Made in China

Not to mention those cheap clones of Honda's small engine line; Chinese companies literally copy the engine architecture, construct it with cheaper parts, and (this is the really appalling part) have the balls to sell these things over here!

What's worse, we're buying them...'cause they're inexpensive and we're willing to compromise our beliefs, in order to save a buck.

 

I guess no one listened to their Father's advice: "You get what you pay for" and "There's no such thing as a free lunch".

Americans' demand for dirt cheap prices is starting to bite us in the a$$. We want what we want but we're not willing to pay for it.

Don't expect Nordstrom quality at Walmart prices.

Or to put it another way "Put up or shut up".

 

I have been trying to avoid buying things made in China for some time now. They are part of the gas price inflation problem.
It's not easy. My cordless drill charger failed , and it's over $20 for a new charger! I've been looking at replacements, and MOST of them- even trusted names like Black and Decker and Craftsman are made- guess where@!?!?!?!?!? and none of them are CHEAP!

 

The concept that everything that comes from china is made in sweatshop like conditions and shouldn't be trusted for quality is pretty antiquated... It's true that labor over there is extremely cheap compared to the prices here, but it really comes down more to the company that's making the product. As a very good example of this, i would use Logitech. Awesome products that i've never had a single problem with - and some of them are getting to be 7-8 years old, which is way, way over the hill in terms of computer equipment. They're a Swiss company, but other than Switzerland they have offices in the US (everyone does), two in China (hmmm.... i wonder what could be happening there?), one in Japan, and one in Taiwan. They're a wonderful, innovative company with a high quality product that is made over in China.

The problem isn't "Made in China". It's a serious lack of safeguards, regulations, and inspections. On one hand, you could view it as the US government not doing its part to ensure public safety on goods sold. On the other, you could view it as the companies trying to save a buck - it's not the cheap labor thats the problem, it's the other corners that they cut at the same time. Someone goes up to their manager and says "I can get you paint for half the cost of what you're paying now" and the manager takes it up another level, and eventually someone says do it - all they see is the dollar signs, and it never even crosses their minds to check the paint for safety.

So blame the cost cutting companies are doing because we demand things cheaper every day. But it's not the cheap labor thats the problem in every case, and it's not China thats the problem.

To back this up, in the past few years all of the major medical device manufacturers have had a ton of recalls on their pacemakers and defibrillator's for safety reasons, and none of those were made in China.

 

:angry: :angry: :angry: :angry:
I HATE when I walk into a Home Depot, Lowe's, Wal-Mart, Sears, etc. and see over 90% of the items for sale "Made In China" / "Made In Taiwan" and KNOW that there are "Made In U.S.A." equivilents out there for a few pennies more, and I am willing to PAY even a few dollars more if it means "quality", but these stores refuse to carry them. And YES, it is mainly the MANUFACTURER'S who send their molds, dies, production machinery. etc. from the U.S.A. to China and set up manufacturing there !! But I have ALWAYS had this theory..... Why doesn't the U.S.A. "punish" (in a crude way of saying it) these Manufacturer's that insist on moving production to China from USA, with a NON-TAX BREAK, that is if a Company insists to manufacture over in China, it is NOT entitled to any USA "tax cuts" and rather should pe penalized by ADDING A HEAVY TAX to that Corporation. This will give some sort of "incentive" to stay here in USA..... if one does then the next will (stay) and then the next, and pretty soon you will have manufacturing back in the USA for the most part. We give NO incentitive for Companies to stay here and on the other hand we do not "penalize" them when they go to China. In fact, in effect we are rewarding them by selling their goods !!
Now I am a Computer / Electronics Engineer by trade, and I can see "consumer electronics" as the previous poster mentioned, made in China, but important power tools, critical engines, building supplies (like present day China made nails & screws that are so soft and inferior they easily break) where does it stop ?? And recently FOOD.... Chinese Wheat Gluten mixed with Melamime, I mean how the Hell can one be so stupid and irresponsible to let this happen, and then NO ONE GETS PUNISHED that made this "killing" mistake, just the poor American animals that innocently ate this food whose owners THOUGHT was made in USA !!
I remember back in the 70's Bob Hope was on TV and representing the American Cotton Industry and his slogan was "BUY AMERICAN..... Look for the Made In USA Label !!" That is when clothing was starting to be imported from China. Now 99.9% of clothing is imported from China, Sri Lanka, Phillipines, Brazil, etc.
I am just glad I will be dead and gone when the sh*t hits the fan in about twenty years.........

 

A. Consumers want the lowest possible price.

B. The biggest expense in most consumer products is labor.

C. China has cheap labor.

I get a kick out of people bashing China and then watching them buy things based on price alone. Why do you think people shop at Wal-Mart? The answer is their low prices. Over 65% of what you will find on the shelves at your local Wal-Mart was produced in China.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Swanny1172 @ Jun 14 2007, 09:45 AM) [snapback]461487[/snapback]</div>

This is true for a vast majority, but there still are a few very quality conscious consumers that DON'T want to buy Chinese "junk" only to have it break time after time. Being an ex-mechanic I NEVER bought any crappy Chinese made tools and I always (even thought I paid top dollar) purchased Snap-On, Proto, etc.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Swanny1172 @ Jun 14 2007, 09:45 AM) [snapback]461487[/snapback]</div>

This is true and being from Connecticut, a state that was FULL of "Unions", I know how American Unions, no matter how good they think they are, can ruin a state by demanding high wages for their workers. This it trickles down to the Country getting in trouble...... Down here in Florida NO Unions anything like Connecticut has.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Swanny1172 @ Jun 14 2007, 09:45 AM) [snapback]461487[/snapback]</div>

