The online magazine Good routinely publishes infographics that we enjoy. Occasionally they even hold a contest to design good infographics. Today they have published an infographic on the sales of weapons around the globe. The most popular weapon is tanks or self propelled guns. The second most popular is air-to-air missiles. On the right, they have a stacked area chart of arms sales by country. Personally, I never liked stacked charts because it makes it difficult to tell the percentages for any country except for the one on bottom. In this case, the United States has increased its arms sales abroad increasing in 2007 and 2008. But did the United Kingdom really expert nothing in 2008? Has China expanded or contracted its arms sales? Again, a stacked area chart makes it difficult to tell. Finally, the stacked area chart is based on percentages, yet the size of the market has increased over time. A country could decline in arms sales on a percentage basis yet realize more sales since the market grew.

Gun Slingers – Arm Sales Around the Globe.

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