Tag: The United States Of America
A Country Founded By Geniuses But Run By Idiots
If you can get arrested for hunting or fishing without a license, but not for entering and remaining in the country illegally — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If you have to get your parents’ permission to go on a field trip or to take an aspirin in school, but not to get an abortion — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If you MUST show your identification to board an airplane, cash a check, buy liquor, or check out a library book and rent a video, but not to vote for who runs the government — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If the government wants to prevent stable, law-abiding citizens from owning gun magazines that hold more than ten rounds, but gives twenty F-16 fighter jets to the crazy new leaders in Egypt — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If, in the nation’s largest city, you can buy two 16-ounce sodas, but not one 24-ounce soda, because 24-ounces of a sugary drink might make you fat — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If an 80-year-old woman or a three-year-old girl who is confined to a wheelchair can be strip-searched by the TSA at the airport, but a woman in a burka or a hijab is only subject to having her neck and head searched — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If your government believes that the best way to eradicate trillions of dollars of debt is to spend trillions more — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If a seven-year-old boy can be thrown out of school for saying his teacher is “cute,” but hosting a sexual exploration or diversity class in grade school is perfectly acceptable — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If hard work and success are met with higher taxes and more government regulation and intrusion, while not working is rewarded with Food Stamps, WIC checks, Medicaid benefits, subsidized housing, and free cell phones — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If the government’s plan for getting people back to work is to provide incentives for not working, by granting 99 weeks of unemployment checks, without any requirement to prove that gainful employment was diligently sought, but couldn’t be found — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If you pay your mortgage faithfully, denying yourself the newest big-screen TV, while your neighbor buys iPhones, time shares, a wall-sized do-it-all plasma screen TV and new cars, and the government forgives his debt when he defaults on his mortgage — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If being stripped of your Constitutional right to defend yourself makes you more “safe” according to the government — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
What a country!
How State Economies Rank Compared To Other Nations
This amazing map shows just how really big the U.S. economy is!
From The Washington Post:
The American economy is really big. That’s the takeaway of this fascinating map of the United States from Mark Perry, an economist who runs the Carpe Diem blog at the American Enterprise Institute.
The map, which has been around for a while, has a lot of explanatory power when it comes to America’s position in the global economy. For each state, Perry finds a country that had a roughly similarly sized economy in 2013.
The results are pretty stunning: California, America’s most economically powerful state, has a gross domestic product roughly the size of Brazil’s. Texas pumps out around the same GDP as Australia. Ohio’s economy is as big as Sweden’s, while New York’s economy is similar to Spain’s.
The smaller states are interesting, too: Connecticut’s GDP is roughly similar to Greece, while Utah is on par with Bangladesh. Alaska’s GDP is about the same size as the tiny European country of Luxembourg.
Altogether, the map drives home just how massive the U.S. economy really is. U.S. GDP was about $17.4 trillion in 2014, followed by China with $10.4 trillion. (It’s worth noting that many of China’s provinces are the same size as country economies as well.)
Other countries trailed much further behind the United States and China in 2014: Japan ($4.6 trillion), Germany ($3.9 trillion), Britain ($2.9 trillion), France ($2.8 trillion), India ($2.0 trillion), then finally Brazil ($2.3 trillion).
These rankings are based on nominal GDP and don’t take into account differences in the cost of living around the world. GDP can also be measured on a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis, which takes into account the cost of living and inflation. Economists see this practice as a better way to capture standards of living around the world — the idea being that, if certain goods and services are very cheap in your country, you can have a high standard of living even if you don’t make a lot of money.
On this basis, China’s economy is a lot closer to the U.S. economy in size. According to IMF figures, China’s PPP-adjusted GDP was $17.6 trillion in 2014, ahead of the United States at $17.4 trillion.
Load More