The US is the richest country because it has quite a few of the richest individuals. But the enormous amounts of money spent on armaments has reduced the amount of money available for infrastructure maintenance and other necessities.
>> But the enormous amounts of money spent on armaments has reduced the amount of money available for infrastructure maintenance and other necessities.
Which is odd because (I think) part of government spending seems to be redistribution of money, which would be better achieved through maintenance of infrastructure.
The US is amassing through taxes a smaller percentage compared to other developed nations. The US taxes lightly. Then it's putting a ton of that money (and even more through debt) into the military.
The money available is not a zero-sum game. The US could raise its taxes.
