boycott "made in china"

[jeffg]

Matt, have you ever studied the fall of the Roman Empire? The parallels between it and what we (and by "we" I mean Western civilization, not just America) are now experiencing are simply astonishing.. They too collapsed from the inside out; towards the end, they too began worshipping their soldiers, entertainers and athletes instead of their teachers and doctors, etc.

The "sad fate" of all great civilizations is not only a natural progression, it's inevitable. Ben Franklin knew it 200+ years ago:

"In these sentiments, Sir, I agree to this Constitution with all its faults, if they are such; because I think a general Government necessary for us, and there is no form of Government but what may be a blessing to the people if well administered, and believe farther that this is likely to be well administered for a course of years, and can only end in Despotism, as other forms have done before it, when the people shall become so corrupted as to need despotic Government, being incapable of any other."
-- Ben Franklin, September 17, 1787

 

[joeekaitis]

NOT Made in China

Corelle dinnerware (except Hearthstone), USA

CorningWare SimplyLite bakeware, USA

CorningWare StoveTop Pyroceram bakeware, France with lids from the USA

Fiesta dinnerware, USA

Pyrex and Anchor Hocking glassware, USA

Microplane zesters and box graters, USA

Lodge plain and Logic pre-seasoned cast iron cookware, USA

Come on, help me out here!

 

[jeffg]

Good reading for those who're wondering where our $2 trillion "stimulus" went:

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www.rollingstone.com

 

[mixergal]

Also made in the USA

Kitchenaid mixers. Some Sunbeam mixers - you have to be careful - the cheap Walmart ones will say "made in the USA" on the box, but "made in China" on the unit itself. Not so for Kitchenaid - they just supply Walmart with their low-end model.

I NEVER shop at Walmart, and I would rather buy an older model of whatever item and take it to a local repair shop to have it fixed.

Michigan has seen the writing on the wall for years. I remember "buy in the USA" bumper stickers in the 1970s. You were absolutely ostracized if you bought foreign. Nowadays, nobody seems to care.

I think shopping at Walmart is cutting off your nose to spite your face. I shop at the local grocery store. Sure it's more expensive - but they have real butchers who can explain the different cuts of meat to me, and they buy their produce from local growers. There's also an old hardware store down the street that's been in business for 100 years. They are hands-down more helpful than any Home Depot or Lowe's. I always go to these small, locally owned shops before I hit any of the big-box stores.

Just my 2 cents. I do my best to vote with my dollars and keep my money in my local community.

-Sherri

 

[qsd-dan]

I always go to these small, locally owned shops before I hit

I used to love doing this, but just about all of them have disappeared in my area......including the 100 year old Ace Hardware store downtown

 

[bajaespuma]

Chimerica, Chimerica, God shed his Grace on thee...

Read yesterday's NY Times Op Ed page. Wonderful piece on "Chimerica". Problem seems to be we spend, they save.

 

[everythingold]

Jeff, Yes I have a history degree and am well aquainted with the historical arc of empires. We are the richest people in all of history. Our "poor" have indoor plumbing, hot water, cable TV, and more than enough food. But that is not enough, if you can't afford everything shiny advertised on TV, you feel deprived. I don't even like to think about it, such a waste, we are embarassing as a people. And we cannot even fight a war. F it, I'm going fishing.

 

[whitekingd]

The problem with " Made in the USA" is

much of it is more "junk" than from China! I bought a coin changer that proudly stated "Made in the USA". It was the biggest piece of junk I have ever seen!! I wound up throwing it across the room, then in the trash. Since we have a minimum wage in the USA, we have to save somewhere. The materials are so cheap when made here, that the things are crap. (Not everything, or course, but you get my drift) Here again, a coin changer machine made solely in the USA would have to cost mega bucks. More than anyone would ever pay for it. China, with its cheap labor, can produce a fairly decent product at a reasonable price to us. That is why Wal-Mart is so successful. China can use better materials at a low labor cost.

 

[whitekingd]

Not to ramble, but,

if for example we made our own televisions in the USA, how much would they cost. I mean, if we made our own transistors, resistors, diodes, transformers, picture tubes, etc. etc., nothing from China, Japan, Korea, Taiwain, what would we have to pay for a TV? Thousands!!

 

[sudsmaster]

Some Chinese made products are good. The problem is the price squeezing occurs even with the low labor cost, so you get lots of stuff from China that is made with cheap materials and will fall apart in a couple of years.

There are premium Chinese made products, but one would be unlikely to find them on the shelves of Walmart. Some show up at Costco or at higher end stores.

The other problem with outsourced products seems to be that the feedback loop on new products is so extended that product defects - those that only show up after the general public has had its hands on the product a while - can take a long time to be addressed in production.