The median income in America is much higher than almost everywhere else in the developed world. It’s not just a small number of billionaires padding the gdp and pulling up the averages.
GDP per capita is not a measure of actual societal progress. You have societies that don’t have natural gas pipes or potable water and so they buy tanks of propanw and bottles of water which is expensive (higher GDP) but doesn’t give a better quality of living. Instead, if you built the infrastructure then the costs (and GDP) for the same/better outcome would be lower.
For America, we burn a lot of productivity on vehicles that last 10ish years plus the gasoline to drive them. In much of Europe, they get the same/better experience with extensive subways and bike lanes and high speed rail.
For America, we burn a lot of productivity on vehicles that last 10ish years plus the gasoline to drive them. In much of Europe, they get the same/better experience with extensive subways and bike lanes and high speed rail.