In anthropology (the study of human beings) Culture is defined as: The sum total of ways of living built up by a group of human beings and transmitted from one generation to another. So American Culture, according to this definition, would essentially be a culture of conquest. From 1493 on America and the Western Hemisphere became the New World and place of expansion for the great sailing nations of Spain, Portugal and Britain. The Europeans, with the development of advanced weaponry, were able to conquer the hunter gatherers of North America and the civilizations of Central and South America. In 1607 the first English settlement in North America was founded and in 1619 the first slaves were traded at Jamestown, although almost 5 million slaves were brought to Brazil during this dark period in history beginning much earlier. However, the single deciding factor which gave the emerging United States the ultimate advantage, was the land. No country on earth has such a wealth of navigable rivers, coastlines protected by oceans, and vast agricultural flatlands. In 1867 with the purchasing of Alaska from Russia and the 1890’s acquiring Hawai’i, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines the culture of conquest continued. Following two world wars, neither fought on American soil, the stage was set that the United States, the nation built on conquest, would become the epitome of a successful sovereign. The USA, unlike many other countries, is a mix of races and ethnic groups and generally expatriates from their former countries. Therefore, the DNA or culture of the US, is this inbred nature of struggling and fighting to get whatever possible to have a so-called, ‘better life!’ Of course, we call it the ‘land of opportunity!’ As the world becomes more connected perhaps the American spirit of conquest can be redirected towards solving issues which confound us like ethnic, racial and generational differences…