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I think my most genuinely unpopular take is that a widely held and genuine consumer preference for cheaper, lower-quality goods, not private equity, is driving the decline in quality of consumer goods like clothing and housewares.

Consumers used to select their purchases from what was available at local stores, which were stocked with goods chosen by professional buyers looking for quality and value.

Online shopping eliminated these gatekeepers and disintermediated the market, allowing consumers to express their desires more directly. And it turns out that what people really want is cheap disposable goods, not more expensive but higher quality stuff that lasts a long time.

Maybe you want cheap stuff. I am more than willing to pay for an oven where the knobs don’t crack and become non-operable, a computer that isn’t out-dated the moment I walk out of the store, a phone that works forever. (Seriously, how often did people replace old dial phones?)

A 20 year old touch tone phone will still make and receive calls just fine. A 20 year old palm top touch screen computer/still camera/video camera/flashlight/music player/video player/game machine/telephone, not so much.

If by still camera you mean a film camera, I have a 40+ year old Canon that works just fine.