Economics: World Economic Variation


Figure 1.--Economic conditions and living standards vary immensly around the world. During the 18th century, Haiti was the most productive part of the Fremch Empire with slave-based plantations generating enormous wealth. The photo shows a mother with her children. It was taken in Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, in 2009, an year before the earthquake. Haiti even before the devestting Earghquake was already one of the poorest countries in the world. Only a few countries like North Korea are poorer than Haiti.

Economic conditions and living standards vary immensly around the world. Of course the destribution of resources vary. But one of the most prosperous countries in the world is Japan, a country virtually without resources. And Russia, a country with vast resources, has a virtually Third World economy. Prosperous countries are concentrated in Western Europe and North America. Here the Industrial Revolution and technology have transformed socities. And now there are also increasingly prosperous countries now found in Asia. Africa continues to be a weak spot as does the Middle East unless the country is lucky enough to have oil. Until World War II, many countries in the Third World were living in virtually medieval conditions. Many countries have since made progress, but many other countries are today less prosperous than they were as European colonies. In many of these countries people are hard pressed to even obtain the minimal amount of food to sustain life. Perhaps the most remarkable gvariation was between countries divided by World War II. The German Economic Miracle brought prosperity to German achiving living stndards far beyound pre-War Germany. In contrast East Germany labguished. Even more remarkable is that of Korea. North Korea was the most prosperous part of the country before the War. Today it the poorest country in the world where people starve to death. Across the DMZ to the south is prosperous South Kora one of the most vibrant erconomies in the world.






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Created: 1:53 AM 1/19/20111
Last updated: 1:53 AM 1/19/2011