Why is Warren Buffet a successful man in the first place?

Many are what I’d call “Warren Buffett centrists.” They are not billionaires, but they are people who believe in Mr. Buffett’s saying that whatever he achieved in life was due primarily to the fact that he was born in this country — America — at this time, with all of its advantages and opportunities.

Thomas Friedman in “More Poetry,please” in the New York Times on Nov 2, 2009