The Failure of No Government Regulation
 

Hmmm

I guess profit and the foreign currency generated by the garment industry in Bangladesh comes first over building codes and worker safety.

The workers were told to come to work anyway even though a crack in the building was noticed yesterday.

Seems like it happens there all the time

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-22275597

Well, at least we paid less for some underwear. That's what really matters in life. Grrr.


One of the reasons I had to get rid of Facebook was the callousness of some American consumers. A post that sticks out in my mind came from a financial guy on the east coast. He posted something stupid like, "Just bought a pack of pens at Staples for a dollar. I love China."

I thought about the workers in China and just thought dude, you don't know how much you are going to have to pay for those stupid pens someday.

It is a terrible tragedy

200 dead many still trapped. The building's owner is a member of the political party who currently controls the "regulatory" bodies that are supposed to regulate building construction. The bank workers were told to stay home. The poor clothing workers told to report to work. Very sad.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-22289362

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/0...n_3167287.html


Look at the pictures this is terrible.
In 2006 I was on the Hospital Ship Mercy. We would anchor out near Indonesia and Philippines and do humanitarian ops. When we went to Bangladesh we anchored way out....about 45 miles from shore.
The water that far out in the ocean was brown...all from the pollution that the Bangladesh industries just let drain in the water. The toilet water on ship was black. They bascially dismantle old ships and oil tankers on the beach and let the chemicals float into the ocean while the workers salvage the metal.
There is a good piece on 60 minutes if you look it up.

My wife bought me some pants earlier this year corduroys...I looked at the label yesterday. Made in Bangladesh.

We look at the labels before buying, or if we are buying online we insist on knowing he country of origin. For underwear Fruit of the Loom is made in El Salvador, at least it is in the Western hemisphere. Haines used to be here but they up and moved to some Asian country so they got knocked off the list.

I was just last year that a building burnt down over there, apparently the emergency exits were locked or blocked, nice folks.

Here you go, sir!

http://uwearusa.gostorego.com/umb100.html

Thanks, added to my list of Favourites.

While worker safety laws are certainly lax to non-existent in Bangladesh, we have had two pretty big industrial explosions ourselves in the past couple of days (Mobile, AL and West, TX). With proper attention to safety, both of these incidents were certainly avoidable.

Likely because Congress keeps cutting the budgets of the agencies involved in inspection. If you can't change the regulations emasculate the regulators.

I got blasted again last week in Sears. I was needing a tool and asked for COO before going to checkout and a lady shopping over heard me asking and she asked what did it matter. I told her kindly, and explained that not only did it help keep Americans in work but the working conditions in China in which people take advantage of cheap labor were not so good. She came back at me with this: '' maybe so, but if we all decided not to buy products made in China then those people making very little in poor working conditions would be out in the street with nothing ''. I honestly didn't know what to say.

Sad, isn't it? :(

That is the job of the Chinese government, not our job. If we keep Americans at work we keep the economy running.

Deathtoll is up to 348.:(

Yeah but if you supported Bush and Clinton, known free traders, this is the world which we have wrought.
My wife is from the Philippines, so I can see the argument about poorer nations having a workforce.


All you Republicans saying you want to buy only products made in the USA well guess what you guys played a big hand in NAFTA, free trade and outsourcing. So did the Democrats. No one is innocent.

But what is going on in Bangladesh is a crime.

They sure like to lay it all at Clinton's door, tho.:( A-holes need a civics lesson about how legislation is crafted in Uhmerica. House>Senate>House>Senate. Only then is it sent to the President's desk. If the votes in Congress exceed the veto limit? He might as well sign it. Who needs to spend political capital on a phyrric victory?

Mike are you being a bit tongue in cheek?
13 bucks for a single piece of white underwear?

at Walmart you can get 7 pairs for $9.99

do you think many Americans in this economy are going to buy wearusa?

i like the colored briefs myself but that is TMI

Mike doesn't wear underwear...:rolleyes:

And you know that how?:eek:

I don't. And, I don't care who knows it.

Ayup.

Dave

Thanks!:)

Dave

So, she'd rather have Americans making very little, in poor working conditions or out in the street with nothing?:confused: Because that's all her attitude gets us. Unfortunately, far too many of us have this attitude.

Dave,

I too look at the labels and I have paid more, sometimes subtantially more, for the USA made stuff. Unfortunately, it's getting harder every day, because some of us can't see past our wallets and don't give a damn about repercussions, so long as it saves them a buck.

In the end, this will be our undoing.

Dave

Perhaps, but it's damn near impossible to buy many domestically made consumer products, regardless of your willingness to pay more them. Consider the attire and footwear on your body at this very moment. I doubt any of it is manufactured in the US (unfortunately).

OTOH, the workers at the Chinese or Bangladeshi plants aren't really much different than the migrant labor force that we allow here (mostly under the table with a wink and a nod) to pick our vegetables. There's exploitation both here and there, but for the most part the exploited are doing things that Americans no longer wish to do (e.g., garment piecework, picking vegetables, slaughtering chickens...).

