I should also define what I mean by American "culture" -- or that which I despise:
Joe and Jane Sixpack get married (at some Protestant church) where they pay lip service to staying together, etc. after they both graduate from college.
They EACH start out with student loan debt around $20,000.
They keep both their cars, which they are still making payments on. Each car is worth $26,000, and is only 1/5 of the way paid off.
They buy a large cookie-cutter house in the suburbs -- 3200 sq. feet, for $180,000.
They both work, socking away money in their 401K and savings accounts. They go on vacations, shop, watch TV, waste tons of time on pleasure, and in general act like they did when they were single. They spend all their extra money on "stuff" and "having fun" -- never a thought to paying off the mortgage early, paying off their student loans early, etc.
They practice birth control until around age 30 (6 years after they were married).
They have 2 kids -- Tristan and Haley -- exactly 2 years apart, on whom they spend tons of money (buying everything new -- less than 2% comes from garage sales).
After the birth of their 2nd child, Haley, Jane Sixpack has her tubes tied.
Their kids are bombarded with stimuli, so that they might be "geniuses" -- you know, like so many Baby Einsteins!
The kids have countless toys, mostly the kind that need batteries, and they start watching TV at 6 months.
They don't get much time with their parents, though, because they spend their days at daycare or public school, and at night their parents are busy working out how to retire at age 50 -- you know, right after Haley turns 18 and goes off to college!
Each child gets his/her own bedroom and TV set in the huge, cookie-cutter suburban house. What a great way to learn how to share and get along with others...NOT!
Joe and Jane Sixpack start a college fund for each of their 2 kids. After all, EVERYONE has the talent needed for "higher education"...right?
Haley starts wearing shirts which expose her navel at age 3.
Tristan watches countless cartoons, and his playtime behavior reflects this. Instead of being creative, he is merely regurgitating and "acting out" what has been poured in his head.
Haley and Tristan badger their parents for countless overpriced "licensed toys" connected with the movies and cartoons they are into.
Both children get everything they want, as far as material things go.
After the birth of Haley, Jane trades in her car -- to put toward a brand new SUV for their "big family" which modern science has capped at 4. "We can't get by with a regular car anymore -- we have a FAMILY now... we need to be able to transport the whole soccer team..." Note that they still have 2 cars, even though one of them is huge and they rarely go ANYWHERE as a family anyhow.
Most days, Joe and Jane do their own thing, while each child stays in his/her room watching their own TV shows, talking on their own cell phones, chatting on the Internet, etc.
Tristan is enrolled in soccer, and Haley gets involved in Ballet. The family SUV has two stickers which advertise this fact.
Both kids start dating at 10, and lose their virginity before age 13.
Their teen years are marked with rebellion and hostility toward parents. Their empty suburban lifestyle, lack of moral training, and the influence of TV and peers cause them to suffer from depression (Tristan) and anorexia (Haley).
Joe, in his mid 40's, has a mid-life crisis and starts talking a bit too much to the young female secretary at work. Since the Sixpacks go to a mega-church, they aren't taught much about fallen human nature and Original Sin.
Soon, Joe is in an extra-marital affair. But surprise! Jane was also, meanwhile, involved with a man at her law office. When you spend more hours per day with co-workers than you do with your own husband, those kind of things happen...
They get divorced, and there are messy court proceedings.
Joe Sixpack is ordered to pay alimony/child support, which almost assures him a place in the rank of the poor for the rest of his natural life. He becomes bitter and cynical with regard to marriage.
Jane Sixpack gets married to the man she was having an affair with, and grows old kicking and screaming every step of the way. She dyes her hair, spends hundreds of dollars a month on cosmetics, anti-ageing cream, anti-wrinkle cream, etc.
Joe Sixpack begins taking depression medication, which makes his life even worse. Later, after many years spent alone, and possessing nothing after 50 years of life (except for many thousands of dollars of debt), he takes an overdose of depression medication, killing himself. He dies in despair and he enters the everlasting flames of Hell.
Jane Sixpack, around age 45, pays to have her tubes "untied" so she can have a baby with her new "husband". The procedure fails, however. Resigned to the fact she can no longer have children, she throws herself into her work.
Around age 55, she is involved in a fatal car crash. She is also condemned to eternal misery and torture in the fires of Hell.
It is unbelievably sad how often this tragedy plays itself out in millions of families across America. The details are different, many different events can color things up, but the events listed above are ALL TOO COMMON and are mostly a direct result of a protestant American culture.