Let’s All Buy American

My baby is American made, but not my egg foo yung

Lately, much has been discussed and written about buying products made only in America. ABC’s World News with Diane Sawyer has been touting the quality of American-made products for several months and encouraging viewers to “Buy only American!” But I think The Oakridge Boys express it best singing American Made, written by Bob Dipiero and Pat McManus:

Seems everything I buy these days has got a foreign name
From the kind of car I drive to my video game
I got a Nikon camera, A Sony color TV
But the one that I love is from the U.S.A. and standing next to me.
My baby is American Made
Born and bred in the U.S.A.

Of course, being born in the U.S.A. doesn’t ensure that one’s DNA isn’t mingled with other nationalities. Heck, I was born here, but I’m Italian and Hungarian. The point of the song, though, is that many of the products we purchase daily are designed and produced in foreign countries. As such, there are some things that are troubling me.

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Comments

Made in America?

Bill,

It appears that Germack imports the nuts that they roast locally unless they've changed their practices. Their pistachios are described as Turkish, so I assume that this must be where they are from. Is this now okay because it supports a local business?

If you are suggesting that we should only buy in the US, then are you also suggesting that other countries should also only buy what is available locally? That is not going to meet the needs of many nations, that import the foods that they need to provide nutrition to their residents. Certainly, I do make efforts to buy local foods as much as possible, but there are some things that just don't grow in Wisconsin. And since the GM Saturn s-series is no longer on the market, I will make my next car choice based on fuel economy, overall quality and price. If it is not an American car that meets my needs, are you suggesting that it is appropriate to buy something inferior to stand on ceremony and make a point?

If you look at what Dodd-Frank did with Conflict Minerals, it resulted in a de facto ban on minerals coming from the region, even if this was not the original intent. Did this hurt the bad guys? Absolutely. But it also hurts the good guys, who work in the mines so that their families can eat. Making a blanket statement and suggesting that we should all just buy American is a very simplistic approach to a complex issue.

Not as simple as it looks - we are in a global economy

American corporations decide where they will manufacture products using multiple criteria with profit being the highest rated item. Any manufacturing plant under contract to an American corporation has to perform in accordance with this contract but if the contract lacks adequate quality assurance provisions it is not the fault of the contractor but the American corporation. If the contractor meets the requirements of the contract but still manufacturers a defective product it is up to the American corporation to respond to this issue. Many American corporations with manufacturing based in the USA produce defective products as well. A recent example is the Johnson and Johnson plant near Philadelphia. Just try to find a J & J Benadryl product on the shelf at your local pharmacy retailer. They have all been recalled. I hold the American corporation responsible for the products that they sell, period, end of discussion. In addition many US based automobile corporations manufacture around the world including Canada, Mexico and China. As I recall the largest selling automobile in China is a Buick manufactured in China! We are in a global economy - we need to evolve, improve and compete or face the consequences.