I wish it were otherwise, but I'm not sure what can be done now to fix it. Hopefully, our higher-value-added products and services will keep us afloat, if the Chinese don't steal them from us first.

What sucks is when you pay a premium price for USA tools off a tool truck with a no hassle warranty and when you have to warranty something they give you an offshore replacement saying they no longer make the tool in the US. I don't know what more to do to stop this... we do our part but just aren't enough of us willing to out bid places like Harbor Freight. That being said I just added a set of mid-depth Matco 3/8'' drive impact sockets to my 3/8'' impact drawer for 225.00.. made in USA stamped on 'em. Northern Tool and Harbor Freight has a deep or shallow set in 3/8'' drive for about 20 bucks, but they aren't made here.

T shirt from Indonesia, jeans are from Mexico, Redwings are from the US.

Tube amps are US made but tubes that I changed out are from Limeyland and gasp! Russia!:D

my 6v6s are from an ebayer who bought them from russia
so there is an expansion effect


It is sort of hard to buy things here....it is more of a first world thing than an American thing....the developing nations relying on cheap labor from the third world, often at a danger to the workers there but alas it lets them eat too....and feed their children.

That underwear factory looks more like a cottage industry that probably employees the owner and a few workers ...nothing wrong with that.

But I do not want to work in an underwear factory.

Those Harbor Freight tools are garbage and dangerous. I walked around in one of them here, more out of curiousity than anything else. My wallet stayed in my pocket but there were a bunch of Harry homeowners buying that crap. I want to keep what fingers I have left. We still have a great secondary market (AKA garage sales) around here.;)

Exactly. When it comes to tools theres more to it than just made in the USA. I've seen guys screw themselves out of money when a cheap socket rounded the head of a hard to reach bolt. Worst time was when a guy was doing a 30 minute job on book time and it turned in to all day. He had bought a set of cheap tripple squares and broke one off in a bolt. He had to raise the car, remove the wiring and hoses and lower the subframe & engine because there wasn't room to get to the bolt and deal with the broken tool inside of it. Book time only covered the 30 minute job, it didn't cover a days work tearing it down to get a broken tool out. He was a pissed off guy, .. but the next time Snap-On truck stopped by he broke down and bought a set of good tripple squares.

The genie, if there ever was one, will not be going back into the bottle.

I hate to say it, but those Russian tubes are damn nice. I have a set of the Russian Gold Lion (N709) 6BQ5s in my Maggie. Now that they've burned in they are amazing. The only thing American I have that comes close are a matched quad of NOS GEs, which were more expensive and at least 40 years old.

Tubes are one of those things, though. If you want something new, forget it. They ALL come from Russia or China, with only a handfull of very expensive brands that come out of Eastern Europe. But, NO newly manufactured American tubes AFAIK.

Dave

Ya know, the phrase tongue in check just sounds totally wrong in a post regarding underwear!

Actually, I do go out of my way to look for "made in USA" when I buy. It's not a deal breaker if it's not, but given a choice between two otherwise identical items, I'll pick made in the USA every time.

I've also found the Internet can be very helpful. Searching for a certain item made in the USA, I can find many things available that I had no idea where still made here.

Incidentally, the "law of economics challenged" folks in the White House probably fail to understand how the tax could further hurt businesses that sell on the Internet. Often due to price disadvantages, made in USA items are sold direct to the consumer from the manufacturer or distributor.

Florence has an item in her favourites list on her PC of all the made in America companies. I should lift the URL and post it here.

If she is the Jeanie I am thinking oof I don't want her back in the bottle.;)

Don't forget we get the added bonus of keeping the largest mass murdering regime in history still in power. It's amazing how many people are ok with supporting a government that has killed tens of millions, and still will not give full freedoms to their own people. We used our dollars to bring down the racist government in South Africa, so I really don't get why we don't do it with an even worse group there.

Especially mens underwear.

Yes, some sell exclusively on the internet now. I bought a pair of steel toe boots online for work. "Carolina" brand, USA made. Nice boots, that actually fit my weird feet comfortably. (Size 10 1/2-EEEEEE) comfortably. They were $140, but my employer picked up $80 of that.

Dave

Actually, everything I am wearing is made in the USA or Canada. Every day I wear my handmade in the USA footwear. I've saved so much money by buying quality shoes. Plus my back is much happier!

http://www.global-customer.com/image...nds_Shoe_3.jpg

Made like this:

http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/Lf...706700bbf6.jpg

http://www.dallasnews.com/incoming/2...A_22415346.JPG

:)Those aren't feet, those are swim fins!:D

(I guess they're useful for wading around in the BS here though.

I have some 6P14s that are Russian too......and I do not feel bad buying something made in Russia like tubes.....no body makes them anymore here...it would be just very uneconomical.

What is amazing is that the people in Russia and China have figured out that there is niche market for this stuff here. People complain about the quality of Chinese tube amps but it amazing they figured out Americans and Europeans would buy them in the first place. That is the internet for you.

Me neither!