Buying USA made

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Originally Posted By: Kruse
Originally Posted By: goodtimes
Originally Posted By: Srt20
Originally Posted By: goodtimes
I was looking for an outlet cover for a dryer , the big kind, at HD. There a box of nylon plastic covers with only one left, $1.99, Made in China. I moved down the aisle and saw some that were stainless steel, made in USA by Legrand, for $2.48. Plenty of those left. The SS ones are far nicer. When checking out I saw a contractor guy with a bunch of the outlets and China covers. My point, small effect as it has, is shop around a little and try to care.


Made in USA. By illegal immigrants




Why is the company hiring them? Don't like illegal immigrants, don't hire them to save yourself money, problem solved.


I know a guy who is in charge of a 1,200-cow dairy operation. This is not a family dairy, it's owned by a corporation. The employees who milk the cows and clean the areas where the cows eat and sleep are all illegal aliens. Why does the supervisor of this dairy hire illegal aliens? Because he cannot get legal employees to work for him and he has tried numerous times. Yet he can talk to the "head" illegal alien employee of this dairy and tell him that he needs more help (from 1 to 10 people) and the help will be there the next day and they will work any shift that he needs them to work, with no questions asked.
The CEO of this dairy says that these people risked their lives to cross the hot desert to come to America....so that they could work. And he's right. (Not that I condone his hiring practice)


You mean he could not get legals to work for him for the wages he offers. And he does not have to offer higher wages when illegals can be hired. As I've said many times before illegals drive wages down.
 
And yet in some areas of the country jobs are plentiful for those with solid skillsets, both blue and white collar.

Not far from here is a company that manufactures ag, utility and pipeline equipment. They are constantly looking for everything from engineers to office staff to skilled trades. They even have apprenticeships available for some of their skilled trades positions.

At any one time there are around 3400 open manufacturing jobs just in Iowa. Granted, we don't manufacture things like electrical box covers here, we focus a bit higher on things like wind turbines, protection and control panels, substation control panels, etc.

The problem is that modern manufacturing in the US has changed from a harbor for greasy wrench turners and unskilled labor to a place staffed with skilled employees who operate industrial robots, computers and precision tools. There are very, very few jobs that someone with little or no skill can step into and make a living wage-and that's not a bad thing. Anyone with an IQ higher than the freezing point of water saw this coming decades ago. Most of them were prepared for it, but there are always a few that will stand around with their hands in their pockets and wonder why they can't find menial task work.

If a person isn't willing to invest in themselves, especially when they're young, to gain the skills required in the current workforce, then they're destined to work for minimum wage and stand around picketing hoping the government raises their wages to $15/hour.
 
Originally Posted By: CKN
Another buy in the USA thread. My 2011 Silverado was made in Mexico.

How many vehicles these days are made in Mexico? PLENTY. How many auto parts are coming from China? GM is shipping many major power train components from China.

So I will help the (USA) situation by buying a $2.50 fastener.


OK.................


My 2015 Toyota was assembled in Indiana. Kind of ironic.
 
Originally Posted By: CKN
Another buy in the USA thread. My 2011 Silverado was made in Mexico...

My '11 Sierra was glued and screwed together in Fort Wayne (Roanoke) Indiana.
Its LMG 5.3 and 6l80-E has 'country of origin' of "United States."

"For vehicles in this carline 61% U.S. and 34% México" on its window sticker.

Pretty sure WJC signed NAFTA.
 
on this side of the pond, made in the USA products are exceedingly rare, so I try to get products which areat least up to standards....

there'sa little snag though...

comparison-of-real-and-fake_CE-conformity-marking.gif
 
Originally Posted By: totegoat
Originally Posted By: CKN
Another buy in the USA thread. My 2011 Silverado was made in Mexico.

How many vehicles these days are made in Mexico? PLENTY. How many auto parts are coming from China? GM is shipping many major power train components from China.

So I will help the (USA) situation by buying a $2.50 fastener.


OK.................


My 2015 Toyota was assembled in Indiana. Kind of ironic.


This is the dilemma I had in 2010 when I needed to get a new vehicle. I really wanted a Chevy HHR, only it was Hencho en Mexico. Meanwhile, the "foreign" Sonata I eventually did buy was assembled in Alabama -- and I got a much better deal on the car than the Chevy dealer offered on the HHR.

