Reasons of North Korea's failure in industrialization

  Since the end of World War 2, many East Asian countries have gone though industrialization and modernization, from poverty to prosperity. Japan and "Four Little Dragons (South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore) " can be the typical examples.

  A scholar, Ezra Vogel, analyzed the factors of those countries' success, which are:
- Confucian heritage (high saving rate, group-oriented)
- US's generous aid (postwar reconstructions, aid from international organizations)
- Destruction of Old Order (feudal system and conservative strata gone after wars)
- Sense of Political and Economic Urgency (learned that USA won because of economic superiority)
- Eager and plenty Labor Force (hardworking young generation), and
- Learning from Japanese model (technological and commercial knowhow)

  Speaking of failure of North Korea when compared with its successful neighbors, personally I consider the geopolitical alliance with the neighboring Socialist states (China, Russia) since Cold War period is the main cause of its tragedy.
  This situation can be traced back to Kim Il Sung (grandfather of Kum Jong Un)'s success as a guerrilla fighter and later backed by Soviet Union to be "used" as a "puppet" for combatting US.
  The regime (Communism, "Juche" ideology), system and the allies caused North Korea's lagging level of modernization. Lack of market economy and competition among business brings no stimuli for the economy. Also the conservative notion of "self-sustain" cancels the opportunities of learning and communicating with foreign ideas, people, and models.