Your words "price discrimination" jumped out at me. Not so much to respond to your comment, but to post my own reaction, I'll briefly observe:
From a U.S. perspective (mine): Increasingly (well, it's a long-standing practice, now), film and television production companies move production abroad to take advantage of lower production costs (labor, et al.).
At the same time, they insist that I not source my viewing material from abroad -- that I not take advantage of lower foreign costs for the distributed media.
Well, this is a loud and clear fail, from my perspective. What gives them the right to access such advantages while denying the same to me? And... by moving their production abroad, they reduce the work and -- supply and demand -- wage levels available in this country.
If they want to "import" cheaper labor, etc. into their production costs, I should be able to "import" the cheaper foreign distribution product.
Otherwise... I'm in the position of an increasing number in the U.S. who have simply decided, "fuck them".
It's amazing how "free traders" suddenly find all sorts of arguments to the contrary, when free trade threatens to cut into their bottom line. Mostly, they're just another set of hypocrites. Dangerous ones, from my U.S. perspective, because of the way they are increasingly screwing us over, economically.
I don't begrudge the rest of the world advancement. I begrudge the self-serving in my own society who sell out a portion of their own population for their own personal benefit. I -- and I think we all, here in the U.S. -- could do with a few less knicknacks in return for a more healthy level of social equity including particularly e.g. access to healthcare, good schools, and livable wages at reasonable quantities of work hours.
And maybe other societies could do with a bit less brain drain and a bit more balanced social development. Less of us propping up foreign dictators past their and their regimes' natural lifespans.
I guess I've gone and gotten all non-technical on HN, here. But... our technical decisions, such as production sourcing, are directly involved in this.
When companies can move their production around, but people stay stuck in place (and as often as not, under repressive regimes), you do not have "free trade".
The labor portion of the equation is not free.
P.S. Sorry, that may have ended up a bit (or more) far afield from the original discussion.
(Continuing with the perspective) Even at the "inflated" U.S. prices I see, I tend to purchase materials I find good and where I am not overly offended at the funding model (as one example, I've been a long-time supporter of O'Reilly press and have not gone out pirating books). But I'm damned well not going to be preached at by these hypocrites, any longer, nor by their hired guns who now think (I hope, still not entirely correctly) that they run this country.
I think the U.S. could do with an overall rousing, depression-lifting round of "fuck them".
From a U.S. perspective (mine): Increasingly (well, it's a long-standing practice, now), film and television production companies move production abroad to take advantage of lower production costs (labor, et al.).
At the same time, they insist that I not source my viewing material from abroad -- that I not take advantage of lower foreign costs for the distributed media.
Well, this is a loud and clear fail, from my perspective. What gives them the right to access such advantages while denying the same to me? And... by moving their production abroad, they reduce the work and -- supply and demand -- wage levels available in this country.
If they want to "import" cheaper labor, etc. into their production costs, I should be able to "import" the cheaper foreign distribution product.
Otherwise... I'm in the position of an increasing number in the U.S. who have simply decided, "fuck them".
It's amazing how "free traders" suddenly find all sorts of arguments to the contrary, when free trade threatens to cut into their bottom line. Mostly, they're just another set of hypocrites. Dangerous ones, from my U.S. perspective, because of the way they are increasingly screwing us over, economically.
I don't begrudge the rest of the world advancement. I begrudge the self-serving in my own society who sell out a portion of their own population for their own personal benefit. I -- and I think we all, here in the U.S. -- could do with a few less knicknacks in return for a more healthy level of social equity including particularly e.g. access to healthcare, good schools, and livable wages at reasonable quantities of work hours.
And maybe other societies could do with a bit less brain drain and a bit more balanced social development. Less of us propping up foreign dictators past their and their regimes' natural lifespans.
I guess I've gone and gotten all non-technical on HN, here. But... our technical decisions, such as production sourcing, are directly involved in this.
When companies can move their production around, but people stay stuck in place (and as often as not, under repressive regimes), you do not have "free trade".
The labor portion of the equation is not free.
P.S. Sorry, that may have ended up a bit (or more) far afield from the original discussion.
(Continuing with the perspective) Even at the "inflated" U.S. prices I see, I tend to purchase materials I find good and where I am not overly offended at the funding model (as one example, I've been a long-time supporter of O'Reilly press and have not gone out pirating books). But I'm damned well not going to be preached at by these hypocrites, any longer, nor by their hired guns who now think (I hope, still not entirely correctly) that they run this country.
I think the U.S. could do with an overall rousing, depression-lifting round of "fuck them".