We're fat, lazy dummies with a useless political machine that none of us understand, and a nice fat economy anyways.

I would like to know what everyone else has to say... keep the answers coming. A lot of steriotypes are that we eat too much junk food, katsup on everything, and use microwaves too much.

Generaly they fall into one of 3 categories, roughly speaking these are: 1. The normal person, someone who is calm, rational has some common sense and some knowledge of the world ouside of the US (my estimate for % of population, about 20%) . 2. The religious freak, basicaly someone who is fanaticaly religious to the point where they dont even know WTF they are talking about and refuse to even acknowledge the fact that their beliefs are unfounded and could be wrong. (20%) . 3. The idiot, no knowledge of the world outside of N.America (alot to the extreme of thinking Paris is a city in Germany, or similar)! They are normaly racist to anyone other than white people (especially Islamic/Muslims), thugs biggots and general idiots! (40%) . The other 20% dont fall into any categorie, just people. Having said all of this, I must say this is just a general opinion, and I take every American person on an individual basis!

I think that a lot of Americans are unable to see beyond their borders. Their education system doesn't seem to point out to them that a large world exists outside of the US. I also have seen examples of racism,sexism,and homophobia that in Canada we would not tolerate so lightly (if you don't believe me, go to yahoo answers sometime). All of that said..I like most Americans that I have met. And I tend to judge people only on an individual basis. I hope I didn't offend anyone here.:)

On the good side: We are the most diverse nation on the planet- most every other nation began as a single ethnic group, a single culture, and a single religion. Our nation has EVERY ethnic group, EVERY culture, and EVERY religion. While that results in a lot of conflict, even riots at times, we have not suffered the internal warfare that plagues some nations with only two or three ethnic groups. Our nation takes pride in the spirit of individualism- that any one person can succeed on their own potential, and a unique person is more valuable then a cultural norm or standard. We were one of the first, if not the first, nation to be based on the concept of individual human rights. Whatever internal problems we may have, they can be solved by turning to those founding ideals. On the Bad side: Our nation is highly militaristic. We have a "shoot first, ask questions later" attitude. We go to forceful and military actions when others would still try diplomacy. Our nation thinks that sex is something evil, filthy and nasty, while violence is a form of entertainment. A movie that shows two people having sex gets an X. A movie that shows one person cutting another person to bits gets an R. Our nation is filled with people who think they are safer if everyone has a gun. Our nation thinks it's more important for the government to build prisons then to build schools. Our nation thinks that it's a waste of money for the government to provide health care, but not to wage a "war on drugs". While our nation was built on freedom of religion, by people who were free from religion, our politics are currently dominated by a religious fundamentalist minority. While our nation takes pride in the spirit of individualism, those who are different remain ostracized for their differences. While our nation takes pride in the concept that anyone can succeed with enough effort, that results in the attitude that it's the poor's fault for being poor, and that for the government to help the poor is a great evil that must be stopped. Our nation is very focused on personal wealth over civic responsibility: People are willing to kill foreign people in a foreign land if it keeps their gas prices down. People are more concerned with keeping their taxes low then making their nation better. Every politician knows that the way to win is to promise that taxes will be reduced.

Non-american speaking: The nation as a whole is hard to define and not every single citizen will fit into one catergory. Without ever having been to America, I know that it is very racially and religiously diverse, but still has issues with racism and close mindedness - although every country is like that I suppose. I also know that it thinks sex, and especially homosexuality is something disgusting and filthy - but again, not everyone thinks like this - hopefully those who don't outnumber those who do. America has an obesity problem, but England is fast catching up. Hopefully I didn't offend anyone with this answer.

I think most Americans have become passive. They complain constantly about who is president instead of supporting whom ever is elected. Yet do very little to ensure the changes they so strongly believe in. Not as much as a letter to their congressman. They pick battles over unimportant issues, instead of ways to win the war. People worry they may belong to the wrong church instead of doing good deeds the other 6 days of the week. And last, people from other countries are allowed to study at our colleges TAX free and free housing. MHO. Not meant to offend anyone.

Patriotic ... which can also be a downside sometimes.