Hey 440EX026. I tend to agree with your assessment of things. I am quite concerned with how things are changing for many blue collar workers.
Bryce

 

Appreciate your supporting my views or opinions etc since its nice to see I am not the only one noticing these changes etc. (or just totally insane [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img] )

The really interesting thing is that I have not had a blue collar position in more years than I can remember, and had been more directly involved within the support or service end of business where the effects on the white collar workers have bad or deterioating for years.

It was the safety and benefits avail to many unionized blue collar jobs that made them stand out from the supposedly superior white collar ones. Positions in offices and support that used to offer excelent salaries, bene's, status and working conditions were disapearing rapidly and many of those remaining were and still are seeing all kinds of hostile changes as the profitability of these industries was falling due to the large decline in US manufacturing.

I know more than one office, operations, sales or other manager that is now making less than they did in the 80's or 90's and with less bene's and paid holidays etc, and its even worse for the lower level white collar worker.

Another issue that is directly effecting those who work in the various office type positions of companies that offer products and support services to the ever declining mfg industries is how so many companies manipulate the labor laws. Even the worst non union blue collar job (for legal citizens at least) offers over time pay after so many hours (normally 40 right) but more and more companies found ways to steal the overtime costs and just not pay their people. There not all legal (most are in direct violation of various labor laws) and the most popular one is to consider people salaried employees who are not eligable for this classification just so they do not have to compensate for overtime.

So I guess things suk everyware and just like a bunch of sheep or steers being led to slaughter were all just going to continue to follow the program until were little more than a pile of damn chop meat.

The last part of the last sentence is for all of those who still dont get why to buy American when you can, and those who still argue things are terrific here. OH and this is too..... WAKE THE FRIG UP ALREADY

[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

Hey everyone, just wanted to bring this thread back since I have done more shopping lately than I ever wanted to do in my entire lifetime and noticed some very interesting things.

First I think the guy who wrote the original piece that was qouted in the first post of this thread needs to make some updates since its really looking like were not importing much from any of the countries originally mentioned except for China, China and China (mainland China, Hong kong, and Taiwan), and even places like Japan, and others we used to see stuff from are now as small a minority on our US shelves as our own domestic products.

It actually started to become like a game to check where all this overpriced junk (and I do mean junk) were buying is coming from, and some of the people I was with were getting into it as well, and others I think I scarred a little lmfao.

Was actually pretty funny while purchasing a coat when I tried explaining to the clerk from India that the Chinese worker that made this product could live good for 6 months on what I was paying for it, and he replied that the same things were happening on a smaller scale in his country, and that the place he had worked for overseas that exported a large amount to the US had let him go due to US sales lost to manufacturing in China.

So far I have found 11 items made in the US, and thats sad.

 

Okay, I work for one of the big three, here is my take on the problem, bottom line is our government. Sure "out sourcing" is great for the "World" economy, but bad for U.S. jobs. As far as manufacturing jobs go, we do import alot of parts for products the U.S. produces, and thats good for the world eco. But when you out sorce a whole product, and pretend it's an "American" product thats another story. It is not possible to get 100% American made products at every purchase we make, but the major purchases "i.e. cars" make a huge impact on U.S. jobs. Believe it or not, a lot of small Mfg. companys in the U.S. supply ALL auto makers with parts, as do import companys do the U.S. The bottom line is the government (George W.) has to stop rewarding American companies for going overseas. I'm not against products, made overseas I own them too. Competition creates better products for us (the consumer) and we benefit from it. And in a lot of cases it ends up costing more for a part to have it made somewhere besides here. Any how, buy what you want, it's your money, but if you can get an american made alternative, at least consider it. If it's an inferior product, (Harley D)by all means buy the import, we'll try harder next time.
Any way, not trying to **** anyone off, just trying to make a point.
God bless us all.
Jason
P.S. If you want to buy american, DON"T shop at WAL-MART.

 

Boy that last line hits the issue right on the head.
I was reading car and driver the other night, and they had a test of the new ford fusion and the new hyndi (sp), and they made the point, that if you had to guess which is american made and which is foreign made...youd guess wrong. The ford is made in mexico, and the hundi is made in usa. So there you have the delema,.... support workers by buying the hundi, or support corp. america and buy the ford.
Things are so integrated, its very hard to figure out whats american and what hurts workers.

 

Good point on "corporate america" and it kind of supports one of my points that the only ones benefiting from the imbalance in imports is the Govt, the overseas countries and companies, and mostly beyond all what you called corporate america.

Not sure if you had seen it or not, but I had tried to explain this earlier how the corporations are actually increasing their bottom lines due to imports. Odd as it may sound the coporations are able to take advantage of the situation and most of the larger companies and brand names have abused our loyalties by manipulating the system and having most, many or all of their products or componets made for pennies on the dollar in a foreign country.