I HATE Wal-Mart and rarely go there. There was a poster in a thread here on PC that insisted I buy an Oil Filter Wrench there. Strangely enough this Valvoline Oil Filter Wrench WAS made in USA, as is a few other items such as Mobil1 motor oil, etc., but all-in-all I stay away from Wal-Mart. Just cheap "crap" there that breaks easily or clothing that doesn't fit (Wife used to shop there, sizing labels crazy, Chinese made items are two sizes too small than label says). I ususlly go there for bags of Top Soil or garden stuff (mulch, rocks) because there is one less than 2 miles from our house.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(FloridaWen @ Jun 14 2007, 06:37 AM) [snapback]461486[/snapback]</div>

Me, too.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(FloridaWen @ Jun 14 2007, 06:37 AM) [snapback]461486[/snapback]</div>

Me, too.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(FloridaWen @ Jun 14 2007, 06:37 AM) [snapback]461486[/snapback]</div>

The reason is that the corporations own the government. This is a complex process: It's partly outright bribes. It's partly quasi-bribes in the form of campaign contributions that politicians know they need to get elected. It's partly selective campaign support, because without those big corporate campaign contributions a candidate cannot get elected and the corporations don't give campaign contributions to candidates who do not share their interests. And lastly, it's partly that our leadership comes from a socio-economic class that believes that corporations are the strength of the economy, and that everyone's interests are served by globalism.

In short, the government does not punish corporations for flooding the domestic market with inferior and unsafe products, because the corporations run the government. How many PriusChat members turn themselves in to the cops and ask for a ticket every time they realize they've been driving over the speed limit? I don't. And the corporations are not going to punish themselves for screwing the country. This quarter's profits are all they care about. And they are structured in such a way that individual managers must maximize this quarter's profits or be fired, even if it means their own collapse down the line.

This political system is sometimes known as corporatism, and it's the inevitable result of capitalism. Most of our laws and administrative regulations are written by corporate lawyers acting as lobbyists. And our government essentially functions at the will of the corporate world. Corporatism has another name, but it's an emotionally loaded word, so I'll refrain from using it.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(FloridaWen @ Jun 14 2007, 06:37 AM) [snapback]461486[/snapback]</div>

Don't be so sure of that. You and I may be dead before the collapse comes. I hope I am. But there is a very real possibility that it could come much sooner. Our national savings rate is so low, and so much of our national debt is held by foreigners, that if they called in their loans it could set off a chain-reaction and an economic crisis that would lead to an economic collapse.

 

China isn't the only country with toxic products: http://www.newstarget.com/021891.html

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(daniel @ Jun 14 2007, 09:19 AM) [snapback]461499[/snapback]</div>

I agree with the general premise of this section daniel - if the national debt is called in, our economy and way of life would collapse. Thats why we need to start paying down the national debt. However, if the US economy collapses it will almost definitely take the rest of the world with it, and no one wants that. The real worry is the dramatic increase in infrastructure in places like China - it points towards a huge upsurge in economic importance of the country. We very well may see a time in 20 years or so where China's demand for goods is greater than ours, and they're importing everything in sight... if that should happen, then the impact on the global economy of the collapse of the US economy might not be as bad, as they would have someone like China to help fuel growth. Thats when we have to worry.

Of course, we should be worried and taking action now, as it'll likely take us the next 20 years to make a sizable dent in our national debt, if we were dedicated to doing so.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Stev0 @ Jun 14 2007, 08:10 AM) [snapback]461544[/snapback]</div>

Or me, for that matter.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Pinto Girl @ Jun 13 2007, 07:33 PM) [snapback]461250[/snapback]</div>

That is exactly how the Japanese started too.

 

As much as I'm a Bill Clinton fan, this one really is his fault. It's the trade agreement we have with China that makes it so cheap to do business with them. As was said, it comes down to corporations essentially owning our gov't.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Dragonfly @ Jun 14 2007, 10:31 AM) [snapback]461568[/snapback]</div>

You are right, there is not another country in the world which would allow this to go on. We are being fleeced by countries in the far east and the politicans don't say a word, PATHETIC! :angry:

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Dragonfly @ Jun 14 2007, 11:31 AM) [snapback]461568[/snapback]</div>

Speaking of ole' Mister Bill......... did you know that two days ago it was Monica's Birthday?

BIRTHDAY REMEMBRANCE
This week we celebrate a special birthday. Monica Lewinski turned 31.

Can you believe it? It seems like only yesterday she was crawling around
the White House on her hands and knees, and putting everything in her
mouth.

They grow up so fast, don't they?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(FloridaWen @ Jun 14 2007, 10:13 AM) [snapback]461622[/snapback]</div>

LOL :lol: Now that's funny I don't care who you are , that's funny

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Dragonfly @ Jun 14 2007, 08:31 AM) [snapback]461568[/snapback]</div>

It happened on his watch, but it was the inevitable result of Capitalism Unlimited and was a demand of our corporate rulers that would have happened regardless of which band of criminals was running the government at the moment.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(malorn @ Jun 14 2007, 08:38 AM) [snapback]461577[/snapback]</div>

Are you serious, or is this a joke? A half a dozen countries in the world (including the U.S.) have been doing this kind of thing to the rest of the world since the beginning of the industrial revolution. The difference now is that the corporations have gone trans-national, and now America is as much a victim of corporate greed as the rest of the world was all along.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(daniel @ Jun 14 2007, 10:30 PM) [snapback]462094[/snapback]</div>

GM doesn't make & sell cars in China. American companies don't have native employees in India. In Mexico foreigners can't own land. If you want to do business in China & India you have to form a native company in which you own 50%. Currency controls make getting money out tough.