Marie-- I LOVE getting things from other countries, etc. I love the culture of other places and learning about other people. My problem lies with countries like China who treat their people as poorly as they do. I'm using China as an example... there are sweat shops and people working just as hard for a few cents per hour in other countries besides China, I know. For example... Do you think that Louie Vitton (spelling?) purse that celebrities walk around with and costs 25,000 dollars was really made for more than a few dollars? Or some of the shoes we're walking around wearing? It just makes me nauseated to think that those workers can get treated like they are and we're supporting the BIG guys (corporations) who ALLOW this to happen.
Eddy-- Good points. However, more often than not, people get QUITE excited to work in these "sweat shops" that American corporations put up. While the working conditions and compensation seem substandard to us, they generally are MUCH better than their locally owned "sweat shops". I don't intend to justify poor working conditions. Far from it. I am a very outspoken advocate of improved working conditions. My point merely being that it is generally viewed as an IMPROVEMENT when a yankee company comes to town. Pay raises and improved conditions. Local companies generally get quite angry because it often forces them to "raise the bar" in terms of conditions and compensation... because the local workforce has been given a CHOICE.
Marie-- I never said I wanted my employment to be "guaranteed." You just see so many big businesses trying to save money and have "the little man" work for less and less and less. They expect HIGH QAULITY for LOW wages... are we trending toward Chinese working salaries where they get paid CENTS per hour? I mean, I seriously doubt that will happen in "my" lifetime but don't you notice a trend?
Eddy-- People are compensated according to a supply and demand curve. If there are tons of people willing to work for the current wage (or less)... enough to satisfy the required number of quality people for the position(s) required, there is no sense in raising pay. If Americans expect too much pay for the job, THAT'S when they go elsewhere. It's the world we live in. I do notice a trend. But not the one you are speaking of. The trend is in technology. We are increasingly able to do more with less. This also means less people. Those who learn and embrase the changing world will benefit. Those who insist on "protecting their way of life" in increasingly obselete job roles will suffer. US companies in general are becoming more and more reliant on technology and information to maintain a competive advantage. The big money is going to those workers who DEVELOP that competive advantage. We can't subsidize an obsolete group of workers.
Marie-- Do you SEE many American-made products in Wal-mart.
Eddy-- Yup. The Sam's Choice line (walmart's private label) among many countless others.
Marie-- yes, we pay less there and save some money (yes I shop there too occasionally-- but) but I'd rather support American workers (to help secure their jobs)
Eddy-- By shopping at Walmart, you are still supporting countless American workers. Truck drivers, clerks, accountants, HR people, granny greeters, inventory people, etc. etc.... And a great deal of the products on Walmart shelves are in fact American made.
Marie-- have you seen how many factories are closing?... not for poor quality work they're doing-- but so that the products can be made for cents per hour overseas by people who are working in poor conditions and who live in communist countries, etc. and so that large companies/corporations can make more money--yes, they have every RIGHT to do that, but where do we draw the line???
Eddy-- I mentioned it above, blame technology. Granted I say that as I sit here happily employed.
But it's really becoming a BLAME game. Also, it's not ALWAYS companies looking to save a buck. Increasingly, some unions are bullying US companies to the point they just can't AFFORD to operate in the US anymore. It can also be said that we as consumers just don't want to pay that much to replace (or merely add to) most of the stuff we ALREADY have that is working fine in the first place. Like a bigger TV, a cooler stereo, etc.... In order to get people to buy this stuff, prices have to decrease. In order for prices to decrease, overhead must do the same. If you've ever bought a 30 dollar DVD player, a 10 dollar phone, a 25 dollar boombox, a calculator for less than a buck, etc. you likely participated in the process as well. In the meantime companies in the US are begging for more IT professionals, engineers, etc. and paying top dollar to get them to come to America because we simply can't produce enough of them ourselves. Blame education for that one I guess.... hehe...
Marie-- I have nothing against the people making the products overseas... it's their countries who are ONLY PAYING THEM CENTS PER HOUR and who don't CARE what kind of conditions they're working in...
Eddy-- I wasn't aware the countries were writing the checks.
Marie-- these are CHILDREN in MOST cases who are working in sweatshops and making our wedding dresses, our wicker furniture, our toys; I could go on and on and on.
Eddy-- I think "MOST" is a bit of an overstatement. SOMETIMES would probably fit better.
Marie-- And not everyone in America has the ability to go to school AND support their families if they're job gets swiped from underneath them all of a sudden because some millionaire or billionaire wants to make a few more million/billion. How many different skills/trades must you become an expert in/on in order to make a dollar? Do you understand what I'm saying?
Eddy-- I understand what you are saying. I just don't entirely agree with it. 1) You don't have to go to school to learn a new trade/skill. Books are free, and so is the ability to read them. 2) A millionaire is not rich by today's standards. 3) Very few large companies are privately held, so it's not just one fat cat making these decisions, it's stockholders, and there are thousands, sometimes millions of them that would like to make a little money from their shares or their mutual funds containing said shares. 4) You need to know as many skills/trades as it TAKES to make a dollar. For instance, it's simply not my problem if you are a steam engine builder and jets are the only thing in demand these days. 5) It's better for us (ME AND YOU) if a US company is still open and using foreign factories rather than closing due to financial insolvency. At least they are still contributing tax dollars, service and support jobs in the US, AND helping the economy.
Marie-- Like I said above... I'd rather support my American worker if it's only a few dollars more... seriously. That's just ME. I'm not rich but I don't like supporting communist countries who treat their employees/slaves, if you will, as they do.
Eddy-- By buying foreign made products you are still supporting American workers. It still takes people to sell it to you, to deliver it to the stores to sell it, to count the money from selling it, to develop the software to track it, on and on.
Marie-- Would I support a puppy mill over a reputable breeder? Why would I support an evil communist country or ANY country who treats their workers SO POORLY when I could put it towards people who ARE skilled and who are working hard at a factory in a free America? If I don't support my country and the workers HERE, then they definately will falter and will NOT have jobs. If the trend keeps on like it does and eventually all of our products get made in other countries... what will American workers have as a trade to turn to??? I seriously wonder what will eventually happen. Granted, I can't buy EVERYTHING American, but I can certainly TRY to buy American when it's possible.
Eddy-- If you support the "little guy", buy one from the pound. The fine breeds from breeders AND puppy mills will find homes.
hehehe.... just being a dork. The reality is that the traditional "jobs" are and will continue to deminish in America. It's not becuase of greed, it's because of economic reality.
Marie-- This *is* an interesting discussion, isn't it???
Eddy-- Yea, but I've got a headache now, and we're really doing this in the wrong forum. hehe...
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