Consider this. China is a formidable adversary, not because it is nominally communist, but because it is China. Just its sheer size makes it powerful. Many people can't get their minds around how massive an entity China is; it is a giant by any measure. It is evolving as a nation and international powerhouse, and has embraced in typical Chinese fashion a combination of communism and capitalism. Think ying and yang. It is not the communist part that is most dangerous, but Chinese capitalism. This is not Mao's China. The issue of communism is a distraction.
rj308 has made a good point about the history of Japanese quality control. China is equally capable, and much bigger than Japan. It's not the cheap junk that China produces that is the economic danger but their capacity for producing quality products in quantity at a low price point. That is the real danger we face.
Pa
You are assuming they have the same work ethic and training the Japanese have which they do not. Their products have to be watched like a Hawk , no pun intended to the optics manufacturer.
I'm in both China and Japan often for work.
They're vastly different. China is very much communist, at least their version of communism. They're completely totalitarian and not going to lose that any time soon. You have no rights there, life is cheap, and anything is fair game as long as it's for the benefit of the state. Chinese manufacturers will steal tech with no remorse whatsoever and the biggest problem from the point of view of U.S. companies doing business there is that they will cut corners on the products they produce unless you watch them 24/7. That's why a company like Apple can get quality products like the Iphone and Ipad out of China while smaller companies get nothing but garbage from there. Apple has the resources and knowledge to ride them where they can't get away with cutting corners, many other companies can't or won't do that. It's not as simple as saying China always builds crap, they can certainly build quality goods because we've taught them how. What is ALWAYS certain though is that they will try to rip you off if you let them, it's their nature and almost a matter of national pride to try and screw American companies. They do regard us as the enemy.
Japan is different. Japanese work ethic is legendary and as a rule the Japanese are very honest in their business dealings. There are exceptions but as a rule their code of honor won't let them cheat you. Japan is about the only place on the planet where you can sit your suitcase on the sidewalk, go inside a restaurant for dinner, and it'll still be sitting there a half hour later when you come out. They're insular and don't particularly like outsiders. They look down upon other cultures even though they won't admit it, they also resent losing WWII and I'm pretty convinced if they could have a do over today they'd try to take over the Pacific again. They're polite and pleasant but most Japanese aren't going to offer up much personal information, you're not likely to get really close to one. Japanese products are more likely to be well designed and well made, when they commit to a job they intend to do it well and they usually deliver. If not for the price factor it'd always be a no brainer to do business with the Japanese instead of the Chinese.
Which one had I rather go to for work? Japan without a doubt. China might be embracing capitalism for the money but make no mistake, they're completely totalitarian and you can sense that when you're there. The walls have eyes & ears and you're always aware that someone is watching you. As a general rule I like most of the Chinese people I've met, they're friendly and usually have a sense of humor. You can joke around with them and usually have a laugh if they speak passable english. It's harder to crack the shell of the japanese though they're usually nice.
Just some of my observations from spending time in both countries.
