Country of manufacturing matters because $1500 retail for a mass produced steel frameset made in Taiwan is overpriced. Ritchey isn't putting out bespoke MiUSA frames that would typically command that high of a price. There is a non-zero chance the same factory producing Ritchey frames produces Surly frames. Spend your money how you want, but telling people that the "magic of steel" can't be found within the likes of Surly offerings is pretentious (and delusional). But the cycling industry is built around excessive consumerism... so carry on I guess.
Some flaws in your post...
- MUSA bespoke framesets cost more than $1500, so claiming Ritchey frameset pricing is akin to bespoke is disconnected from reality.
- just because 2 things come from the same factory does not mean they are of the same quality. Both spec and finish can, and often are, wildly different. This same factory claim is old and been shown to be worthless many times over.