Yeah, luck plays a part too. Saudi Arabia got lucky with oil, without which it was just warring desert tribes. I happened to see pictures of UAE Sheikhs before

Yeah, luck plays a part too. Saudi Arabia got lucky with oil, without which it was just warring desert tribes. I happened to see pictures of UAE Sheikhs before the discovery of oil, and they were not very royal, to say the least. Canada has a ton of natural resources, they ought to be wealthy.