Actually: Taiwan was already wealthier than communist China when it broke off in 1949. Taiwan's economic miracle started during the 1960s known as the "Taiwan Miracle" while Communist China was mired down by the "Cultural Revolution" and a centrally planned economy which just doesn't work as well as a market driven economy.
Tennessee still ranks in the bottom 10 when it comes to the HDI (Human Develppment Index). Ever wonder why the American South was economically "backwards" compared to the rest of the United States. Here's a hint on what was partially responsible: Google "Hookworm in Tennessee" and "Malaria in Tennessee". Yeah these two diseases along with Pellagra and STDs were prevalent in the Deep South and parts of the Border South (such as Tennessee).
Yes

: When FDR established the public works program in the 1930s one of its goals was to eradicate Malaria from the American South. There was also a campaign going on by the US Public Health Department to eradicate Hookworm, so before you point your Communist Finger while you are sloshed to the gills sitting on your shit-stained mattress, do your research.