In a sense I can understand Americans who don't want to pay taxes because they don't see where it's going.
We pay somewhat higher marginal tax rates in Europe but know where it's going. We appreciate what we are getting in return.
For our taxes we get free healthcare, good to really good public transport, free or subsidised higher education, whereas you get what? Health care when you're 65 or destitute, national defence, roads, Amtrak (which I love, but it's a very leisurely way of seeing the country)...and I'm struggling here!
Now, clearly, both of those are indicative summaries but I think you get the general idea.
Fact is that Americans should be pissed because their effective tax burden is much higher than Europeans because they also have to pay money to private institutions for services that elsewhere would be serviced by Government - the services where Government is much better at negotiating a price, and where it is much better to pool risk. Health care is a great example - there's a reason why no other industrialised country has gone down the US route - because it's economically inefficient and has worse outcomes.
Even your most committed Libertarian would not argue that each citizen should be responsible for his own street light, his own foreign policy, and building his own roads. Health care and high speed rail are then just extrapolations of that logic.
And yes, I know Americans are more individualist than most, but I would argue that in some cases that individualism (i.e. what's in it for me) is best served by communitarian policies. It's all about balance, which I think has been lost in US dialogue.
Anyway, my thoughts on this are not completely formed, but I'd welcome your view.