Steve Preston <steveophonic@yahoo.com> wrote:
[...]
> cheap condensing units and air handlers!! Now they're
> making cars with Chrysler. There are many discount and
> dollar stores that you go into where 98% of the items
> they sell are Chinese,and now that is spreading to
> Sears,Auto Zone,Cabelas....everything.
> I have no problem at all with goods made elsewhere. As
> long as it's a little bit of this country and that
> country.
It seems like if you pick up almost anything these days, its got
that "Made in China" label on it, but in this case, perception is very
different from reality. I would bet that many people would be
surprised to learn just how little the US actually imports from China.
In 2007, Chinese imports accounted for just over 7% of total US
imports. That means 93% of goods and services imported into the US
come from places other than China. (Canada and Mexico, mostly.) (That
7% number is for Jan-Nov of 2007, the December numbers don't seem to
be out yet, but that's in the ballpark - its been around 10% for a
while now.)
> China scares me to death
> for many reasons,and I try hard to avoid their
> products,and buy our stuff when possible. That means
> buying "select" New Balance shoes,jeans from Union
> Jean Co.,one type of Wolverine boots,etc. Have to shop
> mostly online to do it.
I don't have any problem buying products made in China, with the
caveat that you do need to be somewhat careful in your purchase
decision due to the quality control not always being what it is
elsewhere. I mostly just shop for the best value for my money, though
I admit I do make some exceptions, steering clear of certain companies
for various personal or political reasons, but China has not made my
list as of yet, even though I consider communism to be an absolutely
abhorent system of government. Its true that the Chinese government
is benefiting from the foreign trade, but its not quite a complete
communist system - a great deal of the money is being retained by the
people themselves.
China is going to be very interesting to watch. The number of new
Chinese millionares and even billionares is really starting to
skyrocket, and I just don't see the government being able to contain
their own population. The Chinese people have gotten a taste of
capitalism, an inkling of the freedom and wealth that goes along with
it and like all of mankind, they enjoy it. 12 million new jobs were
created in China last year; the mental image I get of China is that of
a financial powderkeg, with all of the people inside and the
government sitting on the bucking lid, desperately trying to keep it
under control and stay relevant.
I have a feeling that China's newfound wealth is going to be the
straw that breaks communism's back in that country. It has already
been shown that communism will collapse under its own weight,
inefficiency and imorality, and I think the staggering growth and
influence brought about by foreign trade is going to rapidly
accellerate that process. I don't know if it is going to happen with
a bang or with a wimper (like the USSR), but I think its going to
happen. I think it will depend on the personalities of the heads of
state at the time - wether they dig in their heels and attempt to
retain their power and influence at a bloody price, or simply accept
the inevitable and fade into irrelevance.
--
-Jon-
.- Jon Steiger -- jon@dakota-truck.net or jon@jonsteiger.com -.
| '96 Kolb Firefly, '96 Suzuki Intruder, Miscellaneous Mopars |
`-------------------------------- http://www.jonsteiger.com --'
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