We have capitalism here in Europe too, and don’t get me started about the work culture in Japan.
I think there’s something else in the US. It’s a lack of cultural diversity. Yes, the country is a mixing pot of cultures, technically speaking - but it’s also kinda not. US mainstream media (I don’t mean news, I mean games, movies, etc) in general is quite homogenized. It’s also a huge export, so of course people in other countries get influenced by a lot of it too, but we have a lot of our own culture, which doesn’t much influence the US, but influences us.
I blame the death of mid-budget movies for the death of American media diversity. Which of course is largely due to Netflix et al. So capitalism is still the root cause, but it’s also the extreme cultural dominance of the US. Whereas here in Europe most movies and TV shows get made with the expectation that they’ll be watched by people of the country where it’s made, so it can afford to be jankier, American media has the expectation of being consumed around the world - so it’s a bit more generic and polished.
vaultdweller013@sh.itjust.works 23 hours ago
There’s also the factor of the death or at least severe weakening of regional cultures, think your old Californian desert, Appalachian, or Old Boston cultures. A lot of these were weakened or even wiped out by the Great depression, Dust Bowl, and post war migrations, meaning that even the stronger of these more regional cultures can barely flex even in their own areas.
While it’s obviously misguided there is a reason rural folks are so conservative, the source isn’t necessarily political it’s because they recognize that their culture is weakening to the mainstream Pan American culture but assume it’s political since they don’t really have the language to figure out otherwise.