As Thomas L. Friedman observed in his classic The Lexus and the Olive Tree, if someone had set out to design a country to take advantage of the ups and downs of globalization, the United States would be that country. Those unique characteristics will enable our country to continue to take advantage of globalization, despite the volatile environment.

Let’s consider what gives the U.S. its strategic advantage for success at globalization. Friedman identifies at least 10 critical success factors:

First, it resides in an ideally competitive geographic position. It’s both an Atlantic and a Pacific power, and is between Canada and Latin America. Therefore, it can trade easily with all three key markets of the world: Asia, Europe, and the Americas.

Second, its population comes from a variety of ethnic backgrounds and speaks a multitude of secondary languages. This gives the U.S. links to every other nation on Earth, yet its people speak a common language, which just happens to be the primary language on the Internet.

Also, the American dollar is the reserve currency for the rest of the world. It also unites the five regional economies of the U.S. A single country with diverse regional economies is at a greater advantage, as a slump in any one region is typically offset by a boom in another.

Third, the capital markets of the United States reward venture capitalism.

As a result, innovators who come up with new ideas can usually find more than enough money to bring the ideas to market.

That’s one reason that in America, unlike Europe, creative destruction is the natural order of things. Consider that Massachusetts has a bigger venture capital industry than all of Europe combined. Venture capitalists provide more than money; they also provide expertise for start-up firms.

Fourth, the U.S. has the world's least corrupt legal and regulatory system. Investors who live here and abroad can always count on a reasonably level playing field. Unlike in other countries, foreign investors in U.S. markets are given an equal chance at making a profit, and they are allowed to cash in their profits at any time.

Fifth, it is acceptable to go bankrupt in the U.S. The entrepreneurial mindset in America even encourages people who fail in business ventures to declare bankruptcy and keep trying until they succeed. In...