I don’t know enough of the hardcore facts to sound really intelligent here and articulate exactly what I want to say regarding the United States of America and it’s current economic perdicament. I think I can safely say we are in hot water and need to make the number one priority to start taking care of business at home. I feel for other countries in need of aid, I do. But we aren’t taking care of our own, and that’s just long-run suicidal if you ask me.
I got an e-mail a few days back that made me think more than twice about something related. I started walking around the house picking things up, seeing where they were made. Where the jobs were to make them.
An old fashioned super-pinky ball, you remember those? …
Trident Gum – Made in Mexico.
Ball plastic freezer containers – China.
All-American Companies that no longer make their products in the USA
Radio Flyer
Levi Jeans
Rawlings baseballs (ironic, all -american sport, balls made in Costa Rica)
We’re not the only ones doing this.
Now this is interesting.
IKEA pillow. Swedish Company, right?
The label reads DESIGN AND QUALITY – Ikea of Sweden.
MADE in CHINA!
Even my 46 year old Raggedy Ann & Andy dolls were manufactured in Hong Kong.
Knickerbocker was a Dutch company.
Are we not capable of making rubber balls, freezer containers, chewing gum, AUTOMOBILES?
You want to see tragedy? Most of you will know that Detriot, in it’s car-making glory days,had become a wealthy town because of the booming car industry. Click here for a stunning photo tribute to the Detroit of today.
The labor is cheaper “over there” you say… well I say if you are an American Company, you make your stuff here, or you can’t sell it here. Atleast you should pay a steep price for taking those jobs out of the country.
If you are a Foreign Company, we thank you for the opportunity to purchase your goods but we have people here who are jobless, homeless, who are hungry, who don’t have medical insurance,who have lost their home or apartment . They need the jobs. HERE.
That super pinky I bought last week was 99 cents. I’ll gladly pay $1.99 if it means you’ll bring those jobs home, JA-RU of Florida. And if I can’t afford it, then it isn’t mine to buy in the first place.
I heard a quip recently…
“Live and Die in Debt – The American Way”.
That’s just not funny.
So what does a little person like me of no real importance do about this? I’m going to start reading labels, just as I do for healthy ingredients. If I threw out all the things in my house that were NOT Made in the USA, it would be at the very least half-empty.I’ll admit I’m not willing to go that far. But I can start putting items back on the shelf of a store if I see they aren’t made in the USA. That’s exactly what I intend to do.
Easier.. said.. than done.
Oh I'm the first!
You are right.
Though I haven't tried to buy mostly US, I've been buying and shopping truly local when possible for some time. Local coffee shop/vs Starbucks; local hardware store vs Big Box; no chain restaurants etc. I generally pay a little more, but feel that I'm directly supporting someone that I might rub shoulders with occasionally.
Great post! I do try and buy things made in the USA, it is becoming harder and harder to find those items.
I'm right behind (or in front of you) Karen…been buying "US" for a long time!…:)JP
Just about the only way to buy USA is to buy at thrift stores and yard sales which is what I do…if you want to see something amazing google exploding Pyrex…because China starting using a cheaper silica recipe for glassware it can very easily explode when exposed to extreme temperatures..such as over 400° in the oven of taking it out from the oven and putting it on the countertop…I do not cook and try not to eat from anything made in China…I don't think the paint is right…it is really hard to build houses now though because it is so hard to find stuff made in the USA such as lights..fans..appliances..
Karen- I am with you- I am so sick of inferior quality goods that come from overseas…some of them are okay but so much is bulk produced that you lose the quality. I got sidetracked looking at those pictures of Detroit. It is just sad…the "fixer" in me wants to go there and remodel those buildings and bring back the beauty that they once held.
Something has to stop..we need to stop spending..and we need to stop saving everyone but ourselves. We are sending food overseas by the shipload (I don't begrudge hungry folks food) but I also know that we have men, women & children here that are starving. Kids that need shoes for school and Mom's that need money to buy the essentials. Sad..it is just sad. I have started buying American whenever I can-and guess what? It is NOT easy. You have to SEARCH to find stuff made in the USA. Sad…just sad…Great post- Diana
oh this stuff makes me so mad and it won't be long before china takes over the world, thanks to us….i'm with you, i'd happily pay a little more to get stuff stamped MADE IN THE USA! But, I am happy to report, after just checking, that my husband bought a new American flag from Lowes and it says MADE IN AMERICA!
