GDP per capita includes public spending, but (I'm guessing here) may not include a weighting for what people value. So America's epic military budget counts tow

GDP per capita includes public spending, but (I'm guessing here) may not include a weighting for what people value. So America's epic military budget counts towards that figure, but the comparison with (eg) universal healthcare elsewhere is dollar for dollar. Which is to say, GDP per capita does not reflect public values, only public spending.