Doing Great in America

How can this be true?

Among countries for which we have food security data, the U.S. ranks 30th out of 37.

Our data for the right to food in the U.S. spans 2015 to 2023. The U.S. food score fell slightly during that period, from 81.9% to 81.1%. This means that as the U.S. got wealthier, Americans got hungrier.

Or this?

U.S. health scores have been relatively flat for a quarter century, rising from 79% in 2000 to a high of 82% in 2012. In 2023, it had receded to 80%. The rising scores were likely due to more Americans gaining health insurance following the Affordable Care Act’s rollout. The later decline was caused primarily by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Or this?

The country has been losing ground on work and pay for 25 years. After accounting for how much richer the U.S. has grown, its score fell from about 62% in 2000 to 51% today. This reflects the growth in economic inequality, with the gains in wealth skewing toward the richest Americans.

Or this?

The U.S. scores a 76% on the overall right to education, placing it 20th among 38 OECD countries. It’s behind Japan and the U.K. but ahead of some peers, including Canada and Norway.

Americans are not as well off as people in peer nations – US safety net’s shortfalls show up in global data (The Conversation).

Why is this so? Maybe this is the answer: The American myth always came at someone’s expense. Now, it’s all but collapsed (The Guardian ). What that essay does not quite say is that MAGA is small-minded, small-souled, and mean-spirited, and Donald J. Trump is the hairball they have spewed forth into the world.

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