U.S. college students oblivious to brand origins according to study

They have a point at the end, however... regardless of where a company is located, it's a pretty sure bet that certain components in mos devices were made in one particular region or another. You have some sort of electronic gadget (cell phone, PDA, watch, etc)? Odds are parts (if not the whole thing) in it were made over seas, even if the company producing it is an American based company.

What i find disturbing is that they respondents were associating quality with country of origin, and not brand specific. I've gotten some good quality stuff from many countries, and some poor quality stuff from many of the same countries. It's the brand that matters, not the country.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cwerdna @ May 29 2007, 03:07 AM) [snapback]451356[/snapback]</div>

How did they come up with that name- you're Lucky if your Goldstar microwave doesn't crap out in the first 6 months?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eagle33199 @ May 29 2007, 09:30 AM) [snapback]451417[/snapback]</div>

What I find even more disturbing about that story is the statement "Just half of college-age Americans can find New York on a map"

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(larkinmj @ May 29 2007, 08:03 PM) [snapback]451761[/snapback]</div>

What's scary is that these people are allowed to vote.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(burritos @ May 29 2007, 11:36 PM) [snapback]451857[/snapback]</div>

What is more scary than that is that they were even accepted into college. Voting is a right; college is a privilege.

 

Yes, there are a lot of dumb people out there- there have always been and always will be.. Sad to say, but most people are happiest when they're ignorant and don't have to think about anything but themselves and short of rounding them all up in a row and shooting them, there's nothing that you, I or anyone else can do to change this...

This study however, is rather pointless because who really cares where a brand comes from? Whether it's an America, Japanese, German or Korean company, these days, it's all made in Chna or Taiwan.. Try the same study with food brands, and do it anywhere in the world, and I'd bet that the result you'd find is that that majority of people in the *world*, never mind just in the US, are ignorant of where their food comes from.. The majority of poeple would likely identify the majority of brands as domestic (which is the logical assumption), but if you go and really look, there are a *lot* of brands of food items that are actually imported and you simply don't think about it because it doesn't matter..

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(c4 @ May 30 2007, 06:57 AM) [snapback]451965[/snapback]</div>

Except that it does matter, because we're getting food from China that's contaminated with melanin, and our under-funded and misdirected FDA can't inspect all the food that comes into this country.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cwerdna @ May 29 2007, 03:07 AM) [snapback]451356[/snapback]</div>

This is a very complex issue - in the end globalization is imho a key ingredient towards spreading individual rights and freedoms and improving the overall lot of life for most people. The same way Japan used to manufactor TV's after we gave up that mantle, they now import more TV's then they make and now some other heretofore underdeveloped country is making TV's and employing people who heretofore had no jobs and no need to learn about electronics, etc. These TV's once the province of only the wealthy in the US are now more affordable by factors to billions of people - and with the spread of TV and other sources of information people are now privy to information that heretofore was unavailable to them. By spreading jobs and money throughout the world we bring people up, albeit at times slowly, but we elevate people - they learn to read, they can educate their children, they can make a better life for themselves. Look at India and the transformation it has made over the past 50 years. Yes there are downsides, buy i believe the upside is much greater.

Ultimately we give people who want it a chance to have a better future for themselves and their children.

Look at the progress we have made in the past century in terms of life expectancy, levels of education, disease eradication, food production and distribution, etc. A common language is being born and methods of communication and sharing information are becoming greater - all of which make me believe that tomorrow holds greater promises for us all.

Is there a need for a brand to be 100% American or Japanese? Is there a need to be able to identifiy as such? It is nice to see brands reach across national borders and bring the best together from all over - driven by a desire for quality and price - it is a win win situation - again imho. Imagine a DVD player for under $30.00 - whowuddathunkit 5 years ago? A home computer for under $100.00! The thought of children in africa accessing the internet - amazing - great - globablization at work.

Imagine WalMart becoming a large producer of solar power or leading the charge for being environmentally friendly! A Chevrolet getting 150mpg!

Anyhow - back to work, so i can afford my wife being in the marketplace today

 

Good post Dr B.
Nicely stated.