• gingernate@sopuli.xyz
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    2 days ago

    USA is first world by definition, regardless of what happened it can only ever be first world because the USA, is by definition first world.

    • 0_o7@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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      2 days ago

      Whose fucking definition?

      It’s really hilarious how they create arbitrary “definitions” for themselves and pick and choose when and how to use them.

      Have to put down people of developing countries? yea, you’re from third world country. It’s suddenly about standard of life, civic sense, and freedom.

      Falls to fascism like it’s just another weekend and lets police run like brown shirts, does very little when they build concentration camps and climate choking machines, now the condition for “first world” switches to “we’re still ‘first world’ because we defined it”

      Fuck right off with your made up definitions. You can self assign yourself whatever the fuck you want, doesn’t mean rest of the world has to adhere by your “definition”.

      • OccasionallyFeralya@lemmy.ml
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        2 days ago

        By its literal definition. First world describes the US and its allies, the second world described the Soviet bloc, and the third world is everyone else/the non-aligned nations.

      • gingernate@sopuli.xyz
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        1 day ago

        Here’s Wikipedia. It’s not my definition. I’m also not saying people haven’t used it in a derogatory way now as a term to refer to underdeveloped nations.

        The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either NATO or the Warsaw Pact. The United States, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Turkey, the Southern Cone, Western European countries and other allies represented the “First World”, while the Soviet Union, China, Cuba, North Korea, Vietnam, Romania and the rest of the Warsaw Pact and their allies represented the “Second World”. This terminology provided a way of broadly categorizing the nations of the Earth into three groups based on political divisions. Due to the complex history of evolving meanings and contexts, there is no clear or agreed-upon definition of the Third World.[1] Strictly speaking, “Third World” was a political, rather than economic, grouping.[2] Political alignments in Europe during the Cold War after 1961

        Since most Third World countries were economically poor and non-industrialized, it became a stereotype or a derogatory euphemism to refer to developing countries as “third-world.” In political discourse, the term Third World was often associated with being underdeveloped. China was labeled “Third World” for several decades in the 20th century before its robust development in the 21st century. Some countries in the Eastern Bloc, such as Cuba, were often regarded as Third World. The Third World was normally seen to include many countries with colonial pasts in Africa, Latin America, Oceania, and Asia. It was also sometimes taken as synonymous with countries in the Non-Aligned Movement. In the dependency theory of thinkers like Raúl Prebisch, Walter Rodney, Theotônio dos Santos, and others, the Third World has also been connected to the world-systemic economic division as “periphery” countries dominated by the countries comprising the economic “core”.[1]

        In the Cold War, some European democracies (Austria, Finland, Ireland, Sweden, and Switzerland) were neutral in the sense of not joining NATO, but were prosperous, never joined the Non-Aligned Movement, and seldom self-identified as part of the Third World.

        Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, other terms have also been used instead of Third World such as developing countries, least developed countries or the Global South.

        • plantfanatic@sh.itjust.works
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          1 day ago

          You just conveniently leave out the portion that talks about the modern defintion and interject your own. The fuck?

          It’s been a while since someone has intentionally editorialize a quote, probably why you left out all the hyperlinks and everything too.

      • sbird@retrofed.com
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        2 days ago

        “First world” was a Cold War era term, where “first world” is America-aligned nations (so by definition, that would include the U.S.), “second world” was Soviet-sligned (no longer really in use since the Soviets no longer exist), and third world was everybody who didn’t pick a side (so China after Sino-Soviet split, India, Brazil, etc.)

        Most organisations use the more neutral terms “developed” and “developing”, and the U.S. is definitely a developed nation (there are less binary terms that economists and such use to categorise even further that you could look into, just check the organisation who runs it since many can be biased towards certain things compared to others)

        • XiJinpingStanAccount@lemmy.ml
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          1 day ago

          Personally I think those terms are still kinda weird. Like “developed” isn’t a binary. You never stop developing as a nation. Sometimes you backslide too.

          • jfrnz@lemmy.world
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            17 hours ago

            You’re not alone, that’s why they’re only used today in Reddit/Lemmy comments and Republican tweets. Oh, recently probably Executive Orders too.

        • plantfanatic@sh.itjust.works
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          1 day ago

          Sure, continue to perpetuate the selfish and ignorant defintion dude! You’re only making things worse by trying to reuse the antiquated USA centric definition. Only Americans use that one still.

          • sbird@retrofed.com
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            1 day ago

            I am not trying to encourage the use of the term (it was a Cold War term), the idea of developing nations being part of the “third world” implies that they are far lesser than the first world nations, so it’s a stupid term that nobody should use in my opinion.

            • plantfanatic@sh.itjust.works
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              1 day ago

              What’s wrong with the modern defintion?

              You’re refusing to even believe there’s another one, if you perpetuate the antiquated one, and incorrectly try and correct someone who is trying to use it right, you’re only making things worse.

              • sbird@retrofed.com
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                1 day ago

                Again, the idea of developing nations being in a “third” world isn’t good. Putting down people from being a “third world” country isn’t good. I am not advocating for this term, it is a stupid term that international organisations no longer use.

                And yes, alternatives exist. Developed/developing is better, though not perfect, and there are other, more accurate metrics and classifications on the development of nations

      • gingernate@sopuli.xyz
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        2 days ago

        That’s not the definition of first world… Switzerland is a third world country by definition

        • plantfanatic@sh.itjust.works
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          1 day ago

          Anywhere but the selfish United States it is. Do they not teach you how words and language can evolve…?

          The only place still using the antiquated definition is the US. I think it’s so they can feel better or something, but yeah. Stop perpetuating outdated and racist definitions.

          • sbird@retrofed.com
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            1 day ago

            We aren’t advocating Cold War era definitions! We’re saying first/third world is stupid and nobody should really use it!! There’s a reason why most economists and such use developed/developing (or less binary classifications)

            • gingernate@sopuli.xyz
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              1 day ago

              This exactly!!! hahahha. Saying third world to refer to poor places is the antiquated and racist omg haha.

              • plantfanatic@sh.itjust.works
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                1 day ago

                Who’s refering to poor places? The link provides multiple metrics, and lots of developing countries meet it. But anytime it gets talked about, all anyone does is bring up the antiquated defintion to derail the conversation.

                Your defence is what people use to try and prevent the US from being labeled properly as third world. Which is just funny as hell.