Can anyone find something to buy that doesn't say "made in china"???? President Bush said it best. "More and more of our imports are coming from overseas". It was a funny speech. I miss all of those humorous speeches.

My S&Ws weren't made in China!

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- The Federalist #46 -

I was all proud when I bought my 627 Performance Center, felt good to have an American Made large frame 357 Mag in my collection again. . . . .but guess what the sticker says on the bottom of that fancy aluminum case????????

Really. . . .c'mon Smith

OH! I recently bought another flag with a wooden pole for my deck.. the flag was made in the U.S.... but the pole was made in China. Lame.

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- The Federalist #46 -

It's not just "made in China" and the economic impacts of imbalanced multinatinal trade. The loss of the US manufacturing base in general is a real threat to our future stability.

I think of the Greatest Generation and WWII. It was not only the GI's that won the war, but also the hard work on the homefront by women, temporary guest workers, and the seniors of the time. Our factories were re-tooled to meet the war effort and supply our forces. If such an emergency arose today, we would not have the manufacturing base to rely on to meet our production needs in a national emergency...

This is very true. Don

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"Don't worry be happy"

Nor would we be able to call on a corps of business executives who throughly understood their products, how they were made, etc.

Guess you might not have been around when 'made in Japan' was cheap trash. Try to find some electronics that isn't these days. Right now it's the same thing all over again. It's cheap and its not so good, but people buy it cause it's cheap. Later it will get good. Find a TV, Stereo, Camera etc. made in USA anymore - don't happen. Not saying it's right, but it's a fact that people will buy the least expensive stuff they can.
Never mind TVs, try to find a T-shirt made in America(north that is).

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Pete.

There are only a few dots to connect to see why companies close up shop & move out of the country. I see no end in sight to it. The other day a WI politician was blaming it on China, as to why jobs left WI. Now we have Harley motorcycles about to leave Milwaukee. They added a new tax on companies that cost Harley 10's of millions extra a year. They keep piling it on to where the cost of the widget is unsustainable in the market. Most shoppers won't pay more for a similar quality item just because it's made in the USA. We are trying to tax our way to prosperity, I guess we'll see how that works out. It's not going well for Greece.

My S&W's were made in the USA. So were my Rugers. And my Winchesters. Channel Lock tools are made right here in PA (some of their cheapy stuff comes from China but the good stuff is made here). All my socks are made in the USA. So are my t-shirts and jeans. I could go on and on.

It's not easy but with a little effort products made in the USA can still be found. It's worth the effort to me.

Parker pens are now made in the UK, as some have been for years. At least, they aren't Chinese...

I just bought several stainless Jotters, and the quality seems to have held up. Just can't find refills at Target or the grocer now. Have to go to an office supply.

I don't trust canned goods from China. They have sanitary standards that differ from ours. I've pretty much given up mandarin oranges.

T-Star

Apple juice in every store I've been in - Chinese apples!
It has to be printed on the container, btw.
But Chinese apples? What in the world is going on here?

You really have to look at a lot of bottles to find USA apples in your apple juice. Motts will have USA apples in it one week and China or a South American country's apples another.

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In dog years I'm dead.

X2 - Me too!
I had a Honda once -
My dad said - You've got to be kidding! The Japs didn't want you on the planet and you buy their stuff?
I said - Huh? What are you talking about?
He pointed out that they spent 3 years trying to kill him - No him, no me.

Buy American - The job you save may be your own!
Saving a few bucks by buying Asian? Yeah right...

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In dog years I'm dead.

Where to begin? Probably by putting on my flame suit. I think I'll need it.

We priced ourselves out of our manufacturing capability. It is not that it is so much cheaper to make products overseas. The problem is that it is so much more expensive to make products here. What's the difference, you say? A lot I think. The main issue being that we did it to ourselves and not from external factors.

As alluded to above, oppressive tax systems for successful industries, higher than warranted labor costs, and yes, the big box store mentality.

High taxes: The quickest way to stifle innovation and success. Time and again it has been proven that lower taxes bring more revenue because more people are willing to invest in growth and capital.

