Mystery ...

This is the country that has given the world the car, Seinfeld, a man or two on the moon, the iPod and the breakfast burrito.

So how come it still clings to the arcane, cumbersome and just plain ridiculous imperial system?

Dave has red-wine stains all over a white shirt, and the directions for the pre-wash stain remover suggest making a paste by adding 'one scoop to 16 oz' of water, or a soaking solution by mixing 'two scoops in one gallon'. So I get my bucket, and it's marked off in 'quarts'.

Why have they put up with such silliness for so long?

Even Mexico - even Canada! - is metric the instant you're across the border.