While it is not necessarily true that those of us in present company are easily distracted, I would say that a goodly portion of Americans are indeed easily distracted. The fact that American Idol continues to draw audiences can be nothing short of proof.
Sadly, those of us here can rarely be looked at as "typical Americans" no matter how we would like to think of ourselves as such. When I want to find out what a "typical American" thinks about any given subject, I have always in the past gone to my sister. A more lovable, intelligent person, you couldn't find. Married for 16 years to the same man, mother of two, secretary-type with a penchant for organizing others. She's a suburban dweller/white flighter who used to love to send forwards of videos of babies laughing. Her husband is a journeyman electrician. She drives a mini-van. She loves her some Brad Pitt news and/or gossip.
Perfect middle of the road, take no bullshit, polite as hell, help a brother out kind of woman that you want to respect.
So, after 9.11, when I, like all Americans, was knocked off balance and thought that the world would absolutely be open to my point of view on the world's issues (like all of us), started talking about politics and religion and realities versus perceptions at various and sundry familial gatherings, my typical-American-type sister considered me to be something of a radical. (Imagine!)
Though some of things I told her made no sense to her, she listened usually. When I told her Osama bin Laden's family was friends with the Bush's, she laughed. When I told her Osama bin Laden was trained by the CIA back in the day so he could fight against the Russians, she yelled, "NUH-uh!" When I told her that Don Rumsfeld actually sold weapons and in his a picture shaking hands with Saddam Hussein, she didn't believe it till I showed it to her.
But being a smart American like she is, she set out to disprove my "wacky" assertions only to be totally amazed and somewhat demoralized when she found them all to be true.
I often would ask her about generalities like the economy and the "war" and Howard Dean (who she loved but loved Edwards more [I think because he was so handsome]). She would inevitably state whatever slant the evening news or MSN or CNN were handing out.
When the stuff was going around about how so many Americans believed that Saddam Hussein was somehow behind 9.11, she called me one day to ask me about it. "What's the stupid stuff about Saddam being behind 9.11?" I said slyly, "That's pretty crazy, huh? Why are so many people thinking that, I wonder?"
"Probably because Bush and them all went around before the war with Iraq saying that they didn't want the smoking gun to be a mushroom, I bet."
I was so proud.
She had looked beyond the headlines and considered the evidence rather than the easy answers.
Sadly, though, I can never get a "typical American" answer out of her now. She's informed and too savvy for the slicksters to spoonfeed now.