I've always been of the reasoning… if we can't take care of our own, how can we possibly justify trying to take care of others?
i got that same email, and i'm going to TRY to think of this while i'm grocery shopping and houseware buying. thanks for putting it out there again!
A hearty "Amen" to to buying items Made in the USA!
It is difficult, but will be worth it.
Amen!! We need to take care of our own. I am sure most of our homes would be empty if we only kept made in the USA. I loved when they did that series on the ABC evening news.
TOTALLY w/Karen on this. If you look at the ABC Evening News web there is a section titled "Get Involved with Made in America". There is also a tab that you can bring up each State and see what items are made in THAT STATE. Example, North Carolina: Burts Bees Cosmetics, Laine Furniture, Sealy Mattress, Dewoolfson ETC. We REALLY CAN SUPPORT OUR STATES ECONOMY. People love that that my operates a family business. They love that our hammocks and rope swings are made in the USofA. When you shop, ask the storekeeper. Tell them you want to support our economy. Read your labels.
Great post Karen. Ever since I saw this on the CBS evening news I've been more aware. The thing that blew my mind was a copy of the Declaration of Independance being sold in a gift shop at the Capitol WAS NOT made in the U.S.A.!! Since that show, that and a lot of other things have been changed.
BTW, have you entered my give-away? You have until tomorrow @ mid-night!
Have a wonderful weekend!
Mary
Local Local Local. Therein lies the answer, and use what you have until you can no longer use it. WE have all been of the mind set to buy things we don't need when economic times were good. I say tax the heck out of any American companies that have moved their labor forces overseas. Oh gee… like the gov't will do that!
I so agree….but it's SO hard to find things made in the USA! I grew up in Rochester NY. I grew up with my father working for Kodak. Guess what happened about 15 years (?) ago? They actually shut down Kodak in Rochester….they made the people that worked there, go to China, and teach the people over there, how to do their job. If they refused to go to China to teach, they were laid off – and were not given their severance pay or any retirement due them. All those buildings that housed Kodak are all just sitting there….
I now live in VA. I moved to the country about 6 years ago. I've never seen farming up close, but now, I have farms surrounding where I live. The equipment is expensive, the farmers have to work night and day, in 100+ temps and below zero. Snow, rain, sleet, – doesn't matter – they HAVE to work 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year. And yet, try to find produce in your stores that is from the USA!
The young people don't want to farm – it's hard work. Something they don't know.
The farmers get little support from the government – yet, we can go to other countries and support them.
It's a mess.
I pray every day that the USA will come back strong, and help their own.
Thanks for voicing your opinion, and letting us voice ours.
Martha
I'm with you, Karen…….if it isn't made here, don't buy it.
Simple. Really.
Did you know that all the textile mills are overseas???
From a business standpoint, that kills me. I can't buy fabric unless I IMPORT it from India, or Turkey, or Indonesia…….
It's crazy.
We all have to start doing a LITTLE, because if everyone does it, it will end up being a LOT.
We try our best to support local businesses and buy locally made items when we can find them! The things from China are so much cheaper…and so are stores like Walmart! So it's hard when money is tight to spend more and not get the cheapest product available! This is a good post! We always enjoyed watching the show, Made in America with John Ratzenberger! ♥
For years now we have only porchased American made cars. Usually Chevy trucks/suv's. I also generally check where it is made because of the fear of lead and inferior quality. This was a wonderful post and I'm so glad that I am not the only one who thinks like this.
Unfortunately, most everything these days is about the almighty dollar; where things can be made cheaply and sold expensively. Even 99 cents is a lot when it cost 5 cents to make.
I'm very worried about our country as many others are also. But, I won't get started, if I did I wouldn't be able to stop.
Great post, Karen.
Amen Sista! What a fantastic post! Your are 100% correct! We need to start taking a stand, even if it's one citizen at a time, and buy things made in the USA!
I always try to support local businesses, i.e., restaurants, small business owners, roadside produce stands, etc. but I am now going to make a more conscious effort to buy things that have been manufactured in the good 'ol U S of A!
I'm going to do it too!
I totally agree, and you can't beat the quality of things that are made here.
There should be an incentive to keep the american companies here in America. It's definately a business decision, cheaper labor there, lets go there.
Something has to change,I'm glancing around my desk as I write, my cord for this computer, made in China. My towel is made in China. My Timex alarm clock is made in China, this is out of control.
