Smart people follow their dream
Dan,
Probably three-quarters of the World's smart population only have the luxury of only ever dealing with nightmares. Those who push themselves into the decision-making circles are smart enough to follow their selfish dreams but not smart enough to make decent decisions for the common good. Hence the state of affairs the whole planet is in.
Their most common shared factor is University educated background.

individual: what 'state of affairs around the world' are you referring to? If you check this website - https://www.visualcapitalist.com/mapped-global-happiness-levels-in-2021/ - you'll find that most people in most developed countries are happy (which I interpret as a useful measure of their state of affairs) whereas most people in developing countries are not particularly happy. When you then consider why things are not so good in those developing countries, poor and corrupt governance both in government and in the broader community are the most likely reasons. So the solutions to these people's less than acceptable state of affairs are overwhelmingly in their own hands.

If they are so damned happy, Bernie, why do they all want to live in the western world?

The people in the western world are mostly unhappy because too many third worlder's are arriving in our countries and turning our countries into the third world crapholes, suburb by suburb.

Which just goes to show that what really makes a successful country is the quality of it's population.

most people in most developed countries are happy
Bernie Masters,
Sounds like you need to spend time with working class people on building sites, farming fields & in factories instead of in polished, all provided for Universities !