Thanks guys
I read the US FTA, and it indicated that telescopes for astronomical use were to remain duty free, so I guess I partially had misinterpreted that statement.
I had an interesting conversation with a local astro shop owner today about the whole thing, and I think it is safe to say that we were very much in agreement about the whole sole distributor thing and how it is abused in the case of Celestron. He gave me some mark up numbers that really didn't surprise me all that much, and backed up strongly my assertion that the scope/mount combo mentioned above should not be priced over $6k. Based on the numbers he gave (pm me if you want some numbers), there would still be money being made in this case with a price of $4500 AU, and it would be much more profit than the same scope is bringing in on the US market. However, with the sole distributor system, the local shops are as much a victim as the end purchaser. Additionally, the sole distributor in this case is not providing a real value add.
I also confirmed that there are multiple import sources for Vixen, which is why those are still affordable. Many thank-yous from me to the people who have made the effort to keep the Australian market competitive and profitable, without resorting to price gouging.
Eric