The Myth of American Greatness
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 Seed Newsvine |
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In typical fashion Americans would rather believe their propaganda than a nasty thing called facts or evidence. Americans need a little reality check. By only one standard can the United States claim a leadership position. In per capita GDP the United States ranks second, behind only tiny Luxemburg. Unfortunately, the United States also ranks 72nd in equality, meaning that per capita GDP is heavily skewed toward a small wealthy minority. By percentage of people in poverty and the size of the middle class, the United States does not fare very well.
Migration to the United States is definite evidence that America is the place everyone wants to live. By this measure it is better than Mexico, Taiwan, the Philippines, India, Vietnam, El Salvador, Korea, and the Dominican Republic, because this is where the migration is coming from. Legal immigrants are poorly educated and generally not very wealthy. Only 27% of the migrants have a college degree and per capita income among immigrants is 25% less than the average. Compared to 1970 the people coming to America (legally) are less educated and poorer. Compared to Mexico America truly is great.
By almost all other standards the U.S. rankings do not stand up to other industrialized nations. There isn't a developed nation other than Turkey more unequal than the United States. In a comparison of 13 countries based on 16 health indicators, the U.S. ranked on average 12th. According to the World Health Report, of the 191 countries in the study, the U.S. spent the highest percentage (13.7%) of its Gross Domestic Product on health care but still managed only to achieve an overall ranking of 37. In education, UNICEF reported the United States came in 18th out of 24 nations when the results from five different international educational studies were combined into a composite average ranking. In infant mortality the United States came in 41st; life expectancy, 48th; prison population, second to last; press freedom index, 17th. The U.S. did rank first in total external debt. This means that other countries are making money off the U.S. while the U.S. sinks a bit lower.
The extent of American ignorance regarding their own position in the world is astounding. Thank God the corporate media is available to keep the propaganda machine going. Otherwise, Americans might realize that the rest of the industrialized world is looking down, not up at them.
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