Ameriscot, I totaly agree with your assessment about American materialism, which is something that jars me whenever I visit the US. There's something frenzied about it, something that reminds one of illness or addiction. I see an aspect of that mindset creeping into the UK, by way of London, and I'm sure it's come from the US, which makes me a little sad.
And I, too, get annoyed with American expats who have made up their mind, the second they set foot in the UK, that everything is better in America. Some things probably do work better in America, but lots of things work better in the UK, and most of it falls into a grey area that's a matter of opinion. For example, I used to feel irritated by the dearth of take-away/ food delivery in London. In New York, you can order any kind of food, anytime of the day or night, and it arrives instantly, and you need never cook if you don't feel like it. But I gradually came to discover that the NYC way isn't necessarily "better." I think that being forced to cook most nights during the past 6.5 years I've lived in London, has made me a better cook and made me learn how to think ahead and be ultra organized about my shopping. I've also had to learn how to wing it on few ingredients. And I've probably eaten more healthfully as a result, too. BUT it would have been handy to have readily accessible (& cheap) food delivery from nearby restaurants during both of my pregnancies, when I had diabolical morning sickness but dh & the kids still had to eat.
Anyway, this is all a huge digression from Cod's original question.