Well, speaking for myself, I would rather save my pennies and by the $200 pair of US-made candlesticks. Because I wouldn't just be buying candlesticks; I would be supporting American rather than Chinese or Indian labor. I think--and this is just my opinion, of course--that I would disagree with you on the manufacturers responding to what the buying public wants. When American business began to offshore American jobs, they didn't do it in response to what the buying public wants. And they didn't do it because manufacturing in America was too expensive. They did it because there was an even larger profit to be made by using super-cheap labor elsewhere and not having to adhere to stricter environmental laws. But now--and this is where you're right, I think-- quite a number of that buying public is willing to spend big bucks on substandard crap from Indonesia, the Phillippines and China. Restoration Hardware is not cheap, but so much of what they sell is cheaply made. Same goes for a lot of brands that companies like Cabot House sells. Look at this table from RH:

http://www.restorationhardware.com/r...ump&navCount=0

Made of "unfinished, solid reclaimed pine timbers from 100-year-old buildings in Great Britain." But where is it manufactured? And what 100-year-old buildings? And why is "unfinished" a desirable thing? Is it supposed to be somehow more "natural," appealing to the environmentally-conscious? The only thing missing from that description is "Lovingly buffed by virgins on Tibetan mountaintops." For $3295.00??? It's crazy.

And think of the environmental nightmare that "globalization" has brought us: Wasting huge amounts of energy on shipping stuff all over the globe. In my opinion, the only sustainable economy is a local economy. American manufacturing needs to be brought back home, and until American consumers step up to the plate and demand it, it won't happen. So, at this point in the game, I do agree with you: If the buying public continues to support the production and distribution of foreign-made products, there's no incentive for those jobs to be brought back home and Americans will have only themselves to blame for the loss of industry jobs and destroyed communities.