Forum Post: We cannot complain about the lack of jobs in the U.S. when we continue to purchase Chinese and other foreign products. The only way to reverse the trend and bring tax dollars back is to BUY MADE IN USA products
Posted 13 years ago on Oct. 31, 2011, 6:03 p.m. EST by madeinusa
(393)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
We cannot complain about the lack of jobs in the U.S. when we continue to purchase Chinese and other foreign products. The only way to reverse the trend and bring tax dollars back is to BUY MADE IN USA products
“How do I do that when everything is Chinese?” Answer: Most individual items DO have Made in USA available; Avoid big box stores, search online, and contact the manufacturer if you are not sure
“But Made in USA products are too expensive.” Answer: Not true. While the initial cost may be more (in some cases), over the life of the product it is actually less expensive due to repair and/or replacement costs. It is cheaper to buy quality than quantity. Don't you remember your parents and grandparents fixing things rather than buying new replacements?
Facts:
Everytime you buy a foreign product you are sending a large portion of that money into foreign hands; money that used to stay here and provide good paying jobs and tax revenue for your Local, State, and Federal government. China's economy is booming while we are in recession.
Everytime you buy a foreign product you are giving the corporation more reason to continue the outsourcing trend
Everytime you buy a foreign product you are eliminating a U.S. job. This job could be your relative or neighbors.
Everytime you buy a foreign product you are lowering your wage. It gives companies and opportunistic politicians the opportunity to call for “streamlining” “lower wages” “lower health-care benefits” “lower taxes for the rich” “lower Social Security” “lower government/the peoples services”
Everytime you buy a foreign product you are probably purchasing an inferior/cheap product that will most likely fail making it a waste of money. You may have to replace the product several times making it more expensive than the American made equivalent.
Everytime you buy a foreign product you could be putting yourself and your children at risk by exposure to lead, cadmium, and other toxic materials. Foreign products DO NOT get tested nor is there any consumer protections for these products.
Everytime you buy a foreign product you are destroying the middle class and their/your neighborhoods. The loss of wages and ultimately their homes provides a decrease in tax revenue and invites rich slumlords to take over once working class areas turning them into neglected slums. Local services such as snow plowing and street paving decline and taxes go up.
Everytime you buy a foreign product you are helping the rich get richer. Fact is that while the ranks of the middle class dwindle, the rich are gaining complete influence and controlling the direction of Federal and State governments. We have no say when these people are in control. We are losing our voice. Money is #1 to certain individuals/entities. Re-gain control and reverse the trend by using your purchasing power and buy/demand products Made in USA!!!
It is a good point. We have freedom and if people change their values and decide to buy more American, brilliant!
I do this, I wish others did too. If you are going to import something, just think twice about something made here first.
I totally agree with this post!
Bumping this.
And want to point out to those who are claiming americans can't afford to do this - they CAN afford to do it if they stop overconsuming and stop buying on credit. No one "needs" 30 winter sweaters. Buy 3 good ones. No one NEEDS 30 pairs of shoes. Buy 3 good pairs, wear them till they are worn out. No child NEEDS 300 plastic crap toys from China - buy a handful of nice handmade ones and put them outside to create with their imaginations. Stop upgrading electronics just to have a cool new gadget. While you're at it, go buy some produce from your local small farmer - usually cheaper than the store AND lasts longer because it hasn't been sitting for a month when you buy it.
I highly recommend etsy.com for anyone who wants to buy handmade, high-quality, mostly american goods (if you want to be sure, don't buy from the foreign stores on there). There are items in every price range and something for literally EVERYONE. With the holidays coming up, make a statement by refusing to give your loved ones plastic chinese crap that they don't even want. Find a beautiful, meaningful handmade gift they will love.
wow! do you live in my house? you are 100% right on and I love it! spread the word, no chinese walmart crap. Buy made in usa if you want jobs
I agree with you in principle but HitGirl makes a good point. Americans would need manufacturing wages to buy American goods.
Currently someone making minimum wage can't afford to pay twice the price for an American good versus a Chinese good.
I shop at walmart out of necessity. I could go to Ace hardware and get an American made good but I can't afford to pay the high prices.
Besides that the outsourcing of American manufacturing has resulted in a market where many common goods aren't even made in America anymore so there isn't even the choice to be made.
there are plenty of everything made here you just need to look. sorry to burst your bubble but walmart is not the least expensive place to shop. In addition, when your chinese tools break, rust or injure you, it will be more expensive. Why do I have s-k tools that are decades older than me but my previous chinese tools have all broken. Its time to start thinking long term, not about short term profits. this applies to our purchases. why am I financially sound and I but all made in usa? I don't make much money- 30K year. No need to replace tools or my other products. Qulaity, not quantity.
I have a better idea, Sell to China, The Chinese love and respect the made in the USA label, they know what quality means, because most of their products are shit. I have tried and tried to get American companies to sell to China, the first was Friedrick's of Hollywood like 4 years ago they were not interested. The last was Green Mountain Coffee Roasters I thought for sure they'd go for some of the Chinese consumer market, they made some excuse about not being ready. Bath and body works/Victoria Secret and others simply never returned my calls or emails. If you got something to sell to China or you want to make the investment to move American products to Chinese store shelves let me know. I can make it happen.
I am starting to think that these companies only want to take over the US since they could make money in China. Its all about lowering US wages and crushing the US population? I can't figure it out.
