The decline of high-tech manufacturing in the United States

Strategic & National Security Concerns

• Many argue the core issue isn’t jobs but dependence on China for critical goods; this is seen as a major vulnerability in any conflict or sanctions scenario.
• Others note China itself explicitly seeks “independence” in key supply chains; some think the US should copy this model, even at higher cost.
• There’s worry that when stockpiles run out, only one side (China) can actually manufacture at scale.

Jobs, “Purpose” & Romanticizing Manufacturing

• One camp claims high-tech manufacturing jobs would pay better than fast food, provide dignity and purpose, and stabilize communities hollowed out by deindustrialization.
• Several push back hard: assembly-line work is often monotonous and soul-crushing; it’s not inherently more meaningful than warehouse or service work.
• Skeptics see “purpose” talk as nostalgia from people who never worked those jobs.

Automation, Productivity & Future of Work

• Multiple commenters stress US manufacturing output is flat while employment has dropped >50%, implying automation, not total collapse.
• Reshored plants will be highly automated, so they won’t solve mass employment; a factory that once needed 50 people may now need 1–20.
• Debate over AI/LLMs: some foresee a “storm” for white-collar jobs; others say this is overhyped and driven by corporate marketing, not evidence.

Loss of Industrial Know-how & Tooling

• Strong concern that the US is losing not just plants but skills: tool-and-die, fixtures, injection-mold tooling, chip-fab process knowledge, etc.
• Covid-era PPE shortages and reliance on a single aging toolmaker are cited as warnings: the ability to spin up production quickly has atrophied.
• Several see this depth of experience as the real reason to bring manufacturing back, even if jobs are few.

China vs Western Manufacturing Ecosystems

• Many describe Western contract manufacturing as slow, expensive, and low-capacity, versus Chinese suppliers who respond within hours, iterate in days, and have dense local ecosystems (CNC, PCB, plating, molding, etc.).
• China is described as “the only place that can get things done” at speed and scale; some say we’re already “midway up the creek” with no realistic alternative.
• Others worry this concentration is brittle: if China is disrupted, the world loses the ability to make many basic and advanced products.

Economics, Policy & Trade-offs

• Suggested levers: tariffs, tax incentives, import controls, onshoring subsidies, reduced overseas military spend, and industrial policy (often framed as a mix of Trump-style tariffs and Biden-style subsidies).
• Critics warn protection can make US goods uncompetitive abroad and that voters are extremely price-sensitive after Covid-era inflation.
• Some argue automation plus high-value manufacturing (aerospace, chips, nuclear, advanced materials) is the realistic path; light, low-margin assembly is unlikely to return.

Labor Supply, Skills & Immigration

• Questions are raised about who would staff new plants given low unemployment and aging demographics.
• One proposal: build China-style factories in low-cost US regions and staff them with new worker visas from poorer countries; others warn this would inflame anti-immigrant politics and create an underclass.
• There is also concern about the missing “pipeline” from manual work to running advanced automated lines and robots.

What Still Exists in US Manufacturing

• Commenters list sectors where the US remains strong: aerospace and defense, rockets, satellites, turbines, advanced chips (with key firms still US-based), medical devices, pharmaceuticals, heavy equipment, firearms, and some autos.
• However, much of this is tightly coupled to the military–industrial complex and does not translate into broad-based prosperity.

Broader Political & Civilizational Reflections

• Some blame decades of offshoring and financialization by US elites, seeing this outcome as intentional.
• Others argue “efficiency” ideology (just-in-time, outsourcing, focusing on “core competencies”) has made the system fragile.
• A minority view holds that China is politically more stable and that trying to fight its rise is futile; better to accept a multipolar world than court war.