I always thought USA is a very rich country according to its GDP and economic and now i am still believing that USA is one of the rich country, on the hand my Asian-Canadian cousins don't agree with me. They said USA is not a rich country while there are so many poor out there and etc. I am just curious and want to learn more.

How old are you?

Like most places, there are very rich people and there are very poor people, with the majority of the population somewhere in between. Were you under the impression that any place could have zero poverty? People still have to take responsibility for their own lives and their own choices. Some places have very few opportunities for employment (rural West Virginia, etc.). Some had great opportunities in the past (Detroit and Cleveland come to mind) but blew it through poor management, both public and private, and economic changes brought about by increasing globalization. If someone chooses to remain in such a place, there will not be much opportunity for them to raise their income levels and standards of living. If someone can't or won't update their education or job-specific skills, or has drug/alcohol problems, they will be left behind, no matter where they live or how wealthy the rest of the country seems.

u see more hummers/range rovers in PP ( at double the price of the states) than u will see in ANY city in the states.
so whose rich?

It is what you make of it.

SF is one of the most expensive cites to live in but has a whole area ( the tenderloin ) that has very poor people and you can see homeless around as well.

phuketrichard wrote:u see more hummers/range rovers in PP ( at double the price of the states) than u will see in ANY city in the states.
so whose rich?

It is what you make of it.

SF is one of the most expensive cites to live in but has a whole area ( the tenderloin ) that has very poor people and you can see homeless around as well.

Yes, and the men in PP wear a lot more suits and gold jewelry as well. I pity those poor silicon valley engineers who apparently can't afford suits or jewelry, because I never see them wearing either.

CaliforniaGuy wrote:

phuketrichard wrote:u see more hummers/range rovers in PP ( at double the price of the states) than u will see in ANY city in the states.
so whose rich?

It is what you make of it.

SF is one of the most expensive cites to live in but has a whole area ( the tenderloin ) that has very poor people and you can see homeless around as well.

Yes, and the men in PP wear a lot more suits and gold jewelry as well. I pity those poor silicon valley engineers who apparently can't afford suits or jewelry, because I never see them wearing either.

Stores all over America are closing. People are losing there homes and living on the street. Welfare moms pop out kids so they can suck off of the people that do work. The government (and attorneys/bar associations) are throwing more and more Americans (men) in jails/prisons (its all about power and control) thus taking away they Constitutional rights. (2,200.000+ people in prisons/jails in America)

NAFTA and the like sent American jobs to Mexico. Continuing the "Favored Trade Partner, Developing Country status" on imports has killed American companies (one that didn't/couldn't send the jobs overseas.) Not enforcing the import law that states the US can tax imports at the level a country tax's US imports has killed US manufacturing. The US has no Merchant Marine as the US imposes safety regulations that foreign countries ignore. (Under international treaty the US can ban these countries/flag of convenience ships from the US but doesn't because the politicians have been bought off.)

Read the Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire, and insert America every time they say Rome. Or look at the Brit empire and what it has now and what it does/doesn't manufacture.(Like France, more and more rageheads, at least the illegal Mexicans in America are not Islamofascists and don't want to turn America into an Islamic paradise.)

US a rich country? The top 1% are getting richer and the rest are bottom feeding. I suppose the US is rich if you live in some Islamofascists Islamic paradise Craplanasan country.

Sailorman wrote: US a rich country? The top 1% are getting richer and the rest are bottom feeding.

Nonsense. You speak for your angry, bitter self and no one else. I happily sit in the large middle class where many of us are content and happy (those of us who worked hard and pursued an in-demand degree and training, anyway). Many political science and philosophy and art history majors are not so happy peddling overprice coffee and muffins at Starbucks for $8 per hour. Those who thought a high school diploma alone was good enough to secure decent employment for life were extremely misguided. There have always been haves and have-nots and always will be. Most of those 1% earned it with hard work and risk and new ideas. Many of the so-called bottom feeders (your term) didn't put in the effort required to succeed.

Samouth it is a reasonable question, so I will try my best to put things in perspective for you as best I can. First I agree with Soi Dog. His comments are 100% on the mark.

In the U.S. most people have the opportunity to be either well off or poor. It is very much up to the individual, and I know people in both categories. A great degree of it depends on where you were born, if your parents were educated, are you in a neighborhood of optimistic hard workers, or if you are surrounded by the lazy or the uneducated. Your environment can have a big effect on your future possibilities. I was lucky to be born to parents, who although they didn't make a lot of money, encouraged higher education along with hard work. Things turned out pretty well for me and my kids, who are also educated, honest and hard working.

I know people who stared out in life with a great deal of wealth, and ended up near the bottom because of poor life decisions, and others who stated out with nothing but brains, and have ended up quite wealthy.

Curiously in the U.S. immigrants, all other things being equal, have always done better than native born. It is probably why history has been kind to the U.S., we have a lot of hard working immigrants striving to move themselves up to the middle class and beyond.

I have a number of Khmer friends in the U.S., a couple of them have started their own businesses, work very hard, and doing well. Some others I know work in high tech. Also have some Vietnamese in similar situations.

On the other hand, many Khmers in the U.S. are very very poor, pretty much at the bottom and seemingly destined to stay there. They work at low end jobs, are poorly educated, foolishly spend all their money on showing off, and will likely have difficult lives.

Now people having large incomes, or living in big houses and driving big cars is not the only or even the most important measure of a nation's wealth. A large part of its wealth is in the nature of it's institutions and morals.

In the U.S. most people leave their cars parked outside all the time. They have garages, but they are pretty much used for storage. Houses don't have iron bars, just a simple wooden door and unprotected glass windows. There is not a constant fear of your purse or cell phone being snatched on a day to day basis. The roads are free of dirt and garbage, the air and rivers are clean. If somebody cheats you, you can take them to court. When there is an automobile accident, people simply exchange insurance information, and go on their way. You don't have to bribe your teachers, the police, or government officials. People disagree politically, sometimes strongly, but the results are decided at the ballot box. The higher education system is the best in the world, and accessible to those that are willing to make good choices. You don't loose your money if the bank fails, you have investment options if you are smart enough.

Of course the U.S. is not utopia, there are criminals, cheats and thugs, and some very poor people. But beware of those that point out only these points. Often they are the ones who could not make it here, and feel the need for something to blame.

My brother got his green card to the USA several years ago having gone there in the field of medical research science. In his field America has offered him far more opportunity than the UK could for a well qualified scientist, property was previously beyond his reach in the UK but in the states he has bought a nice modest property. He earns a middle income salary, loves his job and his new country.
I guess it can depend a lot on your skills and where you come from as to how you perceive a country and what you make of it.

rich in opportunity, not unearned wealth. no free pass.

the strong do well.

the weak enjoy good buying power with small means.

what they throw away, would make an ejai rich.