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[-] Zerush@lemmy.ml 21 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Logically, it's not about how much money you make, it's about purchasing power. It is irrelevant if you earn only $400 a month when you can eat well for $1 and pay $100 for your housing, you have free health care and education. That is the reality in some third world countries.

[-] Reginald_T_Biter@lemmy.world 6 points 3 days ago

Third world doesn't mean poor, it just means not aligned with US or Russia

[-] psud@aussie.zone 1 points 1 day ago

It used to mean that. First World was US aligned (or at least US friendly), Second World was Soviet aligned, Third World was not aligned

Now though, First World means developed nations, Third World means poor nations, Second World has fallen out of use

[-] Reginald_T_Biter@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago

Only to those ignorant of it's meaning. Developing nations is what people mean. Like people say third world, third to what? What's first and second?

Espousing an old no longer relevant definition to sound smarter and be "right" is peak lemmy/reddit behavior. Third world does mean poor now.

[-] Reginald_T_Biter@lemmy.world 1 points 2 days ago

It does. Strictly it does. Why do you think china is no longer considered third world?

[-] Reginald_T_Biter@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

Strictly, technically every other way China is still third world. This concept of third world being poor seems to have originated from the common charity ads in the 90s and 2000s who loved the phrase, and from the American exceptionalism that thinks everything not American is dirty and poor.

Being poor is the only way a country is third world or not. Being politically related to America is not relevant to the present definition. So no, it is not "technically in every other way". It just is not a third world country, period.

[-] Reginald_T_Biter@lemmy.world 1 points 2 days ago

Wrong. That's not what it means, no matter what anyone says on here.

Do you seriously think you know what a word's meaning is better than the hundreds of millions of people who use it in a way different from how you suggest it?

[-] Reginald_T_Biter@lemmy.world 1 points 2 days ago

I know it's meaning just fine.

[-] ManOMorphos@lemmy.world 1 points 2 days ago

No one really uses that word in its Cold War context anymore. It's the common term for "developing countries" and the like.

[-] Reginald_T_Biter@lemmy.world 3 points 2 days ago

People believe that only because they haven't learned what it actually means.

[-] ManOMorphos@lemmy.world 1 points 2 days ago

You're right that they either never learned what 1st-2nd-3rd world really means, or they forgot what they were taught in history class. Unfortunately it still is the main term to refer to poor countries even though it's incorrect. Language seems to be biased towards the common meaning over the technically correct meaning.

[-] Zerush@lemmy.ml -1 points 3 days ago

Spain isn't third world, it already had shown the middle finger to Trump and also has few to do with Rusia. Third world countries don't certainly mean people starving, the people there often have all what they need, but this, you'll see few Ferraries there and chalets with swimming pool. Someone is rich, not necesarly because a lot of money, but because he need only few. We often enter in a rabbit hole of the consumism, spending a lot of money in things we really don't need, we work like a dog to have enough money to pay a journey to Hawaii to recover us from the burnout, which we wouldn't have working less, no needing this journey.

[-] LH0ezVT@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 day ago

Have you been to Spain? I'm not saying it is not better than where the US is headed to, but it's a "western" country in Europe, with all the issues that come with it. Somewhat social market economy, but still suffering from the usual issues, including people driving Ferraris while others sleep on the street.

Also, at least since Franco I don't think anyone genuinely thinks of Spain as third world.

[-] Zerush@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Well, I'm from Spain, also in Spain there are People with Ferraries (few) and also poor people, but there is nobody without food, because Spain has a strong social system and free healthcare for everyone. Nothing, absolute nothing to do with the US, it's the opposite in almost everything. Luckily Spain has also little dependency on the US or Rusia, so it is also not much affected by Trumps Tariffs or Rusian Gaspolicy. Trump hates Spain.

this post was submitted on 26 Nov 2025
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