This is a brief piece on where the US stands according to global rankings of political and human development, as ranked by the UN, respected NGOs, and journalists. It was written to dispell the myth that the United States is the "greatest" nation on the face of the earth. We are good, but we have room for improvement. 02.10.08.
The U.S. is #1? Well, we are #1 in something...
What I am about to tell you will make some of you angry. I'm going to lay the facts out, plain and clear. I want to show that you, without bias, that the popular American notion of being the best place on earth isn't quite factual. I am a patriot. I want to see us shine. I love our Constitution, our checks and balances, our purple mountains and shining seas. I love our wide open spaces and abundant wildlife. I love our free press and incredible shopping. But let the numbers tell the truth. They are calculations from the most respected social scientists around the world, and some probably connected to America through training. Its time we grew up as a nation. After all, we aren't even 500 yet. Its been a measly 401 years since English settlers founded Jamestown, Virigina. And only 238 since our official start in 1776. So chin up, America. For any personal growth to occur, you need to recognize and acknowledge your flaws. We have a lot of room for improvement, and God willing our time to become a greater USA is now! . But after you read the following, you really might weep....VOTE, WRITE CONGRESS, or RUN FOR OFFICE!
Human Development Index
Let's start with the Human Development Index. HDI is a measuring tool created by the United Nations to provide a comparison bewteen nations in terms of is looking after its own people’s welfare. Surely America is first. Actually, we’re 12th. Those rascally Canadians are #4, and those snobby French are 10th. Are you surprised? Makes you think, doesn’t it? Maybe it has to do with Hurricane Katrina victims, or the fact we have too many working poor who slip through the cracks.
Children
Next, some of the most vulnerable in society. How much our nation’s children face poverty, family relationships, and health. Who’s number #1 in taking care of kids? If you guessed the very liberal Netherlands, you’d be dead on. The US is a pathetic 20th. Twentieth. Canada is 12th , France 16th. Hmmm. I guess American kids eatting "freedom" fries really have the life, eh? Formerly communist Hungary and Czech are higher than the US. Higher!
Corruption
Surveys sent throughout the world to knowledgable insiders create the Transparency.Org Corruption Index global ranking. I find it very compelling and relevant, not to mention fascinating. Any student of democracy will tell you that tyranny and nepotism a happy nation does not make. Ladies and gentlemen, did you know Singapore is tied with Sweden at #4. The US? We’re well behind and dropping at #20. Twenty. Our northern neighbors Canada are tied with Norway at #9. I think its time to ask for some Canuck know-how and get going in the right direction.
Democracy and Peace
For a nation who cries out "We are leaders of the free world! We are the voice of democracy!" as we invade or covertly operate in a soverign nation, unbeknownst to its citizens, we are something of hypocrites. The world does not smile on hypocrites. Our democracy index is 17, behind Germany, which we often verbally throttle for being intolerance incarnate. Our satellite in the Middle East, Israel, ranks at 47 for democracy. And take a deep breath and realize we are at 96 – NINETY SIX – on the Peace Index. NINETY SIX. Did I mention we had really bad foreign policy problems? Yeah. Most of the Middle Eastern and many Muslim nations (Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Tunisia, Morroco, Bahrain, Egypt, Syria, Indonesia, Yemen) are ahead of us on peace. Folks, we are destabilizing the world and making it a much more dangerous and unpredictable place. China and Cuba are 59 and 60, respectively. CHINA. Nucelar superpower China, which threatens its own island of Taiwan, has done more for peace than the United States. It’s a fact.
Prisons
Now, I did mentioned we are #1 in something. We are indeed, far and away #1...in prisons. I’m not talking inmate treatement. I am talking about the percentage of our citizenry incarcerated. Out of every 100,000 Americans, 700 are prisoners. That comes out to 2.1 million prisioners. That’s the entire population of Houston, Texas. Rounding the top five are Russia, with 665 inmates per 100,000, Latvia with 335, Estonia with 330, and Mexico with 150. Canada only has 105 inmates per 100,000, seven times fewer than we have.
Conclusion
Our northern neighbors have a much better reputation for humanity, and maybe we could adopt some of their laws and policies. Its time for change.
SOURCES:
UN Human Development Index
Unicef Report on children
Corrupution Perception Index
Global Peace Index
International Centre for Prision Studies Index