Most Americans are very uptight. If an American is a member of the dependent class he or she is uptight about his or her dependence and lack of human autonomy.
If an American is a member of the productive class he or she is uptight about the transformation of America into an authoritarian country after 2001.
In either event people in NEW AMERIKA really shouldn't call themselves Americans because they are not the successors of the Old Americans. It's like Byzantine Greeks calling themselves Noble Romans.
Speaking for the states of Washington, Oregon, California and Nevada, I can say that I've found none of the folks there to be up tight. Perhaps that is an eastern trait!