What makes a country "great" and is there a "greatest country" right now?

[Rogue Valley]

Neither do the South Africans, who, unlike Linus, have grown weary waiting for the Great Pumpkin to shower them with toys:



View attachment 67260227

If even the liberals at The Guardian see a problem then that should tell people there's a problem.

Well, one good thing here is the people reading this thread know what you are about.

 

[Ahlevah]

Well, one good thing here is the people reading this thread know what you are about.

Does that mean when faced with the facts you choose to assume the default position and surrender, too? :surrender

 

[Infinite Chaos]

You still don't get it.

And never will.

 

[Ahlevah]

Well, one good thing here is the people reading this thread know what you are about.

Here, let's try this. Here's a map that depicts the Corruption Perception Index from the racists at Transparency International:



Corruption Perceptions Index - Wikipedia

You see the red? That's bad. That means there's lots of corruption. The darkest shades are reserved for the worst offenders. The blue countries are the good guys, with the least corruption. As you can see with the big blobs of red over Russia and much of Asia, corruption is endemic in nations that don't have a strong institutional framework for resisting it, such as separation of powers and an independent judiciary. IT ISN'T ABOUT RACE! It's about culture and having the institutions in place to root out corruption or avoid it in the first place.

 

[Rogue Valley]

IT ISN'T ABOUT RACE!

You really should learn how to read and comprehend what is written.

Race wasn't mentioned. Colonialism was.

It's no secret what your agenda is. Play that game with TAAC.

 

[Ahlevah]

You really should learn how to read and comprehend what is written.

Race wasn't mentioned. Colonialism was.

It's no secret what your agenda is. Play that game with TAAC.

I'm all about colonialism? I haven't mentioned colonialism. What is my agenda? To take over the planet? :lol:

 

[Nickyjo]

You're welcome. I love the United States, and for what it stands for. So I'm certainly going to pick it as the greatest country.

I love the United States and what it stands for. Hate some of what it has done, especially in this hemisphere. The notion of “exceptionalism”, I.e., best ever-ism in any country is dangerous. Just ask the Germans.

Then again, we gave the world jazz, rock and roll, and country. Top that, critics! What other country can have an Italian boy named Tony Bennett from Queens cover Hank Williams’ “Cold Cold Heart”? Ditto Little Richard covering Hank’s “Lovesick Blues,” the twangiest country song re-done by the wildest soul singer. Ain’t that America?, as another song puts it.

Ask your parents.

 

[ocean515]

I love the United States and what it stands for. Hate some of what it has done, especially in this hemisphere. The notion of “exceptionalism”, I.e., best ever-ism in any country is dangerous. Just ask the Germans.

Then again, we gave the world jazz, rock and roll, and country. Top that, critics! What other country can have an Italian boy named Tony Bennett from Queens cover Hank Williams’ “Cold Cold Heart”? Ditto Little Richard covering Hank’s “Lovesick Blues,” the twangiest country song re-done by the wildest soul singer. Ain’t that America?, as another song puts it.

Ask your parents.

The evolution of the human species brought forth Nations. It's reasonable to conclude there is a resulting sense of exceptionalism among those who are citizens of them.

If my parents were still alive, they'd prefer to talk about Glenn Miller and other music from that era.

 

[Nickyjo]

The evolution of the human species brought forth Nations. It's reasonable to conclude there is a resulting sense of exceptionalism among those who are citizens of them.

If my parents were still alive, they'd prefer to talk about Glenn Miller and other music from that era.

Sort of agree but not really completely. Most foreigners I have met are proud of and love their countries without the put down of other that exceptionalism suggests. But we are on the same page.

 

[ocean515]

Sort of agree but not really completely. Most foreigners I have met are proud of and love their countries without the put down of other that exceptionalism suggests. But we are on the same page.

Fair enough.

I think "exceptionalism" can be interpreted in as many ways as it can be expressed. It just seems to me there is an evolutionary aspect that would tend to cause people to believe their country is best. Otherwise I don't think humans would have evolved to create and defend them.

 

[AmyJung]

As the thread title says:

1) What makes a country "great"

2) Is there a greatest country right now?

I personally think how a country treats its own most vulnerable is more important than its military power or its GDP. I think quality of life and life experience for ordinary citizens makes a country greater than how many other countries it can defeat in battle or the historical dominance it may have once had.

I don't think there is a greatest country right now, though there are definitely some countries at the opposite ends of the spectrum - ordinary citizens live impoverished lives where they have little chance to affect or influence the direction of their nation or where significant minorities / sectors of society live shortened lives because there is little care or support for them.

I like your question.
I’ve lived in America for 10 years and I’ve lived in South Korea for over 30 years.

1) We can measure it by seeing how vulnerable citizens in the country are treated. And also how the country provide equal opportunity to people.
In that regards, America is a very bad country and South Korea is less worse than America but still needs to improve.

2) ‘Sweden’ is the greatest country in my opinion. I can’t say it is perfect but nearly perfect.[emoji16] I happened to research about their society and politics by reading many books and became so relieved about humanity


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Infinite Chaos]

~ 1) We can measure it by seeing how vulnerable citizens in the country are treated. And also how the country provide equal opportunity to people.

Absolutely, you can have all the freedoms and most powerful military but it counts for nothing if you are among the people at the bottom or with vulnerabilities who are treated like s**t and historically that larger society is against you.

 

[Atlee]

Various factors make a country great (powerful):

1. the extent of it's military power

2. the strength of it's economy

3. it's societal cohesion

4. The strength of it's institutions

5. The popularity of it's culture, products, and various other attributes around the world

6. The size of it's population and its birthrate

7. It's openness to new people and ideas

At the moment America is still just about the greatest country in the world, but within our lifetimes this will probably change.

 

[Torus34]

My thinking about things societal is centered in secular humanism. That means that I interpret 'great' through that particular lens.

The 'greatest' country would be that which permits its people to live out their lives with a minimum of factors that would shorten them. It would provide the support necessary for them to lead lives which are fulfilling and productive.

That's a start.