Labor costs: Here is where the flame suit comes in. Unions had there place in history and still do to a certain extent. Mostly, though, modern unions have just as much blame for the poor manufacturing base in our economy than any other factor. They got greedy. Pure and simple. They keep demanding more than the market can bear and then complain about layoff and the loss of manufacturing base. Personally, I am morally opposed to the idea of unions. I am unwilling to cede any of my earning potential to the "greater good." But that is just me. I am an extremest on this issue, and recognize that fact. I think unions reward people who would otherwise not achieve high success on their own. I think that is wrong on it's face.

I think companies and the general public are willing to pay a small premium for US made products, knowing it helps the country. There comes a point, though when the cost outweighs the good.

Big Box Stores: Our family regularly shops at WalMart. There is good and bad to these retailers but I think the good outweighs the bad.

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All Rights Reserved

I, too, remember the 'made in Japan" joke from the mid-50's. They have obviously moved past that, and now China is also evolving from cheap consumables to quality items and high tech products.
Our country has already lost the heavy manufacturing war to this overseas facilities, where our own companies have shifted their operations there to take advantage of the cheap labor and lower restrictions.
Sad to say that the ChiComs are more "business-friendly" than we are....
The real concern that I see is the flow of high-tech production out of the US to China. Even Japan outsources these aspects of their production now.
I see it in my son's bicycle business, which sells everything from $200. beach cruisers to $10,000+ custom road, triathlon, and mountain bikes. Almost everything comes from China these days, not just the cheap bikes that you see at WalMart or Target, but also almost all of those cool carbon fiber framed bikes that you see in the Tour de France.
Manufacturers have constructed high-tech facilities in China (and other countries in the Pacific rim), trained workers to do the complex jobs to build these frames and various components. In general, the quality is superb on these high-end products.
To buy "made in the USA" bike, one would need to buy a custom frame, wheels, and components from the number of "boutique" manufacturers in the US, and then probably still need to compromise on some of the components, going to a European maker for some parts (even the Euros go to China for some of their production). The quality is great and the cost is significant.
BTW, don't be fooled by formally US brands, such as Schwinn, etc., as the names have been purchased by foreign manufacturers. Even Trek, who pushes "made in USA", uses mostly Japanese/Chinese components on almost all of their products.
As mentioned in the quote, we already should know that almost all consumer electronics are also assembled in China, even mid and high end products branded by Japanese companies.
The future is a major concern, as we become more and more a country of consumers and not producers. Our last stand is our unique creativity and our innovative nature that drives all of the products that we see today. If that ends up somehow farmed out as well, we've had it.

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NCY in the PR of NJ

Baby girls.

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Thirty characters. Exactly...

But if we stop buying Made in China stuff, China will not have money to loan the US. If China does not have money to loan the US then how are we going to finance all the deficit spending politicians have become addicted to?

We buy cheap Chinese stuff which causes US factories to close. As US production drops so does the US tax revenue base. As the revenue base drops dependence on Chinese loans increases, which China finances by selling Wally World more merchandise. Like water circling the drain isn't it?

You have not been following the "status" adoption trends have you Sip?

It is not just cheap prices for asian goods....any of you try to start a business? You'll have a wave of bureaucrats telling you why you can't do it. After you manage to get past them and all of their legalease and fees then they start with the taxes....now Obama wants a value added tax.
What will a VAT do? I mfg and sell a product here in the US that sells for $8. When I sell this item to German customers the final cost is $40 after VAT is added on. The US government entities, city/county/state/federal is just plain unfriendly to US business and especially US manufacturing.

I qualify US business and US manufacturing because we have had some asian manufacturers set up factories in our area and the politicians fell all over themselves giving tax abatements and other freebies to these foreign companies while trying to come up with reasons my company (machine shop) might be detrimental to the community.

Creeping Death remote control tanks and accessories are US made.
some parts are still foreign, however the owner has been investing a great deal of time and capitol to change that.
all the accessories are built state side. I have been his consultant for electronic development for some time

As a matter of fact ... yup, and I know of others as well.
While we seem to have a lot of entitlement mentality out there based in system exploitation. we do have a few honest entitlements ... like the American birth right to pull yourself up by the boot straps and take a crack at business.
Unfortunately, the collective is fighting for all the wrong entitlements.

Apples are very important to my region. From numerous family-owned orchards to an apple processing plant that provides good paying jobs, apples are a way of life. We have spring "blossom" festivals and fall "harvest" festivals that draw in thousands visitors with cash in their pockets to spend locally.

