Originally posted by Aristophanes The US moved from being a producer nation to a consumer nation on balance of trade primarily because of the US currency as the e facto international reserve with all the global implications that creates. But that's not related to photography.
Prior to 1994 the US was a massive net food and coal exporter, which allowed exported dollars to be recycled, supporting a healthier balanced Balance of Trade and Current Account. The Clinton "Strong-Dollar" policy upset this relationship, allowing Brazil, Venezuela, Argentia and Australia to sign foodstuff and coal export contracts (20 year deals) at price-competitive leverage, so US producers literally closed mines and huge acreage of productive farmlands.
Further, for every one manufacturing job lost to foreign production over the last 25 years, three have been lost to
domestic robots.
US manufacturers are on-shoring hundreds of thouasands of jobs becasue the wage leverage has been reduced to the point that the long supply chain can't justify making overseas. Even foreign car makers have planned 20 million square feet of new US plants for the enxt ten years - vehicles for export!!
Legisl;ation is working its way through the US Congress to force internet sellers to actually collect sales tax at the point of sale based on the Billing Address, just as auto dealers collect sales tax based on the address of registration rahter than the address of the dealership. Combining 7% to 11% Sales Tax with Shipping charges will reduce (but not eliminate) the price leverage enjoyed by online sellers.
Pentax needs to address warranty, quality control, design ethic, idiotic marketing, core business strategy and fragmented global distribution arrangements. Whether these issues originate in Japan or are the result of NOT being Japan-driven is unclear, post Hoya.
Often there are larger forces at work than surface viewing indicates, but surface viweing makes good stories and good politics.
Systems are self-correcting, but often it takes longer than we would like.