of its largest company. impressive actions even when compared to more established democracies in the west. people might be inclined to conclude from all this that koreans are innately talented. in fact, the case of the korean peninsula disproves this notion. just across the 30th barrel lived millions of north koreans ethnically indistinguishable from their neighbors to the south, yet north korea is a disaster, one of the world's least successful economies and most opressive political systems. south korea's success is about having the right kinds of policies. i would add one other major factor to explain south korea's success, america. the united states shielded and supported south korea from its infancy, when it was a basket case economy and a fragile country threatened by its neighbors. americans went to war to defend the small nation halfway across the world and has maintained its