DisUnited States

‘We’re No. 28! And Dropping!’: A measure of social progress finds that the quality of life has dropped in America over the last decade, even as it has risen almost everywhere else.

The United States, despite its immense [unequal] wealth, military power and [rapidly waning] cultural influence, ranks 28th — having slipped from (only) 19th in 2011. The index now puts the United States behind significantly poorer countries, including Estonia, Czech Republic, Cyprus and Greece.
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The United States ranks No. 1 in the world in quality of universities [inaccurate, imo*], but No. 91 in access to quality basic education. The U.S. leads the world in medical technology, yet we are No. 97 in access to quality health care.

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The Social Progress Index finds that Americans have health statistics similar to those of people in Chile, Jordan and Albania, while kids in the United States get an education roughly on par with what children get in Uzbekistan and Mongolia. A majority of countries have lower homicide rates, and most other advanced countries have lower traffic fatality rates and better sanitation and internet access.

The United States has high levels of early marriage — most states still allow child marriage in some circumstances [religionist pedophilia] — and lags in sharing political power equally among all citizens. America ranks a shameful No. 100 in discrimination against minorities.

The data for the latest index predates COVID-19, which has had a disproportionate impact on the United States and seems likely to exacerbate the slide in America’s standing. One new study suggests that in the United States, symptoms of depression have risen threefold since the pandemic began — and poor mental health is associated with other risk factors for well-being.

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[edited for accuracy] The decline of the United States over the last decade in this index — more than any country in the world — is a reminder that we Americans face structural problems that predate UNpresident Crook-in-Chief and that festered under leaders of both parties. Putin's Puppet is a symptom of this larger malaise, and also a cause of its acceleration.

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That’s why this is an election like that of 1932. That was the year American voters decisively rejected Herbert Hoover’s passivity and gave Franklin Roosevelt an electoral mandate — including a flipped Senate — that laid the groundwork for the New Deal and the modern middle class. But first we need to acknowledge the reality that we are on the wrong track.

We Americans like to say “We’re No. 1.” But the new data suggest that we should be chanting, “We’re No. 28! And dropping!”

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/09/opinion/united-states-social-progress.html .

United States Rank 28 .... "Great"? No way.

Dimensions
BASIC HUMAN NEEDS 92.08
FOUNDATIONS OF WELLBEING 83.14
OPPORTUNITY 81.89

Highest component scores
Water and Sanitation 98.97
Shelter 97.93
Nutrition and Basic Medical Care 97.61 (no mention of too-expensive for most)
Access to Information and Communications 93.30
Access to Basic Knowledge 92.42 (no mention of prohibitively expensive, generally low quality Higher Education)

Lowest component scores
Inclusiveness 61.24
Environmental Quality 72.18
Personal Safety 73.82
Health and Wellness 74.66
Personal Freedom and Choice 84.96

https://www.socialprogress.org/?code=USA .

I suppose that arrogant Americans can soothe themselves with the fact that China ranked #100.

Great? Normay [sic] Known as Norway to those who aren't ignorant orange bullies.

* US universities rank high on recent educational rankings because their research product (publications, citations) has historically been boosted by huge spending and high proportions of foreign academics. This is already changing, as European universities produce an increasing portion of progress.