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Per capita, we aren't the richest country in the world. http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2015/06/24/what-is-the-richest-country-in-the-world-hint-it-2.asp
by bmelton 11y ago
Per capita, we aren't the richest country in the world.
http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2015/06/24/what-is-the-richest-country-in-the-world-hint-it-2.aspx http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2015/06/24/what-is-the...
- learc83 11y agoThat's a ridiculous article. It conveniently avoids overall GDP, by which the US is the richest in the world. In the first comparison they use GDP per capita, and in the second they use overall reserve currency? Then they use natural resources, but don't factor overall ability to exploit said resources. They're just picking metrics that don't favor the US.
- bmelton 11y agoBut when we're talking about redistribution to individuals, GDP is a less good metric than GDP per capita. I agree that it dances around GDP, but I disagree that it is somehow the trump metric that makes everything work. On balance, we have less cash per resident than do countries with higher per capita GDP.
- grecy 11y agoOK then, you're the 10th riches by most PPP measures [1] So you still outrank the vast majority of Developed countries, but universal healthcare is too difficult? [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_%28PPP%29_per_capita https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_%28PP...
- bmelton 11y agoI did not say that universal healthcare was too difficult.
- learc83 11y agoYes that's true. So the 9 countries who have higher GDP's per capita (PPP, although nominal is similar) have more money to distribute per person. However, those nine countries have a few million people each, so the US has more money per person than 99% of the world.