The US: A hellhole compared to other developed nations?

Is the United States far behind other developed countries when it comes to social structure? Hurricane Katrina recently opened our eyes about poverty in America. the United States indeed has the highest wealth disparity of all developed nations. As the middle class continues to grow in other industrial nations, the middle class shrinks in the US. What does that say about us? A former ambassador to the US from Sweden stated in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and the situation in New Orleans that "The United States is a nation of great wealth, but is in some ways a developing country." Is the the US all it's cracked up to be?>