While I think that you make some great points, the comparison to South Korea isn't really a good one. South Korea is a homogenous society: one culture. It has a mortal enemy right next door. That next door threat makes them closer. America is anything but homogenous. We are the "United" states of America, but we are hardly united. Red states claim to be victims while they get handouts funded by blue states.
We have a long history of sociopathic behavior to minorities, aboriginals, and the poor. Miners fought pitched battles against the state. Slaves rose up in rebellion. Irish rail workers who got sick were simply massacred. It was called "Bleeding Kansas" for a reason. Chinese workers were denied basic human [rights.In](http://rights.In) South Korea, schools are federal. In the US, states run schools usually by elected officials who are religious fundamentalists. Any moron is allowed to run a school in the US. Hell, many schools still use corporal punishment. In six US states, parents can deny their own children medical treatment and let them die in the name of religion. We still have child brides.
I remember when Sara Palin screamed about death panels, but now her silence indicates that her morality was nothing more than immoral opportunism.