But the apple industry is treatened. There is not suffiecient local population to handle the harvest and not enough legal migrant farmworkers are available. The failure to address comprehensive immigration reform with workable Guest Worker Program as Pres. Bush fought for is devistating the family growers.

Responsible growers are forced to either close up shop or look the other way if their migrant workers don't have papers. With the border crackdown resulting in a 50% reduction in illegal crossings, fewer farm workers are entering without papers than ever before. Those that used to come and go for seasonal work now just stay home as they can't get across the border legally or illegally. Or worse yet, they no longer go back and forth and just stay in the US - afraid to go home and never be able to get back in... The border crackdown without comprehensive reform is resulting in more migrant workers staying around to become undoumented immigrants.

China does have plenty of farm laborers. If something isn't done to update and reform an out-of-date and inefficient federal immigration policy so that our farmers can get enough help for harvest, all you will find is apple juice from China. The current system for ag workers is so disfunctional it isn't even funny. There is no shortage of pickers in China and they grow apples too. Some California farmers are now selling their US farmland and leasing land in Mexico. Since they can't get enough legal workers here, they are moving to where the workers are...

The locally owned orchards in my area will cease to exist (all but one in my County is already gone), the nearby apple processing plant will be shuttered and hundreds of good jobs lost, and our deeply-rooted traditional festivals celebrating the spring apple blossoms and the fall apple harvest will be no more.

I hope politicians move away from the heavy rhetoric and follow the example GW Bush advocated: Comprehensive immigration reform that includes border security and an updated and workable Guest Worker Program. If not, the apple industry will just be another outsorced to China...

Also: buy White House brand apple products whenever you can! That's who local growers here sell to...

They are on my list of stuff to watch for - Thanks!

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In dog years I'm dead.

Recently started a small manufacturing facility in Wisconsin. Not much, but does account for twenty some direct jobs and perhaps another fifty or so indirectly - it all helps in a county with 15% unemployment. But I have to say I agree with many previous posters - the bureaucracy and taxes are an incredibly strong disincentive, and lets remember one other factor: If the general public had to jump through the dozens of environmental hoops/ barriers/regulations that even a small manufacturing facility must, there would be a revolution in short order.

That's the "Global Economy" for you. On the other hand I've read the PRC is a very big purchaser of US agricultural products, especially wheat. Their Achilles Heel is that they have never been able to achieve self sufficiency
in food production.

Boy... I'd love to buy a 21" TV made in the USA by good ol' union hands under Federal supervision. I bet I could even get one for under $5000.

What upsets me more than imported merchandise, etc is the shift to imported food. Our local supermarket carries an extensive line of seafood, and they are required by law to show the country of origin. Most is from Bangladesh, China, Vietnam and other Asian countries. With seafood from the Gulf of Mexico soon to be shut off, we are going to see more and more of this imported stuff that is raised under Heaven knows what conditions.

The same is true of oranges and apples. Take a look at the label on your favorite orange or apple juice. Chances are good the juice is made from a concentrate from overseas. It's like we don't even raise apples and oranges in the U.S.!

I think that you will find that most of our toilet tissue, and paper towels are American made.

erm...yes and no. Here in the UK (in the 19th century the workshop of the world) current recent wisdom states it's only worth manufacturing in the far east if you want to make a profit, but this contradicts my experiences and observations.

Look at Germany - world's top exporter in 2007 and full of skilled union labour (union officials sit on the board of directors), although this is by no means the only example, and a big old welfare system too. I'm a cyclist and they make lot's of lovely cool kit - expensive but worth it to those who understand that you get what you pay for. But this isn't confined to specialist markets - look at their cars, not just leaders in quality either - Volkswagen intends to be the top volume producer of cars by 2018. There's many examples of German companies establishing new markets and leading them, whilst if consumers don't own their goods, they aspire to.

I don't mind Chinese goods WRT cheap household ones, but I will not buy a premium brand made in China (unless it was some kind of China heritage thing or something). I bought a Brooks B190 saddle - it's a masterpiece and made here like all their saddles, but their expensive (several hundred dollars) retro luggage is made in China - it shouldn't be - not if you make a big deal out of your history, heritage & tradition etc, reminding everybody of dates and sponsor bike rides where everyone wears costumes from 100 years ago.

