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Post by blueneck on Jun 13, 2007 19:06:25 GMT -6
If poison pet food and toothpaste from china isn't enough, now its childrens toys with lead paint - something that has been banned for decades in the US and Europe Massive Thomas the train recall www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml07/07212.html
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Post by unlawflcombatnt on Jun 13, 2007 19:56:10 GMT -6
If we had a real government, that was at all concerned with the wellbeing of the people of the United States, we'd immediately ban all imports from China.
Those imports are not just "killing" jobs, they're "killing" American consumers as well.
One of the few serious guests on the Larry Kudlow comedy hour, stated that 85% of Chinese imports come from companies owned by Americans. Thus, the major benefactors of our open trade with China are the American multinationals that have moved their production facilities to China, while exploiting Chinese workers, suppressing the wages of American workers, and now poisoning American consumers.
By the way, does anyone really know what country their toothpaste is made in? Crest toothpaste is "distributed" by Procter and Gamble in Cincinnati, Ohio. But "distributed" by a U.S. company is not the same as "Made in USA."
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Post by blueneck on Jun 13, 2007 20:08:13 GMT -6
They closed the 100 year old Colgate facility in Jeffersonville IN and shipped that production somewhere unknown. Supposedly this former facility produced up to 75% of the countries toothpaste, not just the Colgate brands but a lot of the store and lesser names too.
This contamination and poisoning is starting to look more and more like state sponsored terrorism.
I will be thinking twice and I don't care how much it costs but I will be avoiding the purchase of chinese made toys as much as humanly possible.
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Post by rjfliberal07 on Jun 13, 2007 23:51:38 GMT -6
I was wondering, what if say only 20 percent of the "aware" progressive consumers, who know about the ills of outsourcing, went without buying anything made outside of the U.S. Toys are included as well as shoes. This should be tried. I know it will suck not having new shoes or wearing shoes that are barely hanging together or not buying any toys for our kids, but after doing this for a few months, with enough of an organized boycott, I believe companies profits will plunge drastically. At this point the companies could either outsource more or layoff worker here. However, I believe that with money talking in this day and age, a company like Mattell would rather have less profits but still profits as opposed to laying off the rest of it's R and D and Marketing workforce in the U.S. All that would do in this example would cause a further backlash against said company, and sales would fall further.
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Post by blueneck on Jun 14, 2007 4:39:39 GMT -6
I have several pairs of made in usa shoes that periodically I take to the shoe repair place in town and get repaired, I'll be damned if I am going to buy slave labor made shoes that are marked up 500%.
Fortunately we have an award winning cobbler in town that can fix even the floppiest shoes to like new.
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Post by rjfliberal07 on Jun 14, 2007 9:15:58 GMT -6
I buy shoes that are made in China. However the shoes are made by New Balance, one of the few companies left that still makes some shoes in the U.S. If I could find shoes made here I would buy them. Problem is I can not find any.
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Post by blueneck on Jun 14, 2007 15:56:41 GMT -6
Yah, all the USA shoes I have are 10 or more years old. What was left of the US shoe industry was in Maine and its been gone for more than 5 years. There is a small handful of specialty and custom shoemakers left, very small.
Whats interesting, and they had this on NPR last week, is that all the tariffs remain on imported shoes, to protect an industry that no longer exists in any meaningful way. And even more interesting is that the tariffs are regressive - that the lower the cost imported shoe the higher the tariff, and the tariffs taper off as the price gets higher - so ther may be 15 bucks of tariffs on a 25 dollar chinese sneaker, but no tariff at all on 500 dollar italian loafers. Whats wrong with this pricture?
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Post by unlawflcombatnt on Jun 15, 2007 2:11:45 GMT -6
I'm probably guilty of buying Chinese shoes myself. I haven't even been checking.
I wonder if anyone knows of any computers that are still made in the United States.
There are many things that were formerly made in the United States that are no longer made here at all.
Are Craftsman Tools still made in the United States?
