ASICs are kind of a mixed bag as far as I'm concerned. The threat of centralization is there, but on the other hand, an entire industry has formed around bitcoin because of the advent of ASICs.

The Japanese are already getting into mining, and the Russians are likely to follow as well. How this plays out over the long haul is anyone's guess at this point, but I envision corporations and nation states getting into the ASIC manufacturing game over the next few years.