Is America the greatest Country in the World?

                 "Can you say why America is the greatest country in the world?"

                 This question was posed to the character of newsanchor Will McAvoy, played by Jeff Daniels, on the first episode of the HBO series "The Newsroom" last year.

                 McAvoy, forced to give something other than his usual smart-ass response, replies with a rant about how America has fallen behind in so many ways, concluding with a rousing call for its people to recognize there is a problem so it can be mended (check out the video on YouTube; it's pretty great).

                 I was recently fortunate enough to travel to Rio de Janeiro to attend World Youth Day ------ an event that draws millions of people from all over the world.  As we traveled through Rio, our leader carried a big American flag so it was easier to stay together in the large crowds.

                I was shocked at people's reactions to the American flag as we passed them.  People started chanting "U.S.A.! U.S.A.!"  Others screamed "God bless America!"  One girl told me it was her dream to come to our country.  And everyone wanted a picture with the American flag.

                Now, I said I was shocked at these reactions to the presence of Americans among citizens of various other countries.  I recently have shared the opinion of Will McAvoy ----- that this world power certainly has a lot of room for improvement.  Seeing the positive reactions to America forced me to reevaluate my position; is America indeed the greatest country in the world?

                I mean, everyone else seems to think so.  Am I missing something here?

               But then I considered how little I knew about politics in their respective countries, so is it safe then to assume they know little about politics in America, as well?

               Do they know Congress recently failed to pass a bill that 90 percent of Americans supported?  Do they know how polarized our nation has become?  Or are they basing their opinions on the romanticized American dream in which many Americans have stopped placing hope?

               Then again, as I spent more time in Brazil, I came to appreciate America more and more.  Let's just say I hope to never encounter a cockroach again, and I'm happy to be drinking lots of good old American tap water.  And we certainly do not have signs prohibiting the performance of any type of religious ceremony in public places.

               Obviously, I'm still a little torn on this issue.  I guess, when deciding on which side we stand, we first must decide how we measure a country in a way that could potentially lead to it being named "the greatest."

               If we go by the stats, we certainly are not in the lead.

               But if we consider the underlying intangibles I hope will win out in the end ------ resilience, innovation, spirit ----- then maybe we can make that claim.