If people think that America is a 3rd world country, or anywhere near a 3rd world country, then they haven't been to a 3rd world country. The US has major problems, undoubtedly, but we have a long way to fall till we hit the position of 3rd world. We are even leagues better than developing nations. I can say this as I have spent a long time living in both.
America is not literally a third world country. The expression "The US is a 3rd world with a Gucci belt" means that it is an extreme outlier for a 1st world country. The opposite is true in that China is an extreme outlier for a developing country.
Per 100,000 people, the US has 655 of them in prisons. The UK, Canada, France, Italy, Germany, and Japan have 140, 114, 100, 98, 75, and 41 respectively.
Healthcare:
- In the US it is expensive but you get decent care. If you are not making enough you get medicaid or subsidized healthcare that actually works (even in most rural areas).
- In for example Ukraine, technically there is socialized healthcare, but you still have to pay due to corruption. For the average Ukrainian, it's not an unsubstantial amount. They don't have the newest drugs, technology, or that sorts. I'm using Ukraine as an example but also applies to other developing countries generally.
Infrastructure:
- US has bad infrastructure compared to Japan. But the roads are generally paved (even in most rural areas), there is normally some sort of government that fixes the infrastructure. Sure there are cases of the dam breaking, but there are many, many examples of the government building parks, dams, paving new roads, fixing things, etc.
- In developing or even worse in an ldc, the rural roads are not normally paved except for 'main' roads. Outside major cities the road quality, building construction rapidly deteriorates. China is an exception to this, but I could talk a bit about China and how it is unique.
Water:
- In the US water is generally safe. You are able to point to Flint, Michigan which has a population of less than 100k, and a few others.
- In developing countries the water is bad. For instance when I first went to Moldova I got a very itchy and weird rash. When I started drinking bottled water, it went away. In other countries you can get parasites or diarrhea from drinking the water. This is not normally an issue in the US.
Corruption:
- In the US you can go to the government and not worry about bribing or corruption in general. The police will not stop you and ask for money. The opposite is true in many developing nations.
Internet:
- In the US, even in rural America, you can get Internet that is somewhat acceptable. Most Americans can visit Google and watch YouTube without major connection issues or that sort. Many places in rural areas of developing countries have bad connections at best.
Banking:
- In the US you have FDIC, many banking regulations, solid legal framework, trusted institutions. It's a bit sketchy in other countries, though might be because I'm a foreigner. Banking fees are much higher from what I have seen, especially in Argentina+Chile. I was blown away when I was there.
These are just some of the things I could think of from the top of my head. There are many more things and experience I could talk about, but this is a good start. There is a reason why millions of people try and immigrate to the US each year, that's not just random. I'm sure you could point of exceptions to what I laid out, but those are just exceptions.
"All right... all right... but apart from better sanitation and medicine and education and irrigation and public health and roads and a freshwater system and baths and public order... what have the Romans done for us?"
