People in Norway enjoy a higher standard of living than most Americans. Can Norway become a military superpower? have an ambitious space program? probably not.

People in Norway enjoy a higher standard of living than most Americans. Can Norway become a military superpower? have an ambitious space program? probably not. The US is #1 in military spending. The US is also #1 in healthcare spending by a large margin, but the additional spending does not translate into better health benefits. Comparing countries through spending can be very misleading. India's space agency (ISRO) sent a mission to Mars for $73 million USDs (substantially cheaper than an equivalent NASA mission) while a large portion of their population live in precarious conditions. The "developed country" denomination is useful to get an idea of a country's living standard, but can be misleading in other contexts.