The most accurate measure of how 'civilised' a nation is, IMHO, is the value it places on life, both human and non-human.

The gigantic hard-on the vast majority of Americans get from possession of firearms (and thus the means to take life), the orgasmic delight many seem to take in shooting wild animals and one another, and the obsession with continuing the policy of execution of those convicted of murder (in many cases having already subjected them to a period of incarceration far exceeding that which most muderers would serve in Europe) indicates that, in the USA, life is regarded as very cheap indeed.

Civilised?