The U.S. ranks 2nd for approval of drone strikes

According to the Pew Research Center, 61% of Americans “support the use of drones to target extremists in countries like Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia.” That is enough to make the United States rank second out of thirty-nine countries ranked in that category. Israel ranks first, with 64% of Israelis supporting such strikes.

The U.S. ranks 3rd in Jewish population

According to the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, an estimated 1.8% of Americans are Jewish, which makes the United States rank third out of more than two hundred countries ranked in that category. Israel ranks first, with 75.6% of Israelis being Jewish. Only six countries have Jewish populations equalling one percent or more of the total population: Israel, Gibraltar, United States, Monaco, Belize, and Canada.

The U.S. ranks 7th in poultry consumption

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, in 2003 Americans consumed 50 kilograms of poultry meat per capita, which made the United States rank seventh out of 175 countries in that category. Israel ranked first, consuming sixty-nine kilograms of poultry meat per capita.

The U.S. ranks 8th in belief of benefits of U.S. policies

According to a 2007 Pew Global Attitudes Survey, 59% of Americans believe that U.S. government policies consider the “interests of other countries around the world.” This made the United States tied for eighth with Uganda in that category. Israel ranks first, with 74% of Israeli’s believing that U.S. policies consider the interests of Israel.

The U.S. ranks 57th in electoral process and pluralism

According to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Democracy Index, 2008, the United States has a score of 8.75 out of 10 in the measurement of electoral process and pluralism, which measures the fairness of elections as well as the free choice of candidates, and the transparency of campaigns. This score makes the United States tied for fifty-seventh, with Japan, South Africa, Israel, Argentina, Peru, and Guatemala.

The top-ranked country, all of which had a score of 10, are Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, Luxembourg, Australia, and Uruguay.

The U.S. ranks 4th in research and development

According to the OECD Factbook 2008, in 2006 the United States spent the equivalent of 2.62% of the gross domestic product (GDP) on research and development. That was enough to make the United States rank fourth out of forty-one nations. Israel ranked first, at 4.48%.

The U.S. ranks 3rd in ecological deficit

According to the Global Footprint Network, the United States has an ecological deficit of 4.4 global hectares per capita, tying it for third with Israel in that category. Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates are tied for first, with an ecological deficit of 8.4 global hectares per capita.

On the other end of the scale, Gabon has the greatest ecological surplus at 23.7 global hectares per capita. As a whole, the world has a deficit of 0.6 global hectares per capita. Taken together, high income nations have a deficit of 2.7 global hectares per capita.