In China I saw 5 Chinese dudes "drifting" in a vacant parking lot just for fun. 5 dudes with hyped out cars burning the rubber of about a dozen tires. that's what goes on in China for weekend fun. That's how much cash is floating around there. A guy told me that spend over $1700 US dollars a day just to burn rubber off tires. its ludicrous how much cash is there just waiting for American QUALITY products to come to market
Me either. It's like they just did not want to be part or the market where 1.5 billion people with shitloads of money are. it was like they did not want to hear that Chinese people Love everything American especially Made in the USA. They just did not want to preserve American jobs by opening up the largest consumer market in the world to American workers. As an American it really pissed me off.
Putting it on the consumer is not the answer. Our wages have remained flat to take away as much of our freedom as possible. We are too far down the road for that.
Of course the consumer is the answer. The only reason that these products are made across seas is because consumers demand it to be so.
I think it has to do with labor costs, dear.
Exactly. Consumers demand that products be as cheap as possible. For instance, at your current salary would you be willing to buy a single dvd for $40? Probably not. I'm not willing to buy a dvd for more than $5-$7, and even then only for a really good movie. I would not buy any dvd's if the cost were $40, which is probably what it would have to be if they were made in the US and paying US wages.
Daennera = 1%
Is there something faulty in my logic?
No. Your ethics.
Has nothing to do with my ethics. If you can't convince people to purchase dvd's for $40 each, there simply will not be any dvd manufacturers in the US. It's not a matter of ethics, but a matter of fact. You're complaining about how jobs have moved overseas, and I'm telling you why they won't move back here.
Thank you. I'll file that under 'Rants of the Greedy 1%'
And how is that rant of the greedy? It's just simple fact. It's not a rant. It's no less factual than than water is a liquid. I think it is fools like you who refuse to acknowledge that just because you want the world to be one way doesn't mean the world is going to play along.
Another thought on the matter: everytime you open a Made In China package and the English or French or German or whatever translation is deficient, return the thing for your money back or even better have the US government apply tariff on that product. What it will do is make the object more expensive (less competitive/desirable to the US consumer) AND provide jobs to the US/English translators.
Been there done that for years.
Problem is, sometimes there's no substitute.
The image of "be the change you desire" is very attractive and is a way of marshalling the true believers, but it is not the way the world works. You can not ask families barely scraping by to forgo lower costs, they won't do it.
However, government in the name of the people, can discourage (or outlaw) outsourcing forcing companies to hire Americans at the prevailing American wage. Foreign products would have to be priced within the "basket range" of similar American products, or this would fail. Americans would be paid more and could in fact pay more for American products.
The alternative is the current race to the bottom. Wall St. and the corpoRATS want America to be a third world county, that is their plan.
I agree but sadly people will always buy the cheap import crap since in this economy its all they can afford. Its a great message to by only made in usa but unfortunately most products we consume aren't available as made in usa.
most products have a USA equivalent. Just check harder on the internet. Its tough but worth it. You will save money in the long run
It's not just in this economy. In 2007, US made products still cost much more than those made in China and other nations. It is the fact that we have a higher standard of living and higher wages coupled with the fact that our trade agreements do little to help US manufacturing and we get what we have today.
You have no choice in the matter. I buy all Ford trucks, just about every part is made in China. Harley Davidson motorcycles are merely built in the U.S.A but the parts used to build them are mostly made in China... Sadly buying U.S made products isn't always buying something that was produced in the U.S.
I understand this that is why HD and Ford cannot put "made in usa" on these products. I also understand that some products from the usa have foreign components. Do not let that discourage you. We do have a choice, just check on the internet if your local retailers do not have products made in usa.
Get rid of the minimum wage. All of those jobs will return. People buying cheap products are simply acting rationally.
If you get rid of the minimum wage wages will go down, how will that make things better?
if costs go down, manufacturers are more willing to undercut, prices go down.
so people earn less, but they can buy more.
Good luck with that, it has never worked out that way yet, i think better to have an established baseline, would YOU work for 4.00 per hour?
i have worked for free.
some of my friends have paid for internship opportunities
And now? How do you pay rent or mortgage, auto insurance car payment, food, fuel, telephone, cable, electric, etc? Take home pay on minimum wage around 850 for 1 month, any more bright ideas?
bunk in, couchsurf, live off your friends.
do whatever it takes to survive.
it's absurd and fantastic at the same time.
i know a friend doing a postgrad living on research stipend + charity handouts at the same time. anything is possible.
Lame, this is not exactly something to aspire to ya know, if i had been ok with a minimum wage and having nothing i wouldnt have my own business, a couple trucks, some heavy equipment, my farm, minimum wage doesnt even come close to a living wage
Why would wages go down? With a minimum wage, companies have no need to compete for workers since they all pay the same hourly wage. Without a minimum, employers will have to entice prospective employees through better wages or benefits. If McD's pays the current minimum and the minimum is abolished, BK would increase their pay a bit to entice more applicants. The same with WalMart and Target. The minimum wage creates an unwritten agreement that firms will not compete in a wage battle to attract more applicants.
Wow, really? Must be nice to be so naieve, have you heard what the real unemployment number is? The one that takes into account all the numbers, the one thst is around 23% do you really think a company like wallmart is going to pay more when thr minimum wage is abolished? Micky Ds ? More like it will be a free for all cutting entry level wages back to where people had to eork as an unpaid apprentice to flip burgers or greet people st the door.