Made in China

[elkguide]

My favorite sign on the back of a tractor trailer:

"SICK OF TRACTOR TAILERS ON THE ROAD?
QUIT BUYING SO MUCH CRAP!!!!"

 

[Hackleback]

Tribalism.Funny.Facts not.For example:

Militarily is even less of a joke.
Fear Russia?Ha.
China?No laughing there.
Ignorance remains bliss.

The Chinese are playing the long game, while the US is playing the short game (profits for this quarter), in the end who is going to win? You dont have to be a rocket scientist to figure that out.

 

[ShariVari]

The Chinese are playing the long game, while the US is playing the short game (profits for this quarter), in the end who is going to win? You dont have to be a rocket scientist to figure that out.

Yupp, and don't forget Russia & mid-EU, maybe the most growing area, also the north EU. Not the Scandinavian region, more like the Latvian region. But these are just the normal countries, there is the most growing and mysterious place, Dubai. Luxury is common there, even police have Lamborghinis.

 

[EDW]

Way before it became political I tried to purchase items manufactured in the USA. Thinking back I believe the main reason was to support American workers although at times I am not sure they deserved it.

 

[16Bore]

I reckon depending on the item, the fight is either cheap labor or labor unions.

I think expensive boutique type stuff is about as good as we get anymore. And my guess is that most of the raw materials and manufacturing equipment is from overseas.


Being an American isn’t just about where you spend your money on shit.

 

[Shrek]

Bottom line is that military might is industrial might. As we lose our manufacturing base we lose our military edge. It’s very important that we use tariffs to incentivize domestic manufacturing. Some Specialty items will be made overseas but on the whole we need to encourage domestic manufacturing supplying the majority of our consumer goods. Redirecting our supply chain out of China helps slow the advance of Chinese imperialism and could lead to the collapse of the communist government. The Chinese economy is hollow and extremely vulnerable. Without the American consumer they’re dead in the water economically.
The Chinese have been explicit in their desire to supplant the United States both economically and militarily.

 

[SWOHTR]

Anyone not concerned about China is fooling themselves. It's a complex situation - we ship our labor overseas to buy the stuff back here. Militarily, China is growing, and yes they are a threat. Look up their island building in the South China Sea, policy/ies regarding Taiwan and the Taiwan Strait, 9-dash line, etc. They're increasingly developing domestic military industry (i.e. not relying on buying old Russian tech). Look at who they are supplying (North Korea?). While they tend to operate within the South China Sea, they have also reached as far as the Middle East. Look up their latest social profiling of their citizens.

Yes, they're a threat and one not easily handled. I HATE seeing "Made in China" stamped on almost everything and do what I can to avoid it, but I recognize it is not totally avoidable. Not until we go to war with them...but even then, during WWII the Japanese were using American-bought material (ex. canned produce) throughout the war (all bought prewar).

 

[WannabeHunter]

Bottom line: Everyone would like to see more Americans making the goods Americans buy. Would most agree with that statement?

The argument is in the means.

I just don't think you can win a trade war with communist countries; the governments don't realistically answer to their own people. The costs are eaten by the consumer (pun intended) and the exporting country (china) can continue to sell to the rest of the world.

I'm no economist, but I know a pissing match normally ends both parts have piss on their boots.

I will say, I'm proud to be part of community that seems capable of legitimate discussion.

 

[WannabeHunter]

I think my dollars make the most impact in my immediate local community. Meaning, I buy from local sporting goods stores, shoe stores, etc whenever possible. Don't care if the product is made here, there or somewhere else. If it's a quality product and endorsed by a trusted local seller, then "mom and pop" will get my dollars.

 

[MichaelO]

profit margins and corporate freed are responsible for the made in China phenomenon.

To make a long story short I work in purchasing and supply chain operations for a large global Corp. We buy widget A from a company that imports from China for 12.00 or we can have it made in the US for 15.00. We sell it for 22.00 so tons of profit either way but unless it's a contract stipulation that it's american made or there is a supply issue with the Chinese version guess which one they push?

end answer, insist that everything you buy is american. There might be a made in the US version that is the same price.

applying this to outdoor gear it seems like some companies that build stuff in the USA are straight up greedy. I can think of a certain tent company that sells 1k tents that take all of 150 in materials to build.

