Just to address your first point - You can't visit a major American city with out finding an IKEA or even two. The world globalized, it didn't americanize.
Besides, McDonald's are everywhere in Germany. I even ate at one at Checkpoint Charlie. An obvious triumph over communism :-)
I'm sure there is an IKEA around here somewhere, but I don't know where. I know where all the McD's within 10 miles are!