Why does America have the highest poverty rates of major industrialized nations?
Simple. America is the most capitalist of those countries. On the spectrum between capitalism and pure socialism, most of those nations are middle of the road, whereas the United States is way on the side of capitalism. We lack a cohesive and effective safety net and while that allows the rich to become richer, it creates a massive gap between rich and poor. France doesnt have as high a poverty rate as the united states, but france doesnt have as high a percentage of ultra-wealthy and billionaires. The population of the US is 5 times that of France, yet the US has more than 13 times as many people with a net worth of 1 billion or more. But the poverty rate in the US is double that of France.
