Great website with pictures of the tire:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=33
Driver's side American
What you're thinking of is PROBABLY the width in millimeters, if the markings are something like 185/60R15.5 (although everything after "185/" might be different in your case, but that's just an example. The "185" indicates the tire width in that instance.
it is considered the highest point on the tire and is typically aligned with the valve stem or if you have a special machine it is aligned with the lowest point on the rim jody goodyear tire and rubber company
The tire marking tells you how much pressure the tire can safely take, and the info on the jamb tell you what the the vehicle should need. The jamb value should be lower than the max on the tire, use that.
Its the weight of the tire!
265 on a tire is the width of the tire in mm
Platinum
peanut butter
375 is the marking for 9 carat gold. Usually vintage European will have this marking.
Where you hang the spare tire.
how much air is in the tire
Non Law Enforcement.