> It comes from reading/listening/etc the responses of Americans to all the crazy shit that happens there.

Right, no disagreement from me that these things happen. And responses are varied, as you say.

What I was trying to get across was that you get a very lopsided view by concentrating on "crazy shit" and people's responses to it.

For example:

I live in the US. It's snowing where I am. It makes things beautiful. Some birds are at the feeder, and the furnace just turned on. I'm thankful for the warmth. I have some cookies to deliver to the neighbors later on (they recently gave us a loaf of their bread, which was delicious).

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There you go, that was some real American culture (still second-hand for you, and admittedly not entirely representative). Not very interesting, but it's home. Multiply that by hundreds of millions of people, and yes, sprinkle in a handful of crazy shit too for good measure. Maybe that gets you a little bit closer to reality.

Still plenty that needs fixing, of course. And I'm glad I don't live in Mississippi (: