USA: The Richest Nation In History - So Why Are We Struggling?
America is great — not necessarily because of what it is right now, but because of what it could be. Our potential is unmatched.
Most of us can agree that we are nowhere near tapping into that potential. We have the largest economy in the history of the world and a tax system that should work for everyone. But here’s the hard truth: it doesn’t.
Right now, 60% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. Most can’t cover an unexpected $400 hospital bill or car repair without going into debt. Healthcare and housing have become unaffordable for the majority. Medical debt is the #1 cause of bankruptcy. Gun violence remains an unchecked epidemic.
Why? Because when basic services — like healthcare, pharmaceuticals, and energy — are driven by the profit motive, prices are pushed higher, not to serve people, but to maximize shareholder earnings. Private health insurers, for example, charge unaffordable premiums and co-pays on the front end, then deny as many claims as possible on the back end — even when the care is necessary — all to protect profit margins.
This system is not just inefficient. It’s corrupt. It’s inhumane.
Essential services like healthcare and pharmaceuticals should never be driven by the incentive to squeeze consumers for profit. Yet that’s exactly what’s happening — and it’s why we’re falling behind.
On top of this, the ultra-wealthy and large corporations have not paid their fair share of taxes for decades. This is a choice, not an inevitability.
There are so many glaring issues in the United States that can be fixed.
We should be #1 —
#1 in healthcare.
#1 in housing.
#1 in infrastructure.
#1 in transportation.
#1 in everything.
We are the richest country in the history of the world. There is no reason for us to tolerate such deep and widespread economic injustices.
Yet right now, according to major global rankings, we’re not even close:
31st in Education
34th in Environmental Performance
16th in Healthcare
48th in Life Expectancy
29th in Public Transportation
We’re outside the top 10 in many other critical categories.
Simply put: We can — and must — do better.
We have the resources to reform our systems and ensure better outcomes for everyone.
Policies to Unlock America’s Potential
Here’s a short (but powerful) list of policy changes that would move us closer to becoming #1 in the world across the board. This is by no means exhaustive, but it’s a strong start:
Single-payer healthcare / Medicare for All
Reverse the Citizens United Supreme Court ruling
End arms sales to countries that violate human rights (e.g., Saudi Arabia, Israel, Egypt)
Abolish the death penalty
End unilateral wars except as a last resort to defend U.S. territory
End the War on Drugs — favor legalization, regulation, taxation; pardon all non-violent drug offenders; treat addiction as a health issue
Protect free speech on college campuses and support net neutrality
Guarantee universal education as a right, including free tuition for four-year public college and university
Guarantee universal healthcare as a right
Establish federal paid maternity leave, paid vacation, and free childcare
Expand anti-discrimination protections to include LGBTQ+ people
Expand background checks on firearms; ban high-capacity magazines and assault weapons
Fund Planned Parenthood and safeguard reproductive rights
Implement nationwide electoral reform and publicly financed elections — eliminate the influence of big money
Adopt instant-runoff voting to make third-party and independent candidates viable
Implement the Buffett Rule, end offshore tax havens, raise capital gains and income taxes on the ultra-wealthy, and increase the estate tax
Raise the minimum wage to a living wage — start with $17.50 at the federal level and tie it to inflation
Pardon Edward Snowden; prosecute CIA torturers and DoD war criminals; shut down Guantanamo Bay and all extrajudicial prisons; end warrantless NSA spying
Pass the Paycheck Fairness Act
Abolish ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement)
Reform policing — mandate body cameras, establish community oversight boards, eliminate broken windows policing, end stop-and-frisk, and appoint special prosecutors to hold police accountable
Protect Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid — no cuts, only expansion; establish universal single-payer healthcare
America has the wealth, the talent, and the resources to lead the world — not just economically, but morally and socially.
Let’s stop accepting less. Let’s demand a country that lives up to its extraordinary potential — for all of us.