So, yeah, I think I did my part for the US economy by buying a made in America product, even though it's "foreign".
 
Originally Posted By: Doog
Originally Posted By: ARCOgraphite
Where was everyone when congress approved NAFTA? Thanks Clinton. Union Guys in the shop told me this was the beginning of the end of America and they were right.

YOUR Greedy CEO and shareholders(you and your 401) drove this bus. Your One percenters.

Too late now lazy suckers.


The union guys in the shop elected Clinton...hate to break your bubble. 67% of union families shop at Walmart.


+1 Exactly why I say we do this to ourselves.
 
Originally Posted By: gman2304
My sons Toyota Tundra was built in Texas. My Chevy Avalanche was built in Mexico.


Yep. As well as the Sequoia and Tacoma. Most average Yoda's are made in the USA with the exception of the 4runner. The Camry down in Georgetown Kentucky is made with 85% US made parts.

I rank Japanese and South Korean made goods right up there with US made though. Like economies, they are our friends etc.
 
soon anyone who actually cares about USA made products will pass along to the next life. The next generation doesnt care. Dont live the rest of your life worrying about stuff you cannot control.
 
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Originally Posted By: HerrStig
I avoid China when I can. Why fuel their military complex with our dough?


meh, the fall of america is not going to happen like that, they already have all the money. How it's going to happen is through sheer capitalism not through military means. That's just a scare tactic so people keep buying guns.

Chinese companies will buy out american companies.

Chinese investors, both private and corporate will buy up american real estate and assets.

All this will happen slowly, so things will be partially assimilated and partially not, and we'll live in a global society and economy where things are all mixed up anyway.


Example-you go to an AMC theater to see a movie, you are going to a chinese owned theater now.
 
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Quote:
Example-you go to an AMC theater to see a movie, you are going to a chinese owned theater now.
Can you explain to my why this is an impending catastrophe? How does it matter to me personally if the owner billionaire is a chinese or american or indian?

If AMC theater were to go broke, I can understand how it will affect not only me but the economy and the people. But I just do not care who owns that theater.

Why should you?
 
Originally Posted By: Vikas
Quote:
Example-you go to an AMC theater to see a movie, you are going to a chinese owned theater now.
Can you explain to my why this is an impending catastrophe? How does it matter to me personally if the owner billionaire is a chinese or american or indian?

If AMC theater were to go broke, I can understand how it will affect not only me but the economy and the people. But I just do not care who owns that theater.

Why should you?

Perhaps movie theatres aren't up there with the Chinese owning Boeing and GE, but I don't think there is a clear division between the business and government in China... You will start having more and more important businesses in N.A. that may not be operating in the business's best interest, but perhaps in China's best interest.
Movies could be blacklisted if they don't portray China in a positive light for example.
Who knows, maybe AMC flexed some muscle to slow down the release of the movie, The Interview? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Interview_(2014_film)
 
Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
I have a real simple rule: If there's a USA made version of the product available, I will not buy the Chinese/Taiwanese made version, period. I usually have a pretty good idea of what's available USA made.


What's your problem with Taiwan?
 
Some old news for you guys: Even Chinese labors are getting too expensive.

http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2015-04-09/robots-leave-behind-chinese-workers

From what I heard you don't get $1/hr Chinese labor anymore. They are likely going to be around $5/hr after all the overhead cost. Lower skill labors like textile are moving to Vietnam, India, Pakistan, and higher end works like auto are moving to Mexico.

The biggest problem we have is we are trying to have it both ways: cheap products but full domestic employment. You really can't get both unless you invade other countries and force them to trade with you on your term and loot them, sort of like 100+ years ago when European / American conquer the rest of the world and became prosper for a long time. This, of course, is not sustainable as they will revolt.

A large volume of low end manufacturing is gone either via out sourcing or hiring undocumented workers, there is nothing we can do unless we devaluate the standard of living (via USD devaluation, like bankruptcy of government or taking it out of the statue of international reserve currency, or petrol dollar), and that would be worse than what we have right now (think recession).
 
Originally Posted By: javacontour
Isn't China making major investments in Africa? They want cheap labor and raw materials.


That, and they're building islands in the South China Sea so they can claim shipping lanes and mineral rights.
 
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