I do accept the fact the there are badly manufactured or defective goods coming from well-known and high standard countries, but the ratio are minimal.
you have any evidence to back that statement up? and your test is a bit bogus. were these photos handheld? at 1.8, the slightest movement by you can cause a mis-focus that might not be viewable in the VF. wide open tests are so often done so poorly its just ridiculous to blame the equipment. you just don't know for sure that it is the lens. im not buying it unless you can do a proper test.
I get the feeling you pre-judged this lens right out of the box, simply because it wasn't 'made in Japan'. guess what? a hand assembled lens is a hand assembled lens. whether they are Vietnamese hands, Japanese hands, Chinese hands, Philippine hands or American hands. you think the Vietnamese workers are any less trained or skilled than the Japnese assemblers? certainly paid less, but there is no evidence to say that the Japanese worker will produce a better lens.