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The US is not in a much better situation, China etc. are its bailout providers.
Saudi Arabia is much less developed than Portugal. The Saudis tend to simply buy reputation instead of earning it. I read for instance that the Saudi universities that have recently surfaced in the university ranking have paid Western researchers a lot of money to show up just once per term and include their supposed affiliation with the respective university in all papers published.
Not surprised USA would randomly come up in those thread.
but HDI shows that USA is doing much better than Italy, Portugal and Spain.
All countries are listed as "very high human development" so to answer the op, yes they are first world countries.
Italy is first world, especially in the north. Spain is 2nd world. And portugal and Greece are 3rd world especially now after austerity. Sure they have some rich people there but most people are dying to get out of those sinking ship countries.
Have you ever lived in Portugal? I have been living here for years now. And being German I can compare it to Germany, which is always mentioned as one of the most advanced countries. The differences are not nearly as big as you seem to think. Portugal has similar problems as the US, i.e. a bloated service sector, too little manufacturing, a huge debt...
Yes, some people have emigrated, but that has always been the case, that is why Brazil came into being. Portugal is a typical emigration country, just like Ireland. This country has been around for 900 years or so, it will still be here when the US has fallen apart. It is not a sinking ship and most people are staying here. Some of the emigrants have already returned from the rich north after just a few months as they did not like it there. Portugal however is one of the most beautiful places in all of Europe. So are Greece and Spain.
Have you ever been to a 3rd world country? Go to Somalia or Mali, then go to Portugal or Greece. Then you will know the difference and try to delete your foolish post above...
I never thought Greece was on par to be a first world country. Like same level as Canada, UK or USA. Take away tourism in Greece and they be similar to the rest of its neighbors in terms of living and how they're viewed.
Not surprised USA would randomly come up in those thread.
but HDI shows that USA is doing much better than Italy, Portugal and Spain.
All countries are listed as "very high human development" so to answer the op, yes they are first world countries.
In the US the extremes are much stronger, in Portugal most people are well educated, the latest generations can compete with anyone in Europe. Once all the old functional illiterate people have died, the statistics for Portugal will improve quite a bit.
I never thought Greece was on par to be a first world country. Like same level as Canada, UK or USA. Take away tourism in Greece and they be similar to the rest of its neighbors in terms of living and how they're viewed.
Italy is first world, especially in the north. Spain is 2nd world. And portugal and Greece are 3rd world especially now after austerity. Sure they have some rich people there but most people are dying to get out of those sinking ship countries.
If Italy is first world, Spain is first world.
Saying Greece and Portugal is third world is way off and makes you sound dumb.
Same here, most developed nations have a literacy rate over 90 percent
Yes. But unlike the US Portugal (except for the urban population) was still a developing country just a few decades ago, thus there still are lots of old people with very little education.
Another slight difference might be that in Portugal basically everyone speaks Portuguese, even the immigrants, who usually come from other Portuguese-speaking countries. And even those who don't, mostly learn the language pretty fast as they have no other choice, except for retirees who don't have to interact much with natives.
We do not have an equivalent to your Latino population with its integration challenges. Nor is there an equivalent to your black population with all the issues resulting from the past. Black people here are here because they want to be and most of them are well integrated. There is no affirmative action etc.
I guess that cultural unity is a good thing, it keeps the country together in times of trouble like now.
Yes. But unlike the US Portugal (except for the urban population) was still a developing country just a few decades ago, thus there still are lots of old people with very little education.
Another slight difference might be that in Portugal basically everyone speaks Portuguese, even the immigrants, who usually come from other Portuguese-speaking countries. And even those who don't, mostly learn the language pretty fast as they have no other choice, except for retirees who don't have to interact much with natives.
We do not have an equivalent to your Latino population with its integration challenges. Nor is there an equivalent to your black population with all the issues resulting from the past. Black people here are here because they want to be and most of them are well integrated. There is no affirmative action etc.
I guess that cultural unity is a good thing, it keeps the country together in times of trouble like now.
How many times have you even been to the United States?
Most of our immigrants speak English and our Latino population is well integrated into "American culture".
No they are not very developed countries. They are just developed, but for a few inches...
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