18th out of 50 is not excellent for a HEGEMON country that essentially rules europe, south america, and half of asia. I imagine Britain was better than 18th out of 50 during the height of the british empire.
States by and large originated as a means to organize violence at scale, so it's not surprising that the most successful ones historically are also the best at that specifically.
slt2021|1 year ago
This is a single undisputed thing about the American exceptionalism, the mind-boggling efficiency of the state-organized violence
int_19h|1 year ago