United States Falls out of Top Ten Most Prosperous Nations

By on November 5, 2012 in News 23

Bye bye prosperity, hello austerity: The United States is no longer among the top ten most prosperous nations, falling from number six in 2008 to number 12 this year.

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  • Atticus

    “According to the study, overall prosperity in Europe has increased …” [as a result of imposing corrective austerity measures.]

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/31/worlds-most-prosperous-county-2012_n_2049725.html

    “Austerity” is not the opposite of “prosperity.” Poverty is the opposite of prosperity. We’re headed to poverty. We should wish we were headed toward austerity.

    • alizardx

      Still waiting for your explanation of how austerity benefits the masses. Preferably without quotes from Ayn Rand. Also note that Scandinavia topped the index. You want “austerity”, move to Greece and report to us what is going on around you.

  • http://twitter.com/TedHeistman Ted Heistman

    Looks like everything is going according to plan then…

  • alizardx

    For those who don’t have patience for video, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legatum_Prosperity_Index .

    Austerity aka neoliberal centrist excuse for improved upward wealth transfer is precisely what knocked the US out of the top 10. You may have noticed that by and large, the predictors for what puts a nation into the top 10 is redistributionist taxation spent on infrastructure and social programs, plus heavily exploited fossil fuel extractable resources, though not all nations on the list share both characteristics.

    This should be a wakeup call for Americans, but this isn’t a message the legacy media owned by the people this wealth is being transferred to is going to push.

    • http://twitter.com/TedHeistman Ted Heistman

      ..or you could drink two pots of coffee/do a line of coke and try to read Foreign Affairs without falling asleep. The info is in there, you just have to get through a lot of Jargon.

      • alizardx

        Foreign Affairs, The Economist, Naked Capitalism on a good day…

    • Atticus

      Yes, of course, that’s why Belgium, France and Spain are all ranked lower than the U.S. and Ireland and the Netherlands – recently headlined by their move toward austerity budgets – have surpassed the U.S. LOL.

      • alizardx

        Wondered if anyone would spot Ireland… and wonder about the methodology (which is posted). Also note my comment regarding heavily exploited fossil fuel extractable resources.

        That said, if you think that upward transfer of wealth is a good thing for anyone but the recipients, and if you favor this and are not wealthy, you are invited to explain why you think “trickle down” is good for you personally.

        • http://twitter.com/TedHeistman Ted Heistman

          You know, its hard to administer this transfer of wealth using only the top 1/10 or 1% that iswhere I think they will go wrong.

          • alizardx

            Actually, administering upward transfer of wealth is a large part of the US economy… like customer service at a bank when one is discussing past-due payments on a credit card or mortgage. That employee is not part of the 1%, I’m talking about those who benefit directly. The most profitable activity of the elite is the creation of nonproductive debt. You’ve read David Graber’s book Debt?

          • http://twitter.com/TedHeistman Ted Heistman

            So you are saying that there is nothing anyone can do and no one in the 99.9 percent will ever get wise but will rather continual to gleefully shunt money up to the top? Its just a perfect plan these elites have that can never fail?

            Because I am saying its a doomed plan.

          • alizardx

            The superwealthy think they can do this and that the consequences will happen to everybody but them.

            I think it’s a solvable problem. Did not say I know how to solve it.

    • http://twitter.com/TedHeistman Ted Heistman
      • emperorreagan

        That is a huge change. I the dudes at the IMF don’t like seeing the actual results of their “medicine” in their own backyards. When it was wrecking South & Central America, though, it was all cool.

        • http://twitter.com/TedHeistman Ted Heistman

          True dat…

        • alizardx

          Austerity undermines social stability, and that is NOT something any sane person wants to see in one’s own back yard.

  • BuzzCoastin

    considering that this is an elite generated report
    with a lot of dubious sources and information
    it’s hard to fathom where they’d like to steer the herd with this report
    maybe it’s just a fear psyop & an excuse for wage reductions

    but one thing is certain
    the measurement of prosperity is a little too 19th century to be of real value today
    even the poorest person in America
    could be middle class in a few developing countries

    I may not like the government of Der Homeland
    but the access to opportunities and resources is far greater in the US
    than in any country I’ve lived in, developed or undeveloped
    and it’s far easier to escape the US system within the US
    than in any country I’ve lived in

  • http://jimicowan.tumblr.com/ james cowan

    At least we’re still #1 at war! ‘merka, bitches!

  • assron

    check the source – it came from someones mouth or asshole parts

  • emperorreagan

    No reason to use faggot as a pejorative.

    Look at the bright side – trolls can just vote down a comment and you never have to see their drivel.

  • I-ching

    Now you are getting paranoid, the counter-trolling is working . Maybe people just didn’t like your comment because it implied a conspiracy to bring america down, most people dislike conspiracies here, even if they are brought up in articles, its usually just for kicks and filler discussion.Being homophobic and rude won’t make you well liked on this site as we have a prominent well liked contributor who prefers an alternative sexual life style and many others. You flood every article posted with your multiple threads, not showing complete understanding of any subject while forcefully trying to make your erroneous statements correct, as if you were some kind of defense lawyer and your life depended on it, its way too extreme, nothing extreme is true or influences people effectively. Are you lonely ? Is that why you are trying to get so much attention by spamming the forum? Maybe its time to move on with your muscle picture to some dating site, where other lonely try to get exposure.

    “The wanderer who is modest and generous in spirit always has a resting place and the allegiance of steadfast friends. In contrast, the wanderer who is meddlesome and egotistical quickly loses his resting place” Maybe you should consult the I-ching before you drop more nonsense, just a tip.

  • Calypso_1

    Tony Wright’s book was describing the lowering of base sexual drive and attaining extended sexual bliss.

    Why should someone trying to lower libido deserve an insult anyway? That is a goal of many spiritual traditions.

  • http://twitter.com/TedHeistman Ted Heistman

    No its not. That’s like saying sublimation is that same thing as castration.