chogy,
yeah, this is why there would be POCKETS of high-tech left. the issue is that while the US -could- make those parts, the cost of it would skyrocket, even if we had all the raw materials. manufacturers would go from global volume to national volume.
so after the personal computers start dying of old age and the ipods finally break down, only the very wealthy would be able to field the expensive replacements.
and this only works because the US is so big by itself, and is largely still internally reliant. the situation in say, china, would be about 10x worse, not to mention someplace like japan or cuba. forget 'rocky' then, it'd be mass famine.
^^ good points, but given the relative wealth of the USA, and the fact that manufacturing is still very much alive here, any consumer demand for a particular component would drive the prices high for existing spares, and some entrepreneur somewhere would tool up and make the part.
The fact that a country has a general capability to manufacture just about anything would make it a viable option. Items like semiconductors - most are made in Asia these days, but the technology is well known, we have the equipment, and it could be made here if there was a profit to be had.
The transition would be rocky and painful, but very survivable.
The fact that a country has a general capability to manufacture just about anything would make it a viable option. Items like semiconductors - most are made in Asia these days, but the technology is well known, we have the equipment, and it could be made here if there was a profit to be had.
The transition would be rocky and painful, but very survivable.
so after the personal computers start dying of old age and the ipods finally break down, only the very wealthy would be able to field the expensive replacements.
and this only works because the US is so big by itself, and is largely still internally reliant. the situation in say, china, would be about 10x worse, not to mention someplace like japan or cuba. forget 'rocky' then, it'd be mass famine.
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