the fatuousness of the habit of saying "London, England" - so we don't get confused with London, Ontario?!!?

Depends on the context--if a national news article mentions
"London", we can safely assume that it is in England. But if it is casual conversation here, with no lead-in context,
we Kentuckians have to specify, because there is a London,
KY, and a Paris, KY! Also a Monkey's Eyebrow and a few other interesting place-names.

And--this IS the twentieth century, because it IS! The 21st one won't start till 1-1-01! GRR!