Your next phone may very well be made in the USA

[the_tyrant]

http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/02/m...-be-homegrown/

"Made in America." For some reason, my parents -- and the parents of many of my peers -- take great pride in seeing that phrase. I've seen people buy inferior products just because the label on the back proclaimed that it was thrown together in one of our 50 great states instead of across some imaginary line in "another country." Part of me wonders if people actually check to see if said claims are legitimate. As a business graduate, I fully understand the importance of producing goods within one's borders. There's a delicate balance that needs to be struck between imports and exports, and a huge part of a nation's economic growth hinges on how well that balance is executed.

What sparked this off? The Google Nexus Q

http://www.theverge.com/2012/6/29/31...nexus-q-review

Its a little google music streaming device, that is well, mediocore. However, it is made in america, and that alone, for some people is worth the 300$

[Ducimus]

Well, it's a start i guess.

We used to make A LOT of things here. Not so much now. "Made in America" used be synonymous with "Quality product". I have a few items around my house that i've owned for decades that, if you examine them, say, "Made in USA". They've lasted so long, because they were made when Made in USA meant, "Built to last". From my clothes Hamper, to an Igloo little playmate lunchbox, and a number of items in between. I don't think any of these items are made here anymore. All china now, and those never last very long.

[Oberon]

Good to see it happening, wish it could happen here too. I mean, I'm not the nationalistic type to say that everything should be 'Made in the UK/US/etc' but this trend of importing everything we use and only when we need it has got to stop, it's not sustainable, we have little to no reserves of anything, and it leaves us very vulnerable to external events and entities.

[Ducimus]

I'm unashamedly nationalistic. I don't think that EVERYTHING we use should be made here, but i think we should be making domestically at least the same quantity of goods that we import. I'd be happy with a 50/50 split. As it is, we import just about everything i think.

[Oberon]

Originally Posted by Ducimus

I'm unashamedly nationalistic. I don't think that EVERYTHING we use should be made here, but i think we should be making domestically at least the same quantity of goods that we import. I'd be happy with a 50/50 split. As it is, we import just about everything i think.

That's not nationalism, that's common sense! The problem is the pricing, somewhere in the system from producer to consumer it's gone wildly out of whack, so you're expected to pay three or four times the price for something that was shipped several hundred miles around the world as opposed to something made in the next county/state.
Now, in a world where transportation costs are low then that makes economic sense, you go where the labour costs are cheap and cheerful, usually China or the surrounding area...but what happens when transportation costs start to rise, as they have done and will do because of oil prices...you got it, the consumer pays the extra cost.
Economic sense, for those in the middle, but then what happens when the transportation stops, because of war or a natural disaster?
The producer and consumer are both screwed, the producer has no native market for the things that he has making, and the consumer runs out of the imported goods and either has to move into being a producer, or die.
We've let economic sense overrule common sense too much, and it's going to bite us in the arse one day.

[Jimbuna]

Given the choice I'd buy 'Made in the UK' every time...just don't have the choice anymore

[Penguin]

Originally Posted by Oberon

We've let economic sense overrule common sense too much, and it's going to bite us in the arse one day.

The problem is, like common sense is unfortunately not very common, economic sense is neither very economic.
If I'd borrowed 99 cents and promise to either pay back one dollar next month or one cent each day over the course of the next 10 years, most would take the first offer.
This short-sightedness is reflected not only that people often do not put in things like durability in a purchase decision. No, people saw off the branch they sit on. "Oh, I bought some nice wood panels from wall-mart for cheap. And have you heard that Uncle Joe lost his job in the sawmill last month? Damned Obama!"
This is just one example of the costs which are not in the calculation. There are other costs, costs everyone has to pay in their own country: for unemployment benefits, industrial subsides, bail-outs, etc.
About the human costs we had a good discussion on here some months ago: http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=191956
Apropos Obama: funny that people who call him a Socialist who wants to destroy freedom seem to have no problem to support the biggest dictatorship in the world when buying stuff from China.
Another bill everyone pays are the environment costs, here's a good report about it, how it effects us on a global level: http://www.csmonitor.com/Environment...tion-nightmare

[the_tyrant]

You know, my current computer is made in Canada, I assembled it myself

But thing is, just look at the nexus Q. Sure it is made in the USA, but come on, the price is outrageous for what it does.

A streaming music player for 300$? how the hell does it even expect to be competitive!

[Ducimus]

Originally Posted by Penguin

This short-sightedness is reflected not only that people often do not put in things like durability in a purchase decision. No, people saw off the branch they sit on. "Oh, I bought some nice wood panels from wall-mart for cheap. And have you heard that Uncle Joe lost his job in the sawmill last month? Damned Obama!"

edit:

As an aside, I personally have no problem paying more for a product if it was made to last. I've never liked cheap crap.

[Oberon]

Originally Posted by Ducimus

Quite so.

The one hurdle I stumble over is how do you make a Western country competitive with the likes of the PRC, without causing a massive price-hike and without outsourcing employment laws to Beijing?

[Ducimus]

Originally Posted by Oberon

Quite so.

The one hurdle I stumble over is how do you make a Western country competitive with the likes of the PRC, without causing a massive price-hike and without outsourcing employment laws to Beijing?

Yeah I've had similar thoughts in the past. We've dug a big massive hole for ourselves. I think the only way we'd be able to pull ourselves out of it is through a massive social effort with blatant nationalistic overtones to pluck peoples patriotic heart strings. I'm talking, major league campaigning akin to WW2 bond drives and what not, to get people to buy domestic products even though they are more expensive then the foreign counterparts. I think it would eventually run a full circle with the infusion of cash into our own industry. People buy domestic products, those manufacturers can afford to make more product, hire more people at the desired wages, and a not so vicious cycle repeats itself throughout the economy. (yeah i know, i'm just a regular armchair economist)

The trouble is, people either a.) Can't afford to pay more for domestic products or b.) will not pay more when they can go to wallmart.
Furthermore, the odds of a major social effort that is successful to persuade people is zero to none. So I really don't think its possible for us to recover, unless another world war erupts and we experience a full scale national mobalization akin to ww2; which isn't likely to happen, and nor should anyone wish another world war.

So in summary, we're screwed.

edit: As an aside, It took WW2 to completely remove the effects of the great depression, and bring the country back on the upswing. This (ww2 recovery) i think set the tone for the US economy, world status, and sense of self until the last few decades. Although our sense of self hasn't changed, which puts some people at odds with the reality of this new era in which we live.

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Ducimus

Loved it

Originally Posted by Ducimus

So in summary, we're screwed.

Looks that way