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I remember hearing several years ago that Argentina was pretty much right on the verge of first world status. I know that at the early part of the century Buenos Aires was one of the wealthiest cities in the world. I know they've certainly had some economic woes since then. I wish them well.
Mexico also has twice the population as Spain and several times more than Greece as well sitting pretty good with resources. I've never been to Mexico, but I imagine they're slightly better off than what most Americans envision but still not to the same standard of living as us & Europe. I'd say they're a third world nation but definitely at the higher end of that spectrum (which is a pretty wide spectrum).
My prediction: Within a couple generations the gap between Eastern and Western Europe will close as the West dwindles and Eastern Europe develops. Brazil, Iran, Turkey and Mexico will show some improvements and stabilize.
I see what you mean, they're not on the same level as Europe, U.S. and Canada but I prefer the term middle income. When someone says third world I imagine famine, disease and lack of technology, which doesn't seem to be the case with Mexico. The majority of people there also live in cities some of which are quite modern (Mexico City, Monterrey, Guadalajara, Puebla, Merida etc).
I find it hard to call Mexico third world when it has cities like these:
Mod edit - copyrighted photos.
Last edited by El Rhino; 07-12-2009 at 03:04 PM..
Reason: copyrights.
If Mexico is not a poor 3rd world country than why are there millions of illegal immigrants from Mexico living in the United States.
If the United States shared a border with Switzerland instead of Mexico, I doubt you would see millions of illegal Swiss immigrants living in the U.S. Most Swiss people financially have it too good so they don't need to leave their country for a better life else where.
If Mexico is not a poor 3rd world country than why are there millions of illegal immigrants from Mexico living in the United States.
If the United States shared a border with Switzerland instead of Mexico, I doubt you would see millions of illegal Swiss immigrants living in the U.S. Most Swiss people financially have it too good so they don't need to leave their country for a better life else where.
Those immigrants mainly live in small towns and villages who lose their population to either more modern Mexican cities or to the U.S. Like I said Mexico is not in the same league as those other countries but it's not a third world nation in the same vein as African nations. In Mexico only 13% of their people live below food based poverty line, in the U.S. it's 12% not much of a difference. Also, some of those illegals from Mexico have been here more than a decade, some might have immigrated before Mexico started to improve (which I believe occurred in 1994 with NAFTA).
Canada a first world nation has some of it's people illegally cross over to the U.S. There's an estimated 65,000-75,000 illegal Canadians in the U.S.
Indeed, the standard of living in Mexico is vastly better than, lets say, Nigeria, but it still lags quite a bit behind the countries in the 1st world (hence why so many of them come to America).
Here is a comparison of standards of living for four countries.
GDP per capita (PPP comparison):
United States - $47,000
Germany - $34,800
Mexico - $14,200
Nigeria - $2,300
Mexico and Nigeria are both in the 3rd world, though clearly Mexico has a higher standard of living than Nigeria. Until Mexico closes the income gap with the Western countries a little more, it will continue to be a country of emigration. I don't think there is any hope that Nigeria will be developed in the next 40 years.
I also don't think that China and India will make it to developed status by 2050 either. Even though they have such high economic growth rates, the populations of those two countries are just too big.
Indeed, the standard of living in Mexico is vastly better than, lets say, Nigeria, but it still lags quite a bit behind the countries in the 1st world (hence why so many of them come to America).
Here is a comparison of standards of living for four countries.
GDP per capita (PPP comparison):
United States - $47,000
Germany - $34,800
Mexico - $14,200
Nigeria - $2,300
Mexico and Nigeria are both in the 3rd world, though clearly Mexico has a higher standard of living than Nigeria. Until Mexico closes the income gap with the Western countries a little more, it will continue to be a country of emigration. I don't think there is any hope that Nigeria will be developed in the next 40 years.
I also don't think that China and India will make it to developed status by 2050 either. Even though they have such high economic growth rates, the populations of those two countries are just too big.
I know that, but like I learned in class I think we should call countries like Mexico middle income instead of third world (or low income like my text called them). Why don't people use those terms more? Why only classify countries in two categories, why can't there be a middle?
Classifying countries based on their standards of living is not our call to make. That decision is up to international powers and currently, they only give two classifications - First World, and Third World.
I suppose it would make since to have a third category characterizing countries that are middle income, but they don't.
Classifying countries based on their standards of living is not our call to make. That decision is up to international powers and currently, they only give two classifications - First World, and Third World.
I suppose it would make since to have a third category characterizing countries that are middle income, but they don't.
Yeah, I recall in my community college geography class in 2001 being told that we have first world, then second world (communist countries), third world (pretty much everything else) and a few fourth world - meaning failed states (Rwanda, Somalia).
I think the second world thing needs to be revisited by academia. It does make sense to make a category for countries like Turkey, Uruguay, Iran, Bulgaria, Chile, etc. that are competent countries with a decent standard of living close to the first world but not quite.
I see what you mean, they're not on the same level as Europe, U.S. and Canada but I prefer the term middle income. When someone says third world I imagine famine, disease and lack of technology, which doesn't seem to be the case with Mexico. The majority of people there also live in cities some of which are quite modern (Mexico City, Monterrey, Guadalajara, Puebla, Merida etc).
I find it hard to call Mexico third world when it has cities like these:
Mod edit - copyrighted photos.
I see what you mean (read the faq on posting pics, please. Cliff notes: Don't do it unless it's a picture you took.) with those pictures - not all of Mexico is a dump. If you can find a handful of pics showing a high level of development, I'm sure you can find a ton indicating the opposite though.
By the year 2050, the Earth's oil and gas reserves will be seriously depleted. There may be a lesser number of "developed" nations then than there are now. Maybe the question should be which nations will still be developed and which will have collapsed back to a pre-industrial state. My guess is that India and China will have collapsed unless they have each managed to build hundreds of nuclear power stations.
I see what you mean (read the faq on posting pics, please. Cliff notes: Don't do it unless it's a picture you took.) with those pictures - not all of Mexico is a dump. If you can find a handful of pics showing a high level of development, I'm sure you can find a ton indicating the opposite though.
All regions have poor neighborhoods though, even here in Houston the poor areas look like they're part of a less developed nation.
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