The only real losers are the american citizens who now have no choice but to buy the inferior products due to the cost of domestic manufacturing being beyond many families means.

I was checking out some of the GPS plotters since I had heard some had both street and waterway navigation avail, but after seeing prices as high as 900.00 and more than one "made in China" label I knew damn well I wasnt going for it since I just cant bring myself to pay hundreds of dollars for something I know the company paid next to nothing for due to its being manufactured in China. The value just is not there, and if the manufacturers are going to reduce their costs by 90% then they had better be lowering their prices as well since I am not going to support the continuation of the errosion of US manufacturing and jobs so that some corporate concern can profit at insane levels while furthering the problem as well.

Just for fun I will share what I found in a dollar store recently. A decent looking floresent light bulb that can replace a standard screw in one, they had them for replacing most wattages, and they were $1. each, and made in china.

You may or may not know but the ones in the major retail home stores are mostly made in China as well, but are priced much higher ($5-10 ea) so it was more than a little interesting to see that the #1 ones were sponsored by a state run energy program that subsidized the cost of the manufacturing. So now even individual states are getting into the program and taking the money they steal from us in all kinds of taxes (that we cant afford with what jobs are paying) and give it to their various friends so that their products they buy in China are now even less expensive, and steal more American jobs. I wouldnt be suprized if the money the state gave out was more than the damn things cost in the first place since they seemed to end up in the surplus (dollar stores buy their stuff at prices that are unbelievable) awfull fast, and maybe it was planned that way.

Thing is if we dont get smart soon its going to get real ugly.

 

It's been a while since I posted in this post, and even in ATVConnection, but I thought I'd add my recent purchase of American made/owned products. I just bought tires for my Suburban 2500 4x4. I bought a set of 4 Cooper Discoverer ATRs in a 265x75-16 in a 10 ply tire. It's a really nice riding and handling tire...made in USA of course. I knew I was buying the Coopers, but I looked at every tire brand that they had on display to see where it was made. Here is a list of the tires they had that were made in the USA: Goodyear, Cooper, B.F. Goodrich, Kelly, and another off brand (Renegade - I think?) that I think is owned by Cooper. However, the tires there I would never buy are Kumhos - made in China, and Maxxis - made in Thailand; and others they didn't carry that are imported (obviously) are Toyos, Yokohamas, and Nittos.

Another product I bought was a propane torch (for melting ice and burning weeds-I got it for the ice though) from Flame Engineering, Inc. from a local hardware store. It's a really nice and well built unit - proudly made in USA.

I look at everything that I buy, and often look to see where it's made before the price, and will gladly pay more for the domestic made product. I never buy anything made in China unless there is absolutely no other alternative.

 

BRAVO!!!!

If our goverment wount help to support its workers I guess its up to us to help sway things with our purchasing desicions.

Only thing that concerns me is how much US made product we can really afford to purchase, and how many products dont have any other alternatives to imports.

 

Ford GM and Chrysler all have manufacturing plants outside of the US in Canada, Mexico, Australia etc.
Even things labeled "made in america" are not necessarily made here. For example...When I was in college, I worked at a high end bike shop. Many Trek bicycles carry the label, "made in america". The unfortunate truth is, to be able to put that sticker on, the bike only had to be assembled here.
For years, companies have moved operations overseas because raw materials are cheaper in foreign countries. The decline of Pittsburgh economically is a good example, as we get much of our steel from China.
The US places high tarriffs on incoming goods and that is supposed to offset the American dollars spent on foreign products. How well that is working, I don't know.
I do know that Honda and Toyota both have automobile manufacturing plants in the United States. In Ohio and Kentucky, I think. The American automakers have no such plants in Japan. Why? The Japanese gov't will not allow it.
In regards to "made in China" you have to consider their government. They are a Socialist country. That means that the gov't has control over all for-profit businesses. This allows them to drive down the labor costs and offer products at a reduced rate over American made ones.
The freedom we experience in the US comes at a price. Being hit in the wallet every now and again is minor compared to the price our military and their families are paying to offer our freedoms. Not just in Iraq. Do not forget Somalia, Panama, Iran and Afghanistan, where we still have a heavy concentration of troops who are still in harms way.
I am not digging at anyone, just trying to offer perspective.

Merry Christmas.

 

Nothing wrong with riding a Honda. I am a Harley owner but, I am also a realist. My father has an 87 Kawasaki Vulcan and he has only had to do brakes, fork-seals and tires. I regularly have to wrench on my Harley. In general, Harley's are not engineered real well. Ironically, you look at the lower fork legs on ANY stock HD and they will say SHOWA. A Japanese company...