That perspective was really valuable to me. It confirmed what I had long suspected: lots of Japanese manufacturing somehow still embodies a craftsmanship ethos.

That perspective was really valuable to me. It confirmed what I had long suspected: lots of Japanese manufacturing somehow still embodies a craftsmanship ethos. This seems lost in the large American brands (some smaller "Made in USA" brands like Norseman for drill bits still seem to embrace this ethos). This ethos is increasingly rare in software as well, and I'm wondering if this is setting up those who have discarded the ethos for a long losing game with technical debt, or if they will be eventually vindicated as having correctly optimized for price over complexity management and quality.