By Eva Popescu
The economic situation of a country is a pivotal indicator of its wealth, social development, internal living conditions and general well-being of its mass population. The United States of America represent the most powerful economy of the world nowadays. In fact, America’s GDP represents over 26% of the worldwide, total economic output. Moreover, the American population is among the wealthiest in the world: its GDP per capita has been dramatically rising since 1960, reaching approximately 62 000 $ in 2018, and remaining highly superior to the same figure of other major economies, such as The United Kingdom or Canada.
Furthermore, thanks to the tremendous development present in the industrial and technological fields (not exclusively), the maximum number of billionaires from the entire world, is reached in the USA. To be more precise, the technological industry by itself produces sufficient income to compare America to numerous European countries (in terms of total economic output). However, this field is strongly threatened by rising Asian economies, such as China, which have known an exponential increase in research and discoveries within applied sciences, based on technological improvement. Despite the profit-making industries, the USA admit an enhancement is needed in sectors such as agriculture, and an increase should be seen in the export ratio of natural resources.
The foundation of the US economy relies on a capitalist ideology, which implies that the privatization of all goods and services is the basis of growth in America. In fact, American private companies have generated enormous profits, both locally and internationally. Speaking of the technology sector, it is for instance the case of Apple (technological multinational giant, founded by Steve Jobs and currently legally represented by Tim Cook, as the CEO of the enterprise), company which owns approximately 12,5% of the market share (of the goods it provides) worldwide and that figure rises to 40% in the USA. The American government itself buys needed goods from private companies. Further, the American government is directly involved into only the health sector and transportation industry. This capitalist ideology has been a success in ensuring an adequate flow of income and a proper utilization of natural resources.
At this date, major income producing areas, such as technology, offer employment opportunities for highly educated individuals. Therefore, individuals who did not pursue higher education for instance, have trouble finding a job. This leads to a high unemployment rate, which reaches 6,5% (November 2020). This number has reached its peak in May 2020, arriving at more than 14% of the available labor force (impacted by the Covid pandemic).
Despite its numerous economic assets, America presents multiple flows, which have a negative impact on its population foundations of wellbeing. In a study conducted by socialprogress.org, the USA appear as being underperforming in the health and wellness sector, in acceptance of minorities and in personal safety.
Taking a closer look to the health and wellness section, we observe that the life expectancy in America is not within the expected range. Even more, the number of premature deaths remains dramatically high, reaching 28 219 per 100 000 births. This could be explained by the insufficient access to essential medical services as well as to quality healthcare that Americans experience. Healthcare facilities are largely both owned and managed by private businesses. As a government, the USA only spends around 17% of its GDP on health care. Therefore, medical care is often very expensive in the USA, making it less accessible to the mass public, and this explains the lack of access to performant medical services that the population experiences.
With regards to inclusiveness, we should not forget that episodes of discrimination and violence against minorities still occur in the USA. The source mentioned previously ranks the United States on the 100 place, out of a total of 163 countries, in this category. Further, the equality of political power by socioeconomic position can, at this date, still not be considered granted in the USA.
When it comes to personal safety, more than half of USA residents (58%) state that their personal safety is not only a cause of concern to them, but a worry, a fear. This is especially the case in Alabama, Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Nevada, New York and Tennessee (according to globenewswire.com). Advocates of the opposed point of view, state that a major gap is perceived between the fear of Americans and the actual likelihood of being a victim of violent crime or property damage, which according to them is dramatically inferior to the rate of individuals worried about these issues. Statistics show that out of 100 000 individuals, 4.96 are homicide victims and 12.20 are traffic deaths victims. Moreover, with 1 meaning very low and 5 being high, socialprogress.org states that the perceived criminality rate in the USA is equal to 3, which remains a weakness of this country.
Thus, the United States of America have the strongest economy in the world nowadays but are in need of improvement in sectors such as their healthcare system or personal safety.
hARTS magazine 