Introduction
Perhaps the largest among all economies of the world is the US’. There are other countries whose economy could be compared with the US’ but still, in terms of track record and relative stability; there is nothing that could beat the US Welfare Economy. This has been proven by the high standard of living in almost every city within the US. It is almost unquestionable how the US economy progressed in the past years and even in the years to come.
Despite the strength and stability that the US economy possesses, it is still undeniable that there are disadvantages that come along with the advantages. Those disadvantages lie somewhere inside their whole economic system. Knowing these things could really be helpful in knowing whether the US economy is really a blessing or not.
Being the largest economy, US have the capability to influence other countries that have smaller economies even in an unconscious way. At some point, the US economy could be a trend setter because of the huge market they provide services for and the wide array of international companies that originate from their mainland. Examples of such companies include Nike, Coca Cola and several other giant companies that not only blossoms in the US but also in other parts of the globe.
Another truth that could reinforce the fact why US could be a significant factor in the world’s economy is because the US dollar, the US’ currency, is widely used as a medium of transaction even in other countries. So, anything that could happen to the US economy will really have an impact on the world economy and other countries’ economy as well (World Financial Watch, 2011).
Now, imagine if something bad happened to the US and its rich and luxurious economy got affected. With the rapid changes that we experience in our economy today, such incidences especially the ones that could result to a lot more changes could possibly happen. In fact, it already did. According to Isadora (2008), the US had been under an economic recession that started from the last quarter of the year 2007 and lasted through the year 2008.
This economic downturn was allegedly one of the longest US economic recessions ever recorded. At that point, economic experts have noticed clearly how the temporary downfall of the US economy have hurt all other countries with relatively smaller economies particularly the third world countries or the ones that are still in the process of remodeling and development.
US Helps Promote the Growth of Social and Economic Inequality
Since US is one of the richest countries in the Globe, it can easily influence its markets to patronize a specific commodity or to simply set a new trend. This is what actually gave birth to most of the companies that started out as small ones in the United States and grew into one of the world’s largest firms and corporations.
The US plays a significant role in promoting growth of social and economic inequality within the society. Since US caters to a tremendous market, there is a good chance that companies that are based in the US will be the only ones who could earn larger profits and revenues because of business factors such as popularity and advertising.
According to a Chinese financial expert Ollman (1999), such is true not only for the biggest corporations situated in the US but also for other dominating and monopolizing corporations located in other countries. He further described the process of determining how social and economic inequalities exist.
According to him, social and economic inequalities exist if rich men become richer and everyone else suffers and gets poorer. In this type of scenario, it is clear that there are imbalances present. Having several imbalances is a characteristic of an unstable economy. This is perhaps one of the major ways how the US affects us and other people in a negative way. People tend to think that countries such as the US should always be considered a blessing. Every country, no matter how rich or economically challenged it is has their own sets of problems that require their attention.
Environmental Degradation
Over the years, the US has experienced a lot of advances in technology and other sciences that enabled them to be able to remain competitive in their target markets. There are a lot of local and multinational factories that are based in the US. In fact, there are a lot of zones in the US that are specifically intended for industrial purposes and there are more factories yet to come since the one that migrated to other countries are coming back (The Economist, 2012). Some of these factories release toxic and harmful chemicals to the environment without the public knowing. There are certain spots in the US where oil refineries are built and what’s surprising about that fact is that those zones are located just a few minutes of drive away from residential areas.
The smog and the black cloud emitted by these energy gluttons and smoke belching factories not only damage the planet’s environment; they also affect the nearby residents’ health. Overexposure to chemicals processed inside these facilities and then released into the air is believed to be one of the leading causes of cancers such as lung cancers and other respiratory-related disorders.
High profits and a good economical reputation should never come before the health of the citizens and the state of the environment. The US, having a strong economy, should even set a good example to other developing countries and tell them that a country could enjoy the benefits of having a strong economy without having to sacrifice the condition of the surrounding environment.
The US Economy Promotes A Set of Anti-Social Emotions and Attitudes
If you are going to spend a year in the US as a businessman or at even just a business manager of someone else’s business, you will get to see how they prioritize money over other things. Money is seems to be such a special or very important topic for them. There are even cases wherein money becomes the sole element that drives them to live. Living in a country that has the same economy with that of the US could indeed be stressful due to their sometimes exaggerating reactions when it comes to topics about money. Well, perhaps that’s the reason why they are so successful even these days. Nevertheless, there is one great disadvantage with that type of mindset.
If everybody will be rich, there will be no poor people and such scenario could all start from a little change in people’s thoughts and emotions about economy. If everyone just thinks how to get themselves rich and obtain a larger net worth, it would become really hard for the government to feed these people illusions and fairy tales that an unending sequence of economic growth is really feasible (it is not). When that happens, the government together with its people would not be able to focus on the real problems of the country anymore because of being too carried away. If such behaviors continue to increase, it would be highly likely that an economic crisis will occur. In fact, according to economic experts, wrong market psychology is one of the major reasons why periodic economic crises are present.
Conclusion
The US economy is indeed one of the world’s largest and richest. However, there are areas where it is weak. Compared to other countries, the economy of the US is not that stable and this statement had already been proven via the series of economic recessions that it experienced as well as the high unemployment rate that happened secondary to the recession way back in 2008.
A slight change in the US economy could impact the world’s economy as a whole significantly. With that principle in mind, it could be stated that a US economy downfall could also result into a lot of negative things on other countries’ economies. Lastly, it is not right to consider only the positive things that the US welfare economy could do. It would be wise to consider both the positive and negative things about it so that a more accurate and appropriate assessment could be done.
References
Isadora, C. (2008). It’s Official: Recession Since December 2007. CNN Money. Print.
Ollman, B. (1999). Market Economy: Advantages and Disadvantages. Dialectical Marxism. Print.
The Economist. (2012). Movng Back to America. Accessed january 2012. Available at http://www.economist.com/node/18682182.
World Financial Watch. (2011). How does the US Economy Affect the World Economy? Accessed January 2012. Available at http://www.worldfinancialwatch.com/us-economy/how-does-the-us-economy-affect-the-world-economy/.
