So, let's separate a few things here.
a) Not everything Chinese-made is junk. China can produce quality product at many price points. China can also produce poorly built product at many price points. America is good at both, too. The blanket statement doesn't apply anymore, you have to look on a case by case basis; beyond that, where you spend your money becomes political, and that's all I'll say about that.
b) Let's compare your Taylor example with, say, a rant on Chris Reeve Knives (CRK) clones.
If I, as a Chinese manufacturer, make a knife that copies a CRK Sebenza, same size, same color, not same material, and even go as far as to put a CRK logo or "Idaho Made" on the blade tang? I've stolen a design I have no right to, put it on the market, and count on the CRK brand to drive my sales. That's theft of intellectual property, ethically wrong, and while every country has its own laws and regulations about intellectual property, patents, trademarks, et cetera - the point is, it's forgery. I have no right to the CRK name or likeness.
Why is Taylor brands different? Because they have the right to the intellectual property. From their website:
Taylor Brands owns and produces Schrade, Old Timer, Uncle Henry, and Imperial branded products, and are also licensed to produce multiple product lines under the world famous Smith & Wesson brand. In total Taylor Brands manufactures several hundred different products including fixed and folding knives, collapsible batons, tactical pens, handcuffs, tactical and survival accessories, and flashlights.
Taylor Brands owns the names Schrade, Old Timer, Uncle Henry, Imperial, and can legally produce Smith & Wesson knives. Not only the name, but the intellectual property - all the patterns and styles of knives those brands had produced, plus all the new knives they've put onto the market. At that point, while you could argue about the quality or consistency of any of those brands today, you can't say they've acted improperly. In fact, what they're doing is actually correct - own the rights to the things you want to sell.
c) I'll grant you, things are a bit muddier in the traditional knife market. Specific knife patterns (a "barlow", a "stockman", a "swayback", a "trapper", etc) have become generally accepted styles of knife through years and years of common production and are no longer protected, I believe, in the same way that modern blade products are. ("Years and years of common production" probably isn't a legal standard for losing legal protections, but I'm not a lawyer.) But modern inventions in knives come with patents, intellectual property rights, and the responsibility of rights owners to protect those rights.
