"Can I get..."

'Friends', the frankly 'vomit-inducing' American TV programme, has a lot to answer for. The main gripe being the introduction of "can i get..." into the British/English vocabulary, "can i get a pint of...", "can i get a packet of crisps" etc etc etc
It drives me bloody crazy, so much so that I can quite reguarly be heard muttering obscenities whenever I hear it used.
If you ask to get a pint, by any reasoning, you're asking to come (a)round to the other side of the counter and pour it yourself. Surely it should be "can/may i have" or "I would like", "can i get" is and sounds rude, pushy and self-centered.
Maybe it's indicative of the dumd-downed, US dominated popular-culture that is all pervasive nowadays!