 

[Y2JJ]

I just wish companies trained Chinese (or wherever) employees to make better products. I don’t care who makes it I just hope they have a good life and take pride in their work. I know too many Americans that complain too much and don’t earn the wage they receive. Get the products made wherever those that make them are willing and able to do great work. Make the World great for the first time.

 

[Shrek]

Anyone not concerned about China is fooling themselves. It's a complex situation - we ship our labor overseas to buy the stuff back here. Militarily, China is growing, and yes they are a threat. Look up their island building in the South China Sea, policy/ies regarding Taiwan and the Taiwan Strait, 9-dash line, etc. They're increasingly developing domestic military industry (i.e. not relying on buying old Russian tech). Look at who they are supplying (North Korea?). While they tend to operate within the South China Sea, they have also reached as far as the Middle East. Look up their latest social profiling of their citizens.

Yes, they're a threat and one not easily handled. I HATE seeing "Made in China" stamped on almost everything and do what I can to avoid it, but I recognize it is not totally avoidable. Not until we go to war with them...but even then, during WWII the Japanese were using American-bought material (ex. canned produce) throughout the war (all bought prewar).

The Chinese are rapidly catching up to us militarily. They’re the only other country to field a stealth fighter. The J20 is stolen technology from Lockheed Martin but they were able to take and understand that technology and development their own aircraft. They’ve also been to the moon twice and unlike America can put their astronauts into orbit with their own rockets. They steal anything and everything they can without shame. Intellectual property and forced technology transfer are the big issue with trade not necessarily the trade imbalance.

 

[Shrek]

Anyone here work for Boeing ? Make a bet with you. Boeing will be almost entirely dependent on military work within 20 years because Boeing agreed to assemble and make a significant amount of parts in China to get their business. The Chinese are working night and day to learn and apply that technology and steal the rest. They’ll soon have it figured out and they will then run Boeing and Airbus out of the commercial aircraft business. They’re still struggling with engine technology which make their J20 under powered and dependent on Russian engines and their domestic airliners inefficient. My bet is they’ll whip that issue in three to five years and move on to reliability of their commercial aircraft.
GM transfered their car chassis technology to them to build in China. That will move Chinese car manufacturing forward by a decade or more. Corporate America is its own worst enemy.

 

[MichaelO]

Anyone here work for Boeing ? Make a bet with you. Boeing will be almost entirely dependent on military work within 20 years because Boeing agreed to assemble and make a significant amount of parts in China to get their business. The Chinese are working night and day to learn and apply that technology and steal the rest. They’ll soon have it figured out and they will then run Boeing and Airbus out of the commercial aircraft business. They’re still struggling with engine technology which make their J20 under powered and dependent on Russian engines and their domestic airliners inefficient. My bet is they’ll whip that issue in three to five years and move on to reliability of their commercial aircraft.
GM transfered their car chassis technology to them to build in China. That will move Chinese car manufacturing forward by a decade or more. Corporate America is its own worst enemy.

Agreed , it seems that any product that moves production to China is suddenly copied. That's not a coincidence.

 

[SWOHTR]

Corporate America is its own worst enemy.

Arguably, America’s worst enemy.

And I’m well aware of similar issues you bring up. It’s also worth a look into their naval development...and then compare it to ours. The good news is, I think we retain the edge in employment, training, and tactics...

 

[Crippledsledge64]

I do mental health evaluations for exchange students. Another interesting note is education. Chinese university’s are garbage so most of their students try to get into the U.S for college, when finished a large portion bring that knowledge home with them but a good deal try to stay in the U.S if they can. One theme I constantly hear is that things are more relaxed and less intimidating here and they’d prefer not to go back.

 

[Trial153]

Arguably, America’s worst enemy.

...

At one time I didnt believe this. I do now.

At this point we have the largest government corporate partnership the world has ever seen and nothing about it is good for America or the vast majority of Americans.