ahead in opinion polls.

I hope I am wrong but I do think that even if Hillary Clinton beats him she would have a pretty hard time dealing with the rising fever of die-hard conservatism related to the non-white communities.

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I have always imagined Kansas to be flat country and so I went to Kansas City thinking it would be a bit like Indianapolis -- vast stretches of highways running evenly across hundreds of miles with shopping centres on either side. I was agreeably surprised to find that Kansas City is an attractive place, full of trees and not at all as flat as I imagined.

What is more, there are hideaways and gems. I do not mean the art museums and sedimentary layers of shops, but the nooks and corners of its Plaza. I thoroughly enjoyed wandering in and out of the Plaza, admiring the Moorish-inspired Spanish architecture which has been so lovingly restored and preserved. After a few days of cold and blustery weather in Atlanta, it was sheer heaven to bask in the idyllic weather of Kansas: clear blue skies, a warm and sunny day with a very pleasant breeze. It was such a joyous experience to walk on pavements, which were not crowded.

My host in Kansas, who has lived in Kansas for over twenty years, told me that all the development that has taken place in the town centre was entirely due the efforts of a lady mayor who had the sense and sensibility to have all the old buildings (in America everything built a hundred and fifty years ago is old) restored within the span of her tenure.

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It was interesting to find the following text printed on the table mat in a restaurant called the Spice Exchange.

A restauranteur must be a Diplomat, a Democrat, an Autocrat and a doormat. He must have the facility to entertain Prime Ministers, Princes of Industry, pickpockets, gamblers, bookmakers, pirates, philanthropists, popsies and prudes. He must be on both sides of the Political Fence and be able to jump the Fence.

To sum-up he must be outside, inside, glorified, sanctified, crucified, stupefied, cross-eyed, and if he is not the strong silent type there’s always -- suicide.