First of all- well done! We really need to pay more attention as consumers and make more informed choices about our purchases… amen!
I watched the National news tonight for the first time in a long time. One of the stories was about a company that has decided to re-start their call center here in the USA and they tell their customers that very line… I was happy to hear it, but its a sad statement on the economic times we live in.
Count me in.
A saw a commerical a couple of weeks ago, a show Diane Sawyer of ABC news was going to do, she would have you take off everything not made in the USA. I bet there was a lot of naked butt there!
I will certainly join you but it will be difficult! Are there ANY cameras made in the US? I agree that I would pay more for better quality made locally and just buy less…don't need half the stuff I have anyways!
I so agree with you. Very well said. I saw a young, well-educated Chinese man in an interview the other day who doesn't like the quality of the products made there. However, he said as long as people continue to buy cheap products, they will continue to be made. Like anything else, it starts at home.
I often think of Alan Jackson's song "The Little Man." My grandfather was one of the little men that built the town in the song, before the big money came to town. We try to buy locally and support our economy.
Sam
I was born in Detroit, raised in Dearborn (Ford Motor Co. headquarters) and I well know how much that area has suffered.
You are right on the money with this post. We need to, as much as possible, buy only those items that are made in the USA. It is daunting, but if we started reading labels and making our buying choices based on what we see there, a clear message would be sent.
xo
Claudia
Welcome to the world economy. It sucks. So many manufacturing jobs will never return to the US. So many jobs in general are gone for good.
Things may not be what they seem. Most Toyotas sold in the US are made in the US, and some American cars are made in Canada. Parts can be sourced from all over the world. Jeeps are still made in the USA, though, as of the last time I checked.
I try to buy local and US whenever it's possible … I just don't trust things from China. Most stuff is probably just fine, but there's enough press about short-cuts and inferior materials (and fraud) to make me pause and go elsewhere.
Agreed! I am such a label reader with the food I eat, I will continue to read ALL labels!
i think you are far smarter then you give yourself credit for and KNEW exactly what you were talking about….thank you for the eye opening post !!
xoxo
Good points, of course! I don't buy many 'things' anyhow, but I confess to buying imported foods plenty of times – just to try something new. I use lots of seasonings that are Asian or Mexican. But we do have American cars.
We run a small family manufacturing business. All parts are made in the USA. All products are produced right here. That's the way it will continue to be with our business. It's not the easy way though. The potential for growth is there, the promise of workers is not. My husband is actually talking about learning Spanish in order to expand. Why? Work ethic.
There is a greater problem behind the lack of jobs in America. We are spoiled! How many people do you know that would want to work on a line making something? As a temporary job, maybe a few. As a permanent job, probably none.
As a society, getting desperate might be the only thing that saves us. You wouldn't believe how hard it is to find employees that are willing to work, actually work, not text, not take smoking breaks, just show up and do a fair day's job for good pay. Our entitlement ideals have put us in the shape we are in.
I hope that people will continue to look for "made in USA" and make choices accordingly. But I also hope that as a society we would proudly work for that label.
I agree. It is difficult to find USA made products, but it's worth the search. I absolutely REFUSE to purchase anything made in China and only make a foreign-made purchase if I can't find the equivalent USA made product. It's a pretty sad day for the USA and I hope more people come to that realization and start making the changes that will put us back on the path to a prosperous country. One that can be proud of it's manufacturing plants/products, it's corporations, and it's people. One that can boast it has no homeless.
I'll make the pledge along side you. Our politicians won't do it for us, so we, the people need to do it for ourselves. I'm sick to death of a political system that believes that borrowing trillions of dollars, with no real way to repay it, is ethical or the American way. NO MORE! Step aside, let the good, honest, true Americans show you how it's done. And how it's done is to put OUR people back to work. China is laughing at us and so is the rest of the world.
Jackie
Like you, I received an email about buying America. So hard to do because so little is made in America! I'm not a shopper, mostly we buy groceries. But I needed a background for a fabric sculpture and chose 4 squares of cork and was lucky to find cork in only one store. When I unwrapped it at home the label read – Made in China. Pathetic!
You are correct, of course! I've even found it hard lately to find dog treats which are MADE IN THE USA. I sang praises when I actually found a box (Nutro) at Tractor Supply which clearly stated USA as the country of origin. My husband's tool & diemaker/prototype development job was sent to Germany 3 years ago. He now works in retail. Really, how long before *nothing* is made here? It affects every one of us, and in so many ways. Great post! -Tammy
Karen, you are absolutely right! Amen to everything you said. I'm with you all the way, girl!