Looks like someone else shares my view if you look at the criticisms on their website:

BROOKS ENGLAND LTD

About the only products 'made' in America that sell well these days is beer. And even the American brewers are foreign owned in a lot of cases. (no pun intended).

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Pete.

Try to tell that to my BIL and his wife. Couldn't conceive so they imported. All my respect though because he's an LEO.

What gets me is that the nice looking folding belt knifes that the NRA has are all made in China. Went to a NRA banquet and that's what they had. Several of us complained but Wayne wasn't there to hear us. Oh well.

I think more people just need to be aware of the labels when they are buying stuff. I went to buy socks at Target the other day and found some made in USA by Hanes. I looked at each manufacture's package for the style i was buying before i found that the Hanes ones were made in the usa. For a different style of socks they had, the Hanes were made somewhere else but one of the other brands was made in the usa for that particular style. It takes some effort but you can still find a lot of things made here. I also preach made in the usa to friends and family so that they will pay more attention as well.

Minor thread drift................
Thanks for the trip back on memory lane. I still remember everyone taking their ball peen hammers to their Brooks saddles in order to break them in faster than the six months it usually took. Once they were broken in, though, they were the best. We've just fitted some of the current Brooks production on a couple of our retro fixed gear bikes. They are beauties. I just had to explain to one of the young mechanics what "on the rivet" means.

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NCY in the PR of NJ

Worse yet, the ability to tool up for manufacturing in a wartime situation is gone. Virtually all of the machine tool manufacturers have moved overseas.

Without machine tools, you aren't going to make anything.

You and I have a choice. When you go into any store, if it says "made in China", you don't have to buy it. Not only don't buy it, but tell the store manager why you refuse to buy it. Mr. Ross Perot explained all this to the public years ago - they thought he was crazy. He knew exactly what he was talking about - these so called treatys for open trade will kill this country. The top management here will be fat and happy, while the workers are dumped out on the side of the road. Result, more unemployment and more crime. Look at the textile industry, the shoe companys, the TV's, radios, cars, tools, etc. - you can't compete with someone who makes $2.00 an hour. You still have a choice - use it.

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Martin Co,FLA(finally made it)

Hey, Forester,

You are right on the money, Sir! Well thought out and well written!! I was a member of the Musician's Union for many, many years. Even back then, that Union was only about getting money from me, and the other working players. In all my years as a member, they never stepped up to the plate to help most of us, and in fact, did things that were detrimental to our work situations, most of the time. Today, it's far worse, of course. Where is a good Union-busting President when you need one??!!!! Again, 100% correct, IMHO. Thanks for offering such a cogent argument for one of the main reasons for all our financial troubles. Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc

P.S. I was just in Greece, and that place must be seen to be believed, these days. Unfortunately, we seem to be heading down that same dark path.....

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Honor God, above all.

WE were buying bedroom furniture last week,and I found something not made in China.........it was made in VIET NAM!!!!!!!!!

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UNDER THE CONE OF SILENCE

Same here, I sold this rather cheap looking chinese aluminum case and rather store the gun in a "Bore-Store"
I mean a 629 "Perfomance Center" gun in a cheap Chinese aluminum case, no thanks - I do want the gun, but this 3$ case - not so much.

We have this situation over here in Germany, too. Apples from South Africa or China, as if we couldn't grow apples here anymore.
Our OJ comes from Israel, I don't mind this since our climate doesn't allow to grow oranges here, but apples and pears ??
I simply avoid these products as good as I can - I prefer fresh quality food and I am willing to pay the extra money for this.

75% to 95% of Wal-Mart's merchandise is made in China.
Our last local furnature manufacturer is moving to "the far east. China?

The only way to get our economy back to the way it was is to go back to a fair trade system in which we tax imported goods from countries that don't pay their workers a decent wage. Free trade sounds good but it is horrible for US production.

People can talk about only buying american made stuff but those that do are few and far between. Even when you do buy something that has made in the US on it, that just means that is was assembled here, not that all the components were made here.

I work for Boeing we can't even build the F15 here,
the Isralies and koreans build half of it.

Amen, Brother. You are truly my hero. Like I tell everybody else (aka the whiners), "DON'T BLAME ME I VOTED FOR ROSS PEROT". They still don't get it.

Thanks, Snowdoggie