Reply #18: "All politics is local" - Tip O'neil - True in Germany, true here.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

Most Americans don't think about what doesn't affect them personally. They get upset and motivated when they lose their jobs, their kid's schools shut down, their taxes go up, their kid comes home in a bodybag, or they discover they can no longer afford to by the latest shiney toy advertised on the tube.

I give you as evidence that, in 2004, almost 40% of the electorate didn't bother to vote, and of those that did, half of them (approximately) voted for the Boob. And, that was the highest turnout since 1968 when a similar electorate overwhelmingly voted for a criminal who was killing their kids.