美国正衰落的12个迹象

    5、国民贫困率

    美国排名：162个国家之中第36位，落后于摩洛哥和阿尔巴尼亚

    美国劳工部人口普查局最新公布数据显示，据官方统计，14.5%的美国国民生活在贫困线以下，即全国共有4530万贫困国民。这一贫困人口比例比摩洛哥和阿尔巴尼亚都高（但不同国家对贫困的定义千差万别）。报告作者称，经生活费用自动调整后数据显示，领取社会保障金的贫穷美国老年国民人数有所减少。50年前，每三名美国老年人之中就有一人领取社会保障福利。如今每十人里才有一位老者是贫民。非裔美国人的贫困率也在下降。今天，美国的贫穷国民更多见于适龄劳动者之中。在贫困家庭里，单亲妈妈的比例最高。

    6、儿童贫困率

    美国排名：35个调查国家之中第34位

    联合国儿童基金会将贫困水平与各国社会平均财富水平比较的结果显示，美国的儿童贫困率排名垫底，而美国人平均的财富是罗马尼亚人的六倍。欧洲、加拿大、澳大利亚、新西兰与日本的儿童贫困形势比美国好得多。

    7、贫富差距

    美国排名：贫富差距全球第四高

    报告作者认为，智利、墨西哥、土耳其以及美国的贫富悬殊最大。他们援引了常见的贫富差距指标基尼系数，还引用了《华尔街日报》与全球最大人力资源管理咨询机构美世咨询公司的数据。作者们认为，贫富差距使经济增速放慢，妨碍年轻人获得发展机会，最终威胁国家的未来（一段经合组织的视频对此做了解释）。贫富不均的形势恶化也体现在企业首席执行官的平均收入与普通员工的平均收入之比上。1965年，美国的首席执行官平均收入是员工的24倍，2005年猛增至262倍。

    8、狱囚人数

    美国排名：224个国家之中第一位

    报告作者写道，入狱服刑的美国国民有220多万人，只有中国的囚犯人数和美国比较接近，中国约有166万名囚犯。

    9、生活满意度

    美国排名：36个国家之中第17位

    报告作者根据经合组织的美好生活指数衡量，美国国民的幸福程度只位居中游。该指数衡量国民对生活的整体幸福感，并非展示他们现时的感受。联合国的一项类似研究发现，新西兰、芬兰和以色列的国民生活满意度都比美国的高。

    10、腐败度

    美国排名：175个国家之中第17位

    从国民对政府腐败的风评判断，巴巴多斯和卢森堡的政府比美国廉洁。报告作者提到，据总部位于柏林的非盈利组织透明国际调查，美国国民认为本国政府“有些腐败”。对美国公民的一项独立调查显示，很多受访美国人都认为，政客没有为大多数人的利益服务，而是偏向于企业的游说团体和超级巨富。报告作者称：“特殊利益团体逐渐把美国改造为寡头统治的国家，那样的国家只关心富人的需求。”

    11、社会稳定度

    美国排名：178个国家之中第20位

    美国杂志《外交政策》公布的脆弱国家指数是衡量贫富差距、腐败和党派之争等多种因素的指标。该指数显示，美国的排名落后与葡萄牙、斯洛文尼亚和冰岛。

    12、社会进步指数

    美国排名：133个国家之中第16位

    大范围衡量社会福祉的指标——社会进步指数——囊括了可获得清洁的水源与空气、可接受高等教育、具备基础知识、有安全感等52个经济指标。据该指数评估，爱尔兰、英国、冰岛、加拿大等国都比美国表现出色。

    弗雷德曼说：“若要让美国重现雄风，我们就要着手解决一些问题。”（财富中文网）

    译者: Pessy

    校对：詹妮

    5. People living below the poverty line

    Rank of U.S.: 36th out of 162 countries, behind Morocco and Albania

    Officially, 14.5% of Americans are impoverished — 45.3 million people–according to the latest US Census data. That’s a larger fraction of the population in poverty than Morocco and Albania (though how nations define poverty varies considerably). The elderly have Social Security, with its automatic cost-of-living adjustments, to thank, the authors say, for doing better: Few seniors (one in 10) are poor today versus 50 years ago (when it was one in three). Poverty is also down among African Americans. Now America’s poor are more often in their prime working years, or in households headed by single mothers.

    6. Children in poverty

    Rank of U.S.: 34th out of 35 countries surveyed

    When UNICEF relative poverty – relative to the average in each society—the US ranked at the bottom, above only Romania, even as Americans are, on average, six times richer than Romanians. Children in all of Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan fare better.

    7. Income inequality

    Rank of U.S.: Fourth highest inequality in the world.

    The authors argue that the most severe inequality can be found in Chile, Mexico, Turkey — and the US. Citing the Gini coefficient, a common inequality metric, and data from Wall Street Journal/Mercer Human Resource Consulting, they say this inequality slows economic growth, impedes youths’ opportunities, and ultimately threatens the nation’s future (an OECD video explains). Worsening income inequality is also evident in the ratio of average CEO earnings to average workers’ pay. That ratio went from 24:1 in 1965 to 262:1 in 2005.

    8. Prison population

    Rank of U.S.: First out of 224 countries

    More than 2.2 million Americans are in jail. Only China comes close, the authors write, with about 1.66 million.

    9. Life satisfaction

    Rank of U.S.: 17th out of 36 countries

    The authors note Americans’ happiness score is only middling, according to the OECD Better Life Index. (The index measures how people evaluate their life as a whole rather than their current feelings.) People in New Zealand, Finland, and Israel rate higher in life satisfaction. A UN report had a similar finding.

    10. Corruption

    Rank of U.S.: 17th out of 175 countries.

    Barbados and Luxembourg are ahead of the US when it comes to citizens’ perceptions of corruption. Americans view their country as “somewhat corrupt,” the authors note, according to Transparency International, a Berlin-based nonprofit. In a separate survey of American citizens, many said politicians don’t serve the majority’s interest, but are biased toward corporate lobbyists and the super-rich. “Special interest groups are gradually transforming the United States into an oligarchy,” the authors argue, “concerned only about the needs of the wealthy.”

    11. Stability

    Rank of U.S.: 20th out of 178 countries.

    The Fragile States Index considers factors such as inequality, corruption, and factionalism. The US lags behind Portugal, Slovenia and Iceland.

    12. Social progress index

    Rank of U.S.: 16th out of 133 countries

    A broad measure of social well-being, the index comprises 52 economic indicators such as access to clean water and air, access to advanced education, access to basic knowledge, and safety. Countries surpassing the US include Ireland, the UK, Iceland, and Canada.

    “If America’s going to be great again, we’ve got to start fixing things,” Friedman said.