emeraldrafael said:
The United States is not the richest country in the world... :S Have you SEEN their economy? Nevertheless, here in Canada, our economy is just fine, but the COMMUNITY I live in has little to no jobs available at any given time. None of our stupid geezers are retiring, so they're just hogging all the income (most geriatrics where I live have a SHIT-TON of money, but they keep working because... of greed, I suppose). Thus I, like the OPer, am stuck with a shit job that pays nothing.
Can you imagine their economy if they had a smaller military? (although of course it's important to maintain the navy and airforce to keep the trading routes open on the high seas and maintain the american empire).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Us_military
"The U.S. military is one of the largest militaries in terms of number of personnel. It draws its manpower from a large pool of paid volunteers; although conscription has been used in the past in various times of both war and peace, it has not been used since 1972. As of 2011, the United States spends about $550 billion annually to fund its military forces,[4] and appropriates approximately $160 billion to fund Overseas Contingency Operations. Put together, the United States constitutes roughly 43 percent of the world's military expenditures. The U.S. armed forces as a whole possess large quantities of advanced and powerful equipment, along with widespread placement of forces around the world, giving them significant capabilities in both defense and power projection."
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/29/us-usa-war-idUSTRE75S25320110629
"When President Barack Obama cited cost as a reason to bring troops home from Afghanistan, he referred to a $1 trillion price tag for America's wars.
Staggering as it is, that figure grossly underestimates the total cost of wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan to the U.S. Treasury and ignores more imposing costs yet to come, according to a study released on Wednesday.
The final bill will run at least $3.7 trillion and could reach as high as $4.4 trillion, according to the research project "Costs of War" by Brown University's Watson Institute for International Studies. (www.costsofwar.org)"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_the_United_States
"The economy of the United States is the world's largest national economy and the world's second largest overall economy, the GDP of the EU being approximately $2 trillion larger. Its nominal GDP was estimated to be over $15 trillion in 2011,[4] approximately a quarter of nominal global GDP.[4] Its GDP at purchasing power parity is the largest in the world, approximately a fifth of global GDP at purchasing power parity.[4] The U.S. economy also maintains a very high level of output. The U.S. is one of the world's wealthiest nations with per capita GDP (PPP) of $48,450, the 6th highest in the world.[3] The U.S. is the largest trading nation in the world.
As of 2012, the country remains the world's largest manufacturer, representing a fifth of the global manufacturing output.
The U.S. economy grew by an average of 3.8% from 1946 to 1973, while real median household income surged 74% (or 2.1% a year).[44][45] The economy since 1973, however, has been characterized by both slower growth (averaging 2.7%), and nearly stagnant living standards, with household incomes increasing by 10%, or only 0.3% annually.[46] The worst recession in recent decades, in terms of lost output, occurred during the 2008 financial crisis, when GDP fell by 5.0% from the spring of 2008 to the spring of 2009. "
You've got to remember that the rich are getting richer too, by shafting the middle class.
