But you have to ask yourself Ken, where did the press, bloggers, and fanboys get their information from? None have flown the aircraft, so all opinions must be formed by external sources - ie; those that are building and funding the aircraft.
I know that many will find it hard to believe, but journalists generally don't just make stuff up (we wouldn't last very long in our jobs if we did). Whether we are overly negative or optimistic about the programme, or somewhere imbetween, our views are being shaped by information that is being imparted by others. So now ask yourself, who would have a vested interested in over-inflating the F-35's capabilities, if that is indeed what has been going on?
You got me there! My American background failed me in that respect. In the US there was lots of competition between the Virginians vs the New Yorkers vs the Vermonters vs the Bostonians, etc etc. But in the end we (generally) always saw ourselves as Americans first, and Virginians, New Yorkers, etc second. It keeps escaping me that "English" is not the same as "Welsh" nor the same as "British". (English and Welsh are surely both British, right, or have I got that wrong? And Ireland and Scotland are also British?)
Now
that's not a can of worms I want to open Ken (see the many Scotland independence threads on this forum to find out why). But to answer your questions about the relations between the constituent nations of the UK -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNu8XDBSn10