Brenda
I couldn't agree more! just came across your lovely blog today, of all days our nations credit score has been lowered. I can only imagine how this will make matters worse. For at least the past 6 years I have followed a rule, if it's not made in the US, I don't really need it. I shop thrift stores and it may surprise some how many items dollar stores sell that are actually made here. as a nation we have many fences to mend, so to speak, and we have to begin by keeping it at home and taking care of our own. If more of us have this opinion our economic wounds may heal faster, it certainly can't hurt to try.
Touche.
Glad you said it. And glad you said it the way you did.
When we talk about jobs, jobs, jobs, we act like it is the politicians' fault, but we very rarely stop and think that corporations exported the jobs and are not going to bring them back unless the general public demands it with their pocketbooks and purchasing power.
Most of the large companies are multinationals anyway, so they don't have a particular loyalty to the U.S. of A. They just follow the market (to China or Mauritania or where ever) for efficiency. Just wait until you learn that the radiologist who read your x-ray on your cracked rib lives in Mumbai. Even those very high-end jobs are exportable.
Trust me on this one. I'm a business school professor specializing in corporate and business strategy.
Vickie
I received an email recently about this–and I wholeheartedly agree! Just went to the grocery store this evening and started to buy a white porcelain teapot until I turned it over and saw it was made in China! I honestly don't trust eating off or out of anything made in China! I don't want my kids playing with their inferior, cheap, toxic toys either. Chinese manufacturers have huge contempt for America. It's so hard to find anything not made there now! How nice it would be to have an online directory of American made products so I could support them! Even though it's getting harder to stretch the paychecks, I'm willing to pay more for made in USA or buy second-hand! So glad you posted on this, Karen!
I wholeheartedly agree on this one. When it comes right down to it, it's the same mentality as eating local. Not only does it mean jobs stay at home, but the shipping of goods around the planet stops.
I may look for made in Canada but made in the USA is right up there. These are the countries I support, not China. And I agree with Sheryl, I find most of these items at thrift stores. I love treading lightly on this planet.
Brilliant post! My MIL just called me about an article she read recently about how America needs to be isolationist. We need to isolate ourselves from other countries and focus on taking care of Americans and our own country. It was a great article but of course written from one point of view, but it brought up a lot of interesting thoughts. We lived outside of Detroit and saw the absolute downfall of the automotive industry and the depression that followed and it was a depression. When the rest of the country was moving into a recession, MIchigan was in a depression. I taught 28 students and four families lost their jobs in just my class. Three homes went into foreclosure. This was the norm. We sold our home for $100,000 less than we paid for it! We as a nation have to stand up for what will help us! Ok… off my soapbox now!!!
Great post Karen,
I think most of the previous comments have hit most points and I wish this was the average attitude but most folks just want a cheap price and don't really care one way the other how they get it.
I blame Walmart that has pressured companies to find cheaper alternatives to high labor costs. They made them go to China and now we are all wondering what happened. Well we sent them there too.
Large box store dictate policy….that's it! Every year they take bigger and bigger market share.
Some day there will be no independant hardware stores, lumber yards or garden centers!
x
Carole
ps yes the rain was a blessing
What's funny (or not so funny) about all of this is I remember my parents trying to buy only American when I was a little girl in the 60s! Crazy.
My dad was ALWAYS checking where things were made (he was management at The Ford Motor Company in St. Paul, Minnesota) and it was very important to him that we all drove American made autos.
It's sad. So sad. It's a sad sad situation.
So yes, let's start recycling more, checking labels, start going to the locally owned stores and shun the big stores.
We can accomplish much with our small efforts. Much!
I grew up in northern Ohio, right near the Michigan line. Most of that area was employed by the car industry. Be it woring in the plants or the offices. When the car companies tanked in 2008, so did that area, where my parents still live! It is a "golf course" community with beautiful homes and mature trees. But, half are in foreclosure, sitting empty. My parents are just heart sick over the loss they will take when the house sells. They will be taking a loss that is incredible 🙁
Their home, like most of us, was an investment for the future. No more…
Thanks for an awesome post, Karen. I am going to watch the video and pass it on to my parents.
xo, misha