I dont know about the friendliest, kindest, and most generous people in the world, but from my experience they have adopted an extremely fake behaviour and quite distant towards non-Americans at first that it makes us see them as weird. I would attribute this behaviour to the fact that Americans are usually terrified of the idea of offending someone and their political correctness forces them to exhibit this fake attitude which is not really their own.
Personally I always do them a favour and break the ice first so that they can feel comfortable and open up, and only once that happens u get to see the real nature of Americans as friendly, kind, and generous.
With regards to Switzerland, that's absolutely true. I constantly experience passive xenophobia even from Swiss peasants cattle breeders towards me and my Albanian friends. Most of the cases end up making great jokes to tell around as we've had people tell us "How can you go to this school if you're Albanian?", "Where do your parents get the money to pay for it?", "Are you really Albanians because you're not behaving or looking like one", "You are of mixed origins, right?", and the famous 'out of nothing' statement "I dont hate Albanians by the way and very open minded". And as soon as u show some kindness or open mindedness, they find the perfect terrain to express their xenophobia and u have to get rude and straightforward to shut them up.
Again not everyone is like that but its indeed extreme and I don't feel hurt about it because they have the same attitude towards Italians, French and Germans, so you could imagine how low are my expectations to be accepted with open arms
You're misreading them I think. There's nothing fake about it; they're genuinely open, friendly, and kind. It's just than in situations with people from other countries they're not as comfortable with it as Europeans would be, because they don't have the experience. Of course, there are nasty people everywhere, but I'm talking about the average person. However, I will admit the friendships here are not as intense as they might be in some European countries. Part of that is genetics, I think, and part of it is the mobility of American society.
If you're talking about superficial "politeness", it depends on the region, in my experience. People are exquisitely polite in the south, and very polite in the midwest and on the west coast. The Northeast and especially New York have a reputation for not being very polite, and it's true to a certain extent. Part of that is because of the pace of life and work here. People have no time to suffer fools gladly, so they'll honk their horn or yell at you to get your car out of the way. In some ways, though, I appreciate the directness here; there's none of that fake politeness where you know they think you're a jerk, but they're just not saying it!
I also appreciate that they make no class distinctions. If Sting is walking down the street, workers are very liable to yell out "Heh Sting, how ya doin?" At the same time, if something goes wrong, they're right there, and they're very welcoming to newcomers. When I moved into this house, every woman on the block and even further away brought a dessert or dish of food. One neighbor invited us out to dinner; another to an even at the local pool club. A woman came around from the so-called "Newcomers Club". She had lists of stores, clubs, information on the schools, the libraries, and automatic membership in this club of people newly moved into the area who met for cocktails, brunch, etc. She also gave me information about a Working Women's Club, book clubs, the local churches etc. It was a lifesaver, because I didn't know a soul and my family was a three hour drive away. I don't know, you guys tell me, but is there anything remotely like that in Europe? I know for sure from people who were sent to London to work that it takes ages to make friends.
DuPidh:So is the conversation about white Americans and their European cousins? If it is so then I would say culturally there is not much difference except the fact that European cultures pivot around ethnicity, american culture pivot around being cosmopolitan. If other races are included then I am not sure you can say Americans are generous or kind! Other words America as a whole is a reflection of its racial and ethnic concentrations. If you have in mind white culture as a dominant culture and ignore other cultures already present then ok I would support your observation. To clarify myself: have you heard a rich black person, or rich Indian person citizen, of America donating to a school or other charities?
Where on earth do you get these ideas? Are you sure you live here? I live right outside a very mutlti-ethnic city and encounter African Americans and Hispanics every single day, and I can say I think they're even friendlier on average than white Americans, certainly than white Americans in places like the mid-west. With Hispanics perhaps it's from their Southern European ancestry. With blacks perhaps it's also just part of their make-up, but I've thought about it over the years and perhaps it's also because they also reacting to the fact that a white American is treating them "normally", like a normal human being. Often, in my experience, you get what you put out. I think I put out genuine interest and good will, and that's usually what I get back.
As to charitable giving, I looked it up.
Your perception is incorrect. They give more compared to what they have:
http://thegrio.com/2012/01/11/african-americans-are-more-charitable-than-other-races-report-says/
http://www.theroot.com/photos/black_philanthropists_12_top_givers/#slide-1
I'd say the groups that lag behind in community involvement, charitable giving, etc. are Indians and East Asians, but especially East Asians. They're moving into my neighborhood lately, but they really aren't getting in the flow of things. The Indians are better. The mothers are starting to get involved in the schools, so maybe it will change with time.