There is certainly that element - particularly among the politicians and fundamentalists. They are a rich, powerful minority that has full access to the media and government. For the more common people, they are largely ignored, avoided, and dismissed. Maybe dismissed too much. Because they tend to be politically active (locally and nationally) they populate and influence the government. Many people, particularly young people, just don't give a f--- about such things, to be frank. They usually don't even know what's going on in politics and government. "Politics is boring". What they do know comes from short little sound bites on the news. That is changing a bit as people are realizing it does affect them. So there is a growing liberal base, but it is largely invisible in the corporate media.

I can believe that. One impression I get from speaking with people around the world - they imagine the US to be more homogenous than it is. The US is physically very large - over 2000 miles wide. The states are probably more varied than some of the countries of Europe, in terms of cultures. As you go into various areas the social 'rules' can change dramatically. You also have cultures not based on area, such as internet cultures. The big thing now is text messaging on cell phones. Teenagers will spend hours TMing people around the country - they send thousands and thousands of them. Often they are more involved in that world than in the world around them, which they ignore as much as possible. It's hard to even have a face-to-face conversation with them - they keep getting interrupted with an incoming TM and will put YOU on hold.

So the US is quite a mix. There are the mega-churches like you describe. I'm in Colorado and there are some of these not far from me in Denver and Colorado Springs. But the most I've seen of such people is occasionally being handed a flyer at an arena event, and their obvious influence in elections. But if you go an hour north into Boulder, you're in the hippie crowd. I was there the other day and some kids asked me and my friend if we wanted to make love with them in the street. Turns out they were writing the word "LOVE" with coins on the sidewalk, and wanted us to add to it. That's Boulder in a snapshot.

And not all the subcultures are represented in the media, movies, etc. In fact some don't want to be - they keep very much to themselves.

I think the average American couldn't give a rat's ass about evolution - they're FAR more interested in sports and movies. The whole big creation debate is mostly a corporate and fundamentalist creation - people yap about it in the media, and people who actually read the news will talk about it on the internet, but a guy on the street just doesn't care. He'd probably think you were nuts if you asked him what he thought, if he even knew what you were referring to.

If you're a politician no one will give it a second thought - or even really hear it. In any other context they'll realize you're 'religious' and dismiss it as that. (In general.)

As for Europe - that is where the REAL religions and really religious people are. It's where the pope lives! The big cathedrals. Most Americans probably think Europeans are far more religious than Americans.