What does arrogance have to do with creating motor vehicle laws? Granted I have never driven in Aust., but I have in many other foreign countries, and truth be told, American driving is usually a much less nerve racking experience. Try S Korea... good thing our "arrogance" prevented us from adopting their motor vehicle laws.
All in all, I don't believe arrogance has any factor in motor vehicle laws of the US. More than likely it is government attempting to protect us from ourselves again. In any case, you should be proud of america and everything she stands for. Oh yeah, I think the rest of the world is just a little jealous of what america has to offer and therefor the "hatred" is spawned (many people find ways to hate or dislike things they can't have, it's their way of coping with their situation)... Otherwise, would we have so many immigrants (both legal and illegal) at or within our borders? Trust me, I have spent many nights in foreign places, and you just aren't going to get it any better than in the United States.
BTW... Go with the US spec. and pay for the light kit.