Made in the USA

[Jump Right In]

I would like to see a poll of how important "Made in North America" (we will include our Canadian friends) is when purchasing something... especially when most of us are mod-oholics.

The Poll could include things like, not at all - lowest price always wins, yes as long as its within 10% of cost, etc. I am just curious as to how the group feels on the subject as its something I consider every time I buy a part for my boat.

 

[octavio3311]

I consider it with every purchase I make. But sadly, it's getting harder all the time.

 

[itsdgm]

I love buying something that's made in the USA. But like Octavio said, it's not always an option.

 

[soggyshoes]

I do look at this. When evaluating this I don't care if it is an American company, but where it is made and designed. I don't really care where the profits are going as much as supporting jobs. This decision will not be made at the cost of quality or value.

 

[-klb-]

I've actually read that the costs of manufacturing in china have actually reached the point where it costs as much to do in china, but the companies and skilled labor no longer exist in the US to compete.

 

[Gym]

Like several have already stated buying USA is not often an option. There are very few pure bred cars as most foreign and domestics have parts made all over and several imports are made here. I don't like supporting the Chinese government/economy though as they are weilding way too much economic power over this country and they have little respect for copyright laws and intellectual property.

 

[Volffas]

I shop local and buy made in the USA as much as possible.

I absolutely REFUSE to step foot into Wal-Mart. I know first hand how bad they stick it to vendors and their customer service is the worst I have ever seen. The last straw was 4 years ago... 3 days before Christmas I went in for some last minute gifts and they had 3 lanes open with about 10 people waiting in each line. I asked the manager if she was going to open any lanes and she very matter of factly said NO. So I told her that since she wasn't doing anything she could keep herself busy putting the contents of my cart back on the shelf. I pushed the cart to her and walked out vowing to never go back. And I haven't. If more people treated them like that things would change. But too many people are similar to sheep and just follow the crowd. ~RANT OVER~

 

[Brmorganjr]

Well time to step back into Wal-Mart, they are putting their money up front for Made in the USA.....you can talk crap, but $250 Billion over the next 10 years....it's gonna be hard to crap talk about..

And their corporate page

http://corporate.walmart.com/global-responsibility/us-manufacturing

 

[Julian]

It makes for good press, but with nearly $500 Billion in annual sales, and nearly $120 Billion a year in gross income, $250 billion over 10 years is 20% of gross income....

That said...I shop at Walmart for some things...

 

[Brmorganjr]

you gotta start somewhere and 25 billion a year is a good start to put people to work.

 

[itsdgm]

Glad to see that they're making an effort.

 

[Geiger41]

Is it bad to say a Walmart Commercial got me all fired up (In a good way) lol not angry

 

[jawsf16]

Globalization is here to stay. I do my best to buy American, but often times even American made products are owned by foreign investors and vice versa...

 

[Volffas]

I'm still not going into a Wal-Mart. How much American product they buy will not influence my decision. The fact that most full time employees still live below the poverty line and are eligible to collect government assistance while Wal-Mart makes $$BILLION$$ per year is enough for me. Oh, and I still hate the stupid long lines.

I agree with the other comments on "what does made in America really mean?" Even Budweiser and Miller are owned by foreign companies. Heck just a couple months ago my beloved Makers Mark sold to a Japanese company So even the profits from things that are truly made in America still end up on foreign shores.

I talked with a guy in the leather business. They buy cow hides in America and ship them half way around the world to become leather jackets and then ship them back to America to sell. It's cheaper to pay for the shipping both directions and the people making them than it is to just make them here in the USA. So I agree, globalization is here to stay.

 

[txav8r]

Maybe it is time to go into the shipping business...here that company? We need a full fledged freight and overnight expansion to passenger service!

 

[Brmorganjr]

What we need to consider is why did manufacturing leave the US for other shores. Yes your "American" Named cars are being assembled in Mexico, while Toyota and Yamaha are owned by Japanese they are putting people here to work to assemble them.....Now to stir the nest...IMO....Unions drove manufacturing out of the US. Over so many years of demanding higher pay and benefits for their members, each time it caused the company to increase the price per unit till the point it became cheaper for a company to ship halfway around the world and still stay competitive in the market then to do business here. Yes that is hard to swallow, but truthful.....to bring back manufacturing here, we need to suck it up, realize as a country that $12 per hour is not as good as $18 per hour...but better then living on government assistance, where the government can control you....

When the Unions first started they were needed as people where treated so badly, today they have become a money machine, they only care about the members dues so the can afford the politics of influence on politicians to vote their way to better increase their revenue....it really is that simple

 

[octavio3311]

I tend to agree with @Brmorganjr - I was a Teamster many many years ago, and in the electrical union after that. The unbelievable crap I saw and all the scams - it no wonder EVERY project went over budget. It was sickening.

 

[Glassman]

http://americansworking.com

...years ago I found this site. That year I declared a "Made in USA" Christmas.

I found some extremely excellent items that made a lasting impression as gifts.

 

[Magic]

http://americansworking.com

...years ago I found this site. That year I declared a "Made in USA" Christmas.

I found some extremely excellent items that made a lasting impression as gifts.

Nice find!

 

[lashburn1]

.....totally loaded Post.....but it's a good reminder of where we are today.
While my Mastercraft and Tundra are built here....
Our Daily purchases from the Chinese Outlet stores "Target, best buy, and Walmart" are a big part of our countries spending too. ....

I don't know if paying factory workers $12-18 will get Cheap Chinese appliances built over here....
There question is how much cheap Chinese stuff do we need to get ?
We/I like having stuff.... Just need to think twice about the stuff we/I get....

Not easy to break the habit