T.V manufacturer Toshiba pulled the plug on Britain's T.V manufacturing capability last week moving their production to Poland and making 270 British workers redundant in the process.
Once upon a time we manufactured lots of TV's in Britain and now there are none. Toshiba has gone the same way as Bush, Pye, Grundig and numerous others.
But should we really care ? While it is of massive concern to the individuals who have been sacked they will eventually find other jobs, although that will be difficult in the current climate. But, overall, should we care anymore than we care that people in Britain once worked in Cotton Mills, or went down mines at the age of 12.
Should we care anymore than in a quaint nostalgic fashion in the same way we care that we once made valves, or Cathode Ray Tubes, or we once dragged ploughs by hand and ate cheese and onions for lunch washed down with a flagon of Ale.
Maybe we should focus on the future and think about how we support a thriving and innovative electronics industry based on design and quality. There are hundreds and thousands of Innovative companies in the U.K who don't actually make much here. They do however provide thousands of high quality engineering jobs and deliver fantastic products which the consumer can buy for less than a weekly grocery shop.
Capitalism is a competitive, evolutionary system which, despite its problems, feeds, clothes and houses the vast majority of its Citizens at standards unsurpassed by any other system so far.
If you want to feel nostalgic about British TV manufacture keep that thought in mind next time you visit your High Street to buy your new TV set.
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