Originally Posted by
SeriouslyLost
Americans are indoctrinated from birth to obey authority figures. They are culturally disposed to process solutions to the point that process becomes the solution, to the detriment of whatever the original goal might have been. (Think how many times you've heard "Those are the rules." in response to a situation that is outside the rules).
I would think it's the exact opposite. Americans are indoctrinated from birth to question their government on everything. They are taught that they have all kinds of "rights" (which may or may not actually exist), that the government is out to oppress them, and that they are supposed to keep the government small and weak in order to ensure their freedoms. They are taught that the government might become "tyrannical" at any minute, and the right to bear arms is their line of defense. They are taught to worship the free market and question socialism, communism, and anything else that is un-American in any way, mostly without having a clue what those terms mean.
This skepticism of the government is why the US lacks a decent health care system, better environmental protections, and many other things that are taken for granted in most other developed nations.