Is Region Coding Really THAT Bad?

With all of the great announcments for the 3DS, there is only one that EVERYBODY is talking about.  "Nintendo has shot themselves in the foot, the system is region coded!.  Oh no, our gaming rights are being taken away because I can't play that one game I want."

Ok, I know, a lot of people out there love the crazy anime stuff and japanesy style, but is this really such a huge issue to just flat out say "no thank you Nintendo"?  I also get that most people will say that this is a huge cause of piracy; but really, that's just a lame excuse to pirate anyhow. 

Yeah, it sucks for those guys who are really into importing and all of that, but how many games do you guys import outside of the games that we get here to actually play through them and not just collect and try maybe once?  I have a friend who has explained to me how translations lose some of their 'umph' because of language differences, but is that really still a hot issue?  I agree that having a region coded system isn't a plus, but is that really a reason to not buy something for that one reason?  I mean, we don't get many things other countries get, and when we do it's not the same anyway, so why is it that the region coding of a system is this hard to take for a lot of people?

Now, before I end this, I will say that I understand that Sony witht he PSP has done something to work around the idea that Nintendo has put on the table; the idea that it's all about the ratings in other countries.  I know of the numerical system they have for that stuff.  However, it still doesn't work I don't think.  If you have something that is alright in Japan, say teen rated, that might very well be an AO game for us because of cultural differences and what we allow.  But, that is a debate that could go all many ways, so I will leave it at that.

-Eddie