Other than the Zippo lighter finding things that actually work and have a long lifespan is not an easy task. I agree that it is sometimes a better buy to pay a little more for higher quality and maintainability but it does not seem to be supported by the market in many items.
As I said I lived in Europe and the midset is very different. They don't even understand why we buy inferior products that barely get the job done.
In Germany,a completely unionized country and labor friendly (to put it mildly), I managed to get an iron that actually got hot ($45USD) a Bosch washer that actually got my clothes clean, front loading ($250) and the most incredible vacuum (Seimens $150 USD) that actually lasted, was metal and could pick up a golf ball from a foot away.
So, if completely unionized to death Germany can bring a German-made product to the table for a reasonable price why can't American corps do the same?