Quality and service

There is no doubt that quality of various products and goods has gone way downhill lately. Just this week I have had to return/exchange plumbing parts, two computer USPs, and the hyper-expensive Avalon ceiling fan blades that had been on order for a month and a half. All of these items were defective or downright busted in the boxes. At least in these cases, the returns/exchanges were dealt with by friendly people. These too are in increasingly tight supply, as I have been dealing with surly, inattentive or downright rude people in many settings. I guess I could just chalk it up to the declining Western civilization. I dont understand it. And I am getting increasingly short-fused in such situations.

Is it just me? Or is this just as widespread as I think it is?