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We're Not No. 1

Schwartz said:
The U.S. ranks first in incarceration;
The U.S. ranks 1st in prisoners;
The U.S. ranks 2nd in ignorance;
The U.S. ranks 2nd for approval of drone strikes;

The U.S. ranks 145th in slavery;
The U.S. ranks 101st in peace;
The U.S. ranks 44th in health care efficiency;
The U.S. ranks 19th in national satisfaction;
The U.S. ranks 14th in education.

It is hard to promote positive change when it is not desired. These numbers haven't changed significantly for a decade or so. Our politicians like to talk about Hope, Greatness and Freedom but nobody mentions real problems we have to address. Instead of focusing on purely political issues isn't it better to turn to the quality of life and overall improvement of life in the United States?
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Let me add to your list:

The US ranks 19th in democracy
The US ranks 17th in perceptions of corruption
The US ranks 46th in press freedom
The US ranks 1st in military spending
The US ranks c.12th in per capita GDP
The US ranks 34th by life expectancy
The US ranks 46th by infant mortality rate

A balanced picture is a better picture, no?
 
Redress said:
How do you rank ignorance? Who did you not mention things like military strength, political and social influence, GDP, and a host of other things the U.S. is tops or close to?
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Do any of those really matter to happiness of the average guy on the street? Which is kind of where I think the OP may have been going with this.
 
Schwartz said:
The U.S. ranks first in incarceration;
The U.S. ranks 1st in prisoners;
The U.S. ranks 2nd in ignorance;
The U.S. ranks 2nd for approval of drone strikes;

The U.S. ranks 145th in slavery;
The U.S. ranks 101st in peace;
The U.S. ranks 44th in health care efficiency;
The U.S. ranks 19th in national satisfaction;
The U.S. ranks 14th in education.

It is hard to promote positive change when it is not desired. These numbers haven't changed significantly for a decade or so. Our politicians like to talk about Hope, Greatness and Freedom but nobody mentions real problems we have to address. Instead of focusing on purely political issues isn't it better to turn to the quality of life and overall improvement of life in the United States?
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Every ranking has its logic of course.

The US ranks number 1 in Nobel Prizes.

And I doubt anybody would seriously dispute that the US ranks number 1 in global power and influence.
 
xdangerousxdave said:
What does it mean and how was the democracy measured?
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Check it out for yourself here or via The Economist website.

Yeah, so spending taxpayers money on missiles and bullets is alright? Are you proud of it?
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I think you are making two mistakes here: 1) assuming that quoting the stat suggests I think it's a good thing, I don't, and 2) assuming I'm American. I'm not.
 
LeoVlaming said:
Every ranking has its logic of course.

The US ranks number 1 in Nobel Prizes.

And I doubt anybody would seriously dispute that the US ranks number 1 in global power and influence.
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Absolutely true. However, Nobel Prizes and global power / influence have little influence over Americans' daily life, if any. We are pretty good at certain things, yet get behind OECD countries in others.
I was just saying there is no ground for us to feel exceptional. Education, medical care, corruption, equal opportunities - why don't we concentrate on these issues instead of playing military muscles?
 
Schwartz said:
Absolutely true. However, Nobel Prizes and global power / influence have little influence over Americans' daily life, if any. We are pretty good at certain things, yet get behind OECD countries in others.
I was just saying there is no ground for us to feel exceptional. Education, medical care, corruption, equal opportunities - why don't we concentrate on these issues instead of playing military muscles?
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Do you think more students from other OECD countries come to study in the US or the other way round? Do you think more people rom other OECD countries come to get health care in the US or the other way round.

Seriously, I'm not trying to argue that the US is perfect. Nothing human is. And certainly there are many challenges still in the US. But your take is really a bit too one-sided. try to get out a bit more in the World.
 
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