&gt; 1. That&#x27;s a false dichotomy -those are not the only options. The unstated implication (western-style democracy = success, communism = failure) is also wrong because there are many other orthogonal dimensions at play<p>These are typical options though. A <i>lot</i> of historical examples show this pattern throughout 20th century.<p>Remember, how originally, words &quot;1st world&quot; and &quot;2nd world&quot; were supposed to mean &quot;capitalist&quot; and &quot;communist&quot;, and ended up meaning &quot;great places to live&quot; and &quot;not so good&quot;?<p>&gt; 2. Is South Korea a puppet state or a colony?<p>It may not have been formally a colony, but it&#x27;s certainly a country under enormous political influence of western world in US in particular — just like post-WWII Japan and Western Germany. I don&#x27;t think that formal status matters as much.<p>&gt; 3. I think what you are really asking me is if I would rather be Fed or Free. There is no correct answer, but I would prefer both. How about you; would you rather be oppressed and flourishing or free and impoverished?<p>This is a false dichotomy, because &quot;freedom&quot; is good first and foremost because free societies are fed. Freedom is just a more effective society organization.<p>But a lot of former colonies never actually had this choice; instead, their struggle for &quot;freedom&quot; from western capitalism typically ended up in communist dictatorships in the USSR&#x27;s sphere of influence. It&#x27;s like the &quot;free Palestine&quot; guys, who know really well what they&#x27;re fighting against, but refuse to open their eyes on what are they&#x27;re fighting for.