These are the facts and they are true for many Western countries when it comes to IT manufacturing. A lot of special knowledge is no longer available in the West because it has been outsourced to China etc.. This is not about "general education", this is not knowledge getting asked in a SAT. This is about highly specialised knowledge. Countries like China invited Western specialists and acquired all their knowledge, while us in the West became complacent. Eventually, we just collectively said "Alright, then let the guys in China do it" and now we are wondering why we can't manufacture back at home anymore.
Eexactly
@xRem! That's partly why I was careful to add that no one needed take the challenges of "Made in the USA" personally, as this topic, in the states, can understandably be made quite personal. For some.
As you suggest, this has nothing to do with general education or capacity/potential of any one human in any one country and literally
everything to do with profits (almost always does). I mean, let's
pretend the US made some grand commitment to be "manufacturing iPhones in the US by 2030." And
pretend the infrastructure; the training, the development, the workforce, the factories, could all be in place by then (remember, I said
pretend). We would still be facing the
single most significant hurdle of the entire situation: labor laws. The main reason China has cornered the global manufacturing market (aside from their commitment to developing skilled tradespeople), is because they have no labor laws. Or at least none with the laborer in mind. They pay pennies a day while working their workforce to death (sometimes literally). To be clear: pennies a day + inhumane working conditions will never, ever, fly in the US - nor should it (nor should it
anywhere). But while we're here, let's pretend this all the way to the end. Say the US somehow manage to pay its laborers at least a minimum wage, offered health benefits, 401k, sick days, paid time off, performance reviews, bonus structure - you know, the standard employment expectation of the US workforce - it's funny how immediately the "Made in the USA" rally cry would silence once the price of goods sky rocketed to more than 5x what they would cost when manufactured in China. I am 100% certain the US consumer will not foot the bill of developing this skilled workforce. And there is even less of a chance that any corporation will foot that same bill. I know it pains some to accept, but everything - even patriotism - has it's limits.
Simply put, we are
all part of an interconnected global economy. One in which we all benefit from a globally balanced approach to manufacturing and trade. If Earth were a city and each country were a business, it would seem most efficient and beneficial if each business offered a specialized need that would benefit the city. I don't go to the dentist to get my transmission repaired. But both are valued services in a healthy, prosperous city. Same goes for the planet.