Shipping and Default Country at Checkout

A couple of questions:

1) Is there really no way to add item weight in ounces for advanced shipping? I sell CDs and shirts and they don't weigh pounds.

2) Is there any way to have no default country set at checkout, so that the shipping rate isn't showing right away? Shipping rates from the US to the rest of the world are horrible. I don't love that it shows my shipping within the US is only $5 and then they put their country in and it's a crazy difference.