If you look at the box of a Mac, it’ll probably say “Made in China” and “Designed in California.” That might seem insignificant, until you realize the same kinds of labels are being used to justify a war with Iran.
Yes, someone allegedly said that his drone was “built in Lebanon but made in Iran.” So, they bought a drone from the Iranians (or from someone who bought it in Iran, or even pirated it off an Iranian model). Big deal. I bought a camera from the Japanese. Or is it the Chinese.
I can understand Hezbolla’s little thing. First off, they are proud to have bought a piece of electronics not made in China. That’s a rare accomplishment.
GoPro, Canon, Sony, you name it, it’s either made in China, Hong Kong, or, if you’re lucky, Taiwan. I can still find shoes made in Indonesia or Vietnam, or occasionally even Germany and Italy, but electronics tend to be made by the largest Communist country in the world. Communists don’t have labor unions, they have massive state intervention in their economy, they confiscate money from whoever they feel like, but hey, they work cheap.
I’m not sure I want to buy a drone made in Iran for my film, but really, can I legitimately claim that the Chinese support my filmmaking efforts? Simply put, I buy what I can get. If there were cameras made in Wales, I’d seriously consider those. I’ve bought accessories made in the USA, or even Canada, like mini-tripods and mounts, but there seems to be some unofficial rule that the majority of the Western world seems unable to assemble electronic components. The made in the USA website doesn’t include the old mounts I have, but it includes similar products. http://www.americansworking.
Sure, you can get a Dell computer (or even a Mac) that’s re-assembled in your home country, if you want extra Ram or hard drive space or some other addition that doesn’t come out of the box. They basically open up the made in China components, and add in an extra made-in-China component at your local Mac Store or Dell Warehouse.
Perhaps, if you’re rich, you can find something made in Germany or Japan. If you’re willing to fork over 40k, you might even get one made in the USA. (Or one that might be made in the USA. Partially. Maybe.)
In all likelihood, however, your camera is made in China, but you have never been to that country. So, like Hezbollah, you too can claim foreign support for your filmmaking efforts.
China was behind the War of 1812 movie that I starred in, and the Californians also had a part in it. Now, if enough crowdfunding comes in, we hope to get Japanese and German support for our next film. Hey, if Iran has any second hand spy drones they want to sell to us, perhaps we could use those two (pending legality of import).
But, I don’t plan to fly any of my stuff over national borders, I don’t want it to get shot down. Bad move Hezbollah, that’s no way to treat a camera. Does this chin look like it’s made of money?
