What countries are doing better?

This is not to suggest that all is well in any of these leading OECD countries. There are plenty of disputes, sluggish rates of economic growth and productivity, concerns about public investments, heavy tax burdens, failure to adequately implement programs, the challenges of sustaining expensive and vital programs in the face of declining populations, and other concerns in these countries. In some of these countries, there is political pressure from opposition or right-wing forces intent on curbing government programs. But the bottom line is, they have ranked far better than other OECD countries, and especially the United States.