"... I know that controls are built to reflect the side of the road...my point is that we Americans get to shift and do all those other things with the right hand, which is a bit easier for 'most' people. You have centuries of tradition, and no doubt one can do it all either way, with practice ..."
Well that certainly explains a lot about Americans' driving ... I'll stick to using my dominant right hand to steer ... and quite successfully using my left for minor chores like gearchanging - or occasional fiddling with radios, sound gear &c!
And, after an education entirely based on foolish (or really - in their intent to swindle the poorer classes - plain dishonest) Imperial measurements ... when I came to work at the technical end of a precise medium - photography, I quickly concluded that anyone who wanted to muddle his way through with Imperial measurements was a fool not worth employing ... or even talking to.