> -to you, however, it must be pointed that the 1/3 of per capita GNP for
> -SK/USA was similar to that of USSR/USA by 60´s, so, when I talk about
There's no way the USSR had one-third of US GDP in the 1960s; that's a wealth level close to Western Europe, and my Russian relatives report living standards in the 1960s were extremely spartan compared to the US (no cars, getting an apartment was a big deal, etc.). This wasn't the CP's fault -- Czarist Russia was desperately poor, and two ghastly, traumatizing world wars plus an arms race meant consumer choices were limited.
South Korea is the proverbial different kettle of fish. LG, Samsung and Hyundai are all top-notch exporters, Korean firms have moved up the value ladder from cheap electronics to intermediate goods, education levels and spending on R & D have all zoomed. They've also put up one hell of a fight against the IMF -- they nationalized their banking system in '98 instead of following neolib orthodoxy, and have some of the feistiest unions in East Asia.
-- Dennis