As bad as a I hate to say this, the only Presidential candidate who seems to acknowledge the collapse of American manufacturing is Republican Duncan Hunter. He actually makes a point of how big a problem this is in the United States. Except for his opposition to illegal immigration, however, I don't agree with Hunter on much of anything else. But he's sure got it right on outsourcing and the loss of American manufacturing.
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Post by blueneck on Jun 15, 2007 4:28:41 GMT -6
Dell assembles computers in Austin TX, but the content is mostly from Asia and Mexcio.
Craftsman, Snap on, and Irwin still make tools in the US. Some come from offshore but their core tools are still domestic. Irwin caters to the high end and specialty tool market for tradesmen as does Snap on.
On Hunter - like you said it seems that at least some of the republicans are talking about the manufacturing crisis, nary a peep out of the Democrats except for a little lip service from Edwards. In fact there was an article a while back that leaked some information that was telling Hillary that labor was irrelevent and no need to court the union vote - I beleive I saw it on Huffington post.
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Post by rjfliberal07 on Jun 15, 2007 10:00:13 GMT -6
I really hope someone can find some dirt on Hillary like another Whitewater, thus forcing her to withdraw from the race. I fear for our country if she gets elected. She, in my opinion is a Neo-Con in sheep's clothing. If she gets the Democratic nomination I probably will vote for Jack B Nimble instead of her assuming there is no viable Republican or Independent alternative.
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Post by blueneck on Jun 15, 2007 14:57:47 GMT -6
I just can't imagine any scenario where I could vote for Hillary. Even in a worse case of Ghouliani v Clinton would be a tough call. Heck I might even vote Gingrich over Hill. The only possibility is if they put up another Bush, but the field of those is narrowed - Jeb of course who is actually a more able politician to Shrub, or the conveniently forgotten Neil, one of the chief architects of the savings and loan swindle/scandal. If its a choice of Hill, Ghouliani, McCan't, or Romney - I'll have to write in Paul or other viable 3rd party
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Post by unlawflcombatnt on Jun 15, 2007 23:40:45 GMT -6
I can't envision voting for Hillary either. Ghouliani vs. Clinton would be a tough choice. I'd have to vote for a 3rd party candidate or write someone in.
I don't think Clinton has anything approaching the "support" that the polls indicate. She's simply a favorite of the pollsters themselves, and a favorite of the hand-picked people that vote in the Corporate-sponsored polls.
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Post by rjfliberal07 on Jun 17, 2007 3:58:23 GMT -6
I would have to say I agree. I always seem baffled that she gets such high numbers in most of these polls, with such high unfavorablity ratings already, well before the dirt of the campaign trail really works it's magic. I believe even most Democrat's don't care for her too much either. I know I don't. I believe the media/pollsters either want her to get the nomination for the Dems to ensure automatic defeat versus any Republican short of David Duke, or the power elite believe she is the next best thing to G.W.B at preserving the status quo right now in America.
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Post by blueneck on Jun 17, 2007 5:08:43 GMT -6
Bingo
At least David Duke is for tougher illegal immigaration enforcement and border security
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Post by whoswho on Aug 9, 2007 10:59:28 GMT -6
was wondering, what if say only 20 percent of the "aware" progressive consumers, who know about the ills of outsourcing, went without buying anything made outside of the U.S. Toys are included as well as shoes. This should be tried. I know it will suck not having new shoes or wearing shoes that are barely hanging together or not buying any toys for our kids, but after doing this for a few months, with enough of an organized boycott, I believe companies profits will plunge drastically. At this point the companies could either outsource more or layoff worker here. However, I believe that with money talking in this day and age, a company like Mattell would rather have less profits but still profits as opposed to laying off the rest of it's R and D and Marketing workforce in the U.S. All that would do in this example would cause a further backlash against said company, and sales would fall further.
See, they have us by the balls of our own desires. As long as Americans retain the attitudes they have, China and Walmart will rule. I think females especially keep the spending fires burning. I also post on The Dollar Stretcher. It is surprising how oblivious women are to the problems we are facing. I am not putting women down, "I are one". But I strongly believe if the women changed their spending habits, they could literally turn the economy around.
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