Please remember that the 'Third World' doesn't refer to countries in squalor. It referred to the bloc of nations that were not aligned with either the Western bloc (First World) led by the US or the Eastern/Communist bloc (Second World) led by the USSR. Quoting directly from Wikipedia:

> Strictly speaking, "Third World" was a political, rather than economic, grouping.

> Since most Third World countries were economically poor and non-industrialized, it became a stereotype to refer to developing countries as "third-world countries".

> Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, the term Third World has decreased in use. It is being replaced with terms such as developing countries, least developed countries or the Global South.

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akhosravian 2 days ago | parent [-]

That’s a cool historical fact but the modern colloquial usage is synonymous with poor (financially) countries.

	▲	goku12 2 days ago \| parent [-]
		A 'modern colloquial usage' that's mildly described as a 'stereotype' on Wikipedia. A more precise description is that it's a revisionist redefinition that represents the disdain towards countries that refused to sacrifice their sovereignty for money, after suffering extended periods of exploitation. And it predictably undermines the historical picture of the socioeconomic realities that existed during the cold war - a picture that doesn't resemble in any way what the US is inflicting upon itself now.