Underdevelopment

What does the term "developed country" mean? It seems to imply maturity, completedness, being in some Hegelian final stage of life. Is this an appropriate term in social science? Or is it another instance of polemics conquering scientific inquiry? Is the United States a "developed country"? Can't get any better than this, eh? Is that it? According to a recent ABC report, 40,000 to 100,000 underage girls are coerced into slavery every year (and sexually exploited as a result of this enslavement). Is that the best the United States will ever be? I could keep going with these types of examples, but you get the point. The term "developed country" is a complete crock (is that the right term?). And so is the term "developing country," which has a sort of infantile or adolescent or "I'm not quite mature" ring to it and is similarly a way of warping our point of view, rather than creating a possibility of better understanding of the human condition. The very fact that these words are used in "social science" is, in fact, evidence that the words themselves are empty of scientific content, but rich in evidence of the underdevelopment of social science.