This RADICAL question could have been posed by Radical Reed, but it was actually posed by BillyTheMountain.
They sponsor some great unicycle conventions.
Tch… pesky upstarts… 
Phil
If everyone in the world used as much of our natural resources and created so much pollution as the average American the world would still be habitable for roughly the next two days only.
Being an American, I’ll agree with you there.
Guns and violence.
Big food.
Money.
Your health insurance thingy. Needing a dsm diagnosis to get help for mental health problems.
The movies & holywood.
That I’m as likely as anyone else to create stereotypes.
Cathy
In contrast, the rest of the world probably doesn’t know that wales exists, or think that it’s part of England.
Cathy
stupid
is that an actual statistic, or just an analogy?
either way, you make a good point.
when the letters USA pop up anywhere but here i think of a awful country.
but when you asked me what the letters USA stood for being on a unicycle site i immediatly thought of unicycling society of america,(i only know what it stands for cause i did a report on the history of the unicycle)
The rest of the world, except England, of course.
So what do I think of when I think of the USA?
Unfortunately, my first gut reaction to references to the USA in news stories is somewhere between hostile, sceptical and despairing.
As a geopolitical force, the USA is a bad thing. Events of recent years have shown this.
A bunch of people from Saudi carry out a devastating attack on America. The President uses the language and logic of the OK Corral to justify attacking, er… Afghanistan.
The leader of the enemy is from a religious group which attaches great significance to martyrdom, and the Americans try to bomb him into oblivion, turning him into a quasi-mythical figure in the process, and increasing his influence over those likely to follow him.
They then draw a tenuous link between this religious nutter and a secular Arab state (Iraq) and create a false justification for attacking it with supreme force, in defiance of the United Nations (the Secretary general has said that the war is illegal) and killing thousands upon thousands of innocent civilians and conscripts in the process.
Having no understanding of the local culture, they try to shoehorn democracy into a society with no democratic heritage, and it all goes horribly wrong and descends into near civil war. But not to worry, because Big Tex the redneck President is already eyeing up Iran - Iraq’s traditional enemy - and planning to attack it, giving these two powerful middle eastern countries a reason to forget their differences and unite against the west.
Don’t miss next week’s exciting instalment.
But what if we take a less pessimistic view and look at American popular culture? The first thought is of fries, burgers, overweight people, consumerism gone mad, gas-guzzling SUVs, and a small-island mentality.
But… the USA is the world’s largest democracy (or at least, plutocratic quasi-democracy) and has produced some very good things: blue jeans, blues, rock and roll, country music, a love of freedom…
It’s not all bad, but the USA brand is badly damaged at the moment.
Stereotypes are false generalizations. Very different from an entity with an established of behavior and policy. You can judge a nation by its behavior patterns and policies.
when i think of USA i think of them just like canadians who can be a bit full of them selves at times but we’re too scared to insult them 'cause they could kick our asses 
When I hear USA the telephone dial tone pops into my head. This is because I don’t think. I’m very accustomed to this sound.
So what are you, some kind of confused quasi-materialistic commie??
i agree too.
I think i’ll move to aussie-land when i’m older.
I think of a nation built by secret societies, with the ultimate goal being world domination (New World Order). I think of a propaganda and war machine, profitting by the blood shed of innocent people, including their own. I think of a group of ethnocentrics, who force their ways onto others, all in the name of freedom and liberty. I think of a beast under the sea, waiting for the time when it will rear it’s mighty head from the waters and devastate the multitudes. I try not to think much about the U.S.A. these days.
I think of America(ns) as fat people that carry guns, are controlled by probaganda, like irak war, dislike germans and have a real bad general knowledge. I also like what Tim Morin wrote. Still although most Americans that I met meet the mentioned pedjudices they were real friendly people.
Americans come across as fat, lazy, arrogant, patriotic and insular. Except for every single one you ever meet, who happen to be normal size, active, friendly, embracing of other cultures and willing to travel great distances to meet them. Maybe I’ve only met tourists, but I still think there’s something wrong with the way Americans are portrayed in the media.
They do have a stupid president though.
Loose.
Those that travel widely outside the USA are probably a different breed. And if you met them, that means they weren’t just hopping off the tour bus to shoot some quick photos, so those again are a different breed. Of course, if they unicycle, they are a very rare breed indeed.