> There's WAY too much to go into great detail, if you're interested in the intimate details I would welcome you to read an American History textbook. Jon Stewart came out with one a few years ago which is a little less dry than most, but pick one up on ebay or something.. nothing too hard, an elementary or middle school level text book is sufficient. I mean that's all the amount of education most people have anyways... okay I'm getting off track. The following is my own ramblings on why I think Americans view socialization so differently than people in other countries. It is not intended to be definitive and anyone may feel free to correct anything they disagree with. <br>> <br>> Our whole sense of self as a nation and as individuals is predicated on the American Dream. The American Dream isn't about everybody, it's about ME. It's about me being able to work my ass off and become a successful person in life. This whole idea of a democracy (please no lessons about how we're a republic) is about the power of the individual to make the choices which affect their own lives. We <i>became</i> a nation largely because the British royalty became too greedy and taxed us into oblivion. The sense of self, individual power and choice is demonstrated in the Bill of Rights. It was SO important to us that the first thing we did after we founded our nation was to sit down and list a bunch of stuff the government could never touch. The Constitution did not grant people certain rights, it enumerated a very limited set of rights for the government because all other rights were deemed to be endowed by the Creator. <br>> <br>> Many of the people you scorn about being evil for not wanting things like public health care are the very people who donate the largest percentages of their incomes to charities. There is no sense of pride in paying your tax bill. There is a great sense of pride in cutting that check for the homeless shelter or that children's cancer research hospital. You see when I cut that check I have decided on my own free will to fund that thing which I find most beneficial to society. There's no better form of democracy than having your own money. Every dollar is like a little mini-vote for the charity, business, service you give it to. Giving your power/dollars to the government is anti-democratic because it removes the choice from the American people and puts it into the hands of an elite few. That's what all of the anti-federalists are talking about. They believe so strongly in the power of democracy that they want to keep the power of their dollar as local as possible. The belief in democracy is that the accumulation of all the little dollars in all the little places of the country becomes incredibly powerful, and becomes powerful proportionately to the number of people who support that effort. <br>> <br>> Now you may not agree with the reason Americans behave the way we do, and I'll be the first to admit it's not always in our best interests. I just want to shed some light on the American psyche so that hopefully the Europeans amongst us can at least understand the perspective of the typical American mind. We've been filled with pro-American propaganda since birth, just like you have towards your own respective country. Everyone is brought up to believe that their way is the one right way. Now, in particular referring to social healthcare here, a lot of minds are starting to change in America. That may or may not be a good thing, only time will tell. However, your way is NOT the one and only right way. There is no such thing.