The video above was posted to public media by someone who believed
it to be demonstrative of reality in the world today. Unfortunately, this
indicates ignorance of economics more than any other single concept,
The real
message here isn't that the Chinese are producing "cheap junk" since
there is, and has always been, plenty of American made cheap junk. Same
materials, same machinery, higher labor cost. In Trump world, the bad guys are
the people who, understanding economics, (which he demonstrably doesn't - can
you say "five bankruptcies?") supply the US demands for cheap
products. One of the major players in this charade is ...wait for it.... that
icon of conservative Republican support, Walmart. Sam Walton made his rep with "Made in
America" signs all over the stores. Find one now if you can.
Historically, Walmart
has pushed US companies like Rubbermaid to shift production to China and
elsewhere by telling them what they (Walmart) would pay for a product and that
if they couldn't produce it domestically at that price, then they'd have to
make it elsewhere. Bye-bye American made Rubbermaid products, hello cheaper
Chinese made Rubbermaid products. A note here, many of these Chinese products,
especially sports team logo wear are marked up tremendously by the American
company and Chinese workers get relatively little of the upcharge. A golf shirt
with logo which Under Armor manufactures in China for about $9 is priced at $96 dollars in the US Naval Academy gift shop.
There are American shirt makers who produce as good a product but are shut out
because Under Armor outfits the football team as well. Under Armor is American owned.
The tragically
ignorant thread here, is that headband wearing, redneck, cousin lovers such as
those in this video shop where? Walmart, because it's cheaper. Blaming China
for meeting the demand of Americans for cheaper products is ludicrous, and
sadly, indicative of the many of our citizenry who have almost no cognizance of
Economics. These are the same people who, at an auto dealership only care about
"How much is my payment?" and jump at the offer to wait three months
before making the first one, not realizing that the interest will be added to
the final cost anyway.
There will
continue to be a market in certain sectors for luxury products made in America
and elsewhere, but the majority of minimum wage, two jobs families aren’t the
market for those products. Of course, Trump bitches about “cheap, Chinese” products,
since he will never buy any of them for personal use. This, however doesn’t meant
that he and his practice what he preaches. Since Election Day, the apparel brand run by
Trump’s daughter has imported 56 shipments of Ivanka Trump products from China
and Singapore, part of a total of 215 shipments from Asia since Jan. 1, 2016.
In Trump’s signature DC hotel (from which he was supposed to distance himself due
to potential conflict of interest but hasn’t) the four-story American flag in
the lobby towers over Swarovski chandeliers made in Austria. Lamps lining the
hallway are from China. Small decorative boxes on the coffee tables are marked
with stickers that read “Made in India.” In addition, the majority of items in
the $800 per night rooms are not “American made.” In all, 21 of the 31 products whose provenance
could be identified come from outside the US. Here's a partial list: Lamps
(China), Glasses (Italy), Phones (Malaysia), Remote control (China), TV (South
Korea), Soaps and shampoos (Canada), Towels (India), Scale (China). Hair dryer
(China). Sheets (Italy), Tissue container (UK), Umbrella (China), Robe (China),
Tray (UK), Ice bucket (UK), Dishes (Germany), Chandeliers (Austria).
Now here’s the
paradox which makes my head hurt. The majority of Trump supporters who cheer at
his jingoistic speeches about economic issues have several huge lapses of logic
at work in their thought processes, whatever they may be:
First: Their “default position” is, “If we manufactured
these things here in “’Murrica” instead of overseas there’d be more jobs, we
could make more money! Of course, this leads to logic lapse number two which is:
Second: These same naifs would expect American wages, which
when added to higher domestic overhead and materials costs would make these
products much more expensive. Over the entire manufacturing spectrum, this
means a rather large increase in cost of living for those who can least afford
it, most of whom ignorantly support this convoluted and retrograde notion. Of
course, Trump and his ilk couldn’t care less, since they don’t shop at Walmart.
Third: These folks,
like their President, don’t “get” that the economic balance and nature of the
world has changed and cannot be “reset” simply because they want it to be. We are no longer in possession of all the raw
materials which forged the world’s most robust economy in 1946, when Trump and
many of his supporters were born. [One
quick example is the rare earths required for many of the electronic systems
prevalent in almost every aspect of modern life, from cell phones, to jet
fighter weapons control systems, to satellite technology. China and Brazil
control almost 75% of proven sources of those minerals currently known to exist!]
The US economy cannot simply click its heel, chant “There’s no place like home”
and return to that economy. The era of manual labor supporting a family is
pretty much over.
Fourth, and just as troubling: The sub plot in much of this
is Trump’s carefully orchestrated, implied “fear of the ‘other’” scenario. It’s
not just xenophobia, because he has managed to make many of his sycophant base
see their fellow Americans as the “other” as well as those of brown skin,
almond eyes and strange accents. Somehow “they” are to blame, whether it’s “taking
American jobs” which is a blatant lie, since immigrants are in most cases
taking either high tech jobs because they have the training, skills, and
motivation Americans lack, or entry level jobs which many Americans are too (“good”,
proud, whatever) to take. Meanwhile crops rot in fields in some areas because
those who have, in the past, picked it, are afraid to come to work. The other “other”
is those of us who see the man for what he is and more importantly, for what he
isn’t. If we mention the racism, ignorance, and general lack of respect for
others exhibited by the Trump administration, we are now the enemy as well. Reporting
factual data becomes “Fake News.” In
fact, anything not specifically pro-Trump is likely to be labeled as such.
Trump consigliere/mouthpiece Rudy Giuliani even recently stated that truth is, “Not
necessarily,” truth. Say what?
A trip to Arnold’s
Drive In, if we could hop in the Delorean and make it, would reveal that, for better or worse (but forever, in any case) Ritchie Cunningham, Potsie, Ralph and the Fonz have been gone for decades. In many cases, so has “Made
In America.”
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