US manufacturing jobs go to China

In the small town of Cary, near Chicago, you can see American industry being dismantled in front of your eyes.

Countrywide situation

The gutting of this factory is not an isolated incident. It's being repeated across the United States.

In the past 18 months nearly two million American manufacturing jobs have been lost.

As for Doug Bartlett, he's conducting the last rites for a business founded by his father in 1952.

He enjoyed the boom years. But now, competition from Asia, whether fair or not, is turning out the lights across a swathe of US manufacturing industry.

news.bbc.co.uk...

Things are sure looking better aren't they?
Yes that's sarcasm

WHO CARES? New home sales are up 11% this month and the DOW up 30% since March. And Warren Buffet says nobody should fear investing in America! We unleash human potential! LOL.

This country has become a completely joke. Those of us who see what's going on realize that there is no recovery coming. As long as people are unemployed NOTHING matters. As long as our industry and manufacturing is crumbling NOTHING matters! The only way to add economic value to an economy is to make it, mine it, or grow it. Something we do little of in these days.

reply to post by warrenb


It's over, get over it - The Chinese can do it cheaper and better - And the Chinese middle class is growing, so eventually they won't need America to buy their cheaper better products.

It's time for America and the rest of the west to move on - stop wasting time and energy lamenting. Use that energy, that drive, to find, discover and build on something else which can employ your citizens. Green technology might be an answer, I am sure there are others.

QUESTION: where is are "middle class"? I assumed I was somewhere in there(mid to upper) my entire life. But, I gotta tell ya.....we are far below in terms of what we assumed our lifestyle and financial return used to be. I live in a piece of POOP anymore...drive a OLD CAR....(both I paid cash for). I work my tail off...and never get even a "standard of living" increase. I get a .25 or .30 as a increase. Now I gotta tell ya...I'm a normal guy with alot of experience.......and I work it.....there is no more " Middle class" in the U.S. and I do believe this was a plan. The middle class was the swing vote..the factor that took all crazy's out of the game...now.....my vote doesn't mean a thing.

because we don't carry the majority. We are the minority.........in terms of race..dollars...and thought.

E

[edit on 7/27/2009 by enigmalone]

I bet you that if you ask Obama about this he would say that it is not that bad for Americans and that America will benefit from it. At least, that is what Presidents before him have said more or less.

These are the high paying jobs that Americans should be angry about. This is the reason why people are angry that illegals are taking away their jobs at McDonald's. If they had these manufacturing jobs, working at McD would be the furthest thing from their mind. Seems to be the only type of job Americans can find nowadays.

you want fries with that.

reply to post by enigmalone


1/3 of all US pay goes towards CEO! And we wonder why the Middle Class is broke! LMAO! Americans are idiots who've lost their voice. They keep cow towing to a system that they hope someday might help them get ahead all in the name of capitalism but they fail big time in realizing that capitalism long left America and has been replaced by state corporatism.

What a sorry mess.

Let's see. How can we solve the problem of our factories taking their manufacturing business to China an other countries.

Why don't we ,our government, write a new bill an have it run through the process making it an act of treason to use foreign manufactures.

Or make a special tax and other monetary punishment for the treasonous companies to use to pay laid off workers.

In my opinion it is treason to do anything to cause our economy to fail by using foreign companies or to carry on illegal business within the USA.

reply to post by dizziedame


Why doesn't our government do something? LMAO! Because THEY ARE IN BED with all these corporations. Like I said we have state corporatism not capitalism. Corporate America and US government are one and the same. Congress will never be able to do anything about it because they are the problem.

America's cult of victimization and class warfare helped to destroy not just the middle class but the working poor's chance of getting ahead.

Unions used to make this nation's employment future strong.

Not be negotiating cost busting deals with the manufacturers.

They made the country strong when everyone participated in the system that enabled the unions to negotiate a living wage in a broad range of sectors.

The unions relied on one thing to do this that the class warfare and victimization, consumerism mentallity destroyed...

The American people.

Chinese goods wouldn't sell here in America in 1970. No one in America would have bought them.

Strike lines at unionized companies would never have been crossed by non-union labor seeking a job at the company in 1970.

Americans would not have complained in 1970 that Union Members are making 'too much'.

They would have complained that the Union Members and they themselves were making too little and supported and demanded more.

They wouldn't have shopped at a company where Union Workers were striking it.

They wouldn't have hired illegal aliens to do a job for a few pennies less or utilized or patronized a company that used illegal aliens to bolster their profits and keep wages down.

The economy will not get better until American citizens take responsibility for how they impact it.

Your hard earned dollar is a reward to who ever where ever you spend it.

Do you care where you spend it and where it goes too and to whom and how much afterwards?

Or do you just care that you have a dollar to spend and want something, anything for it when you spend it even if the product your buying is being sold by the devil and destroying your way of life?

Each individual person matters and has an impact and where government and big business has gotten ahead is by convincing most people they don't matter as an individual and nothing they do matters as an individual so go ahead and just do what ever without a thought or a care as to what impact it is having.

None of these jobs would have gone to China if there was no market for Chinese goods in America...

Stop creating a market for them, stop listening to other people tell you there is nothing you can do about it.

There is plenty you can do about it, just as soon as you realize you matter and want to do things about it.

this is one of those topics where my fellow americans tend to piss me off.
we need to accept responcibility on subjects like this. in other words, everytime we lay the blame elsewhere, while heading to walmart to buy chinese, we hurt out own workers.
dammit, get used to paying a bit more, support your local businesses, and buy american.

[edit on 27-7-2009 by rubbertramp]

reply to post by ProtoplasmicTraveler


Americans have been so g'damn brainwashed into thinking unions are unAmerican and Anti-capitalism they've lost their mind and common sense. Like you said unions helped countless Americans get a leg up on prosperity. Americans need to realize that their LABOR is a form of capital and should fight as such. What came first the chicken or the egg? What came first labor or capital? We've been sold a bill of lies regarding capitalism. Hence why corporations have grown so damn big in this country and destroyed unions and any bargaining the average person has. We are in fact slaves to all powerful mega corporations. It's sad really.

reply to post by rubbertramp


What I find funny about Wal Mart is their huge presence all over rural America. Kind of ironic. I know more city slickers that are anti-Walmart than their rural counterpart. Also it's ironic that Sam Walton was seemingly an American icon. back before his company sold out to the American people. Just goes to show us that just because you can build something (WalMart empire) doesn't mean you should. I wonder how Sam Walton view his company now if he was living. I bet he'd be no different than any other corporatist that has sold his soul to profits and globalisation.

sam walton went from selling american made goods, to a global empire of chinese made goods.

americans went from being pro-union to being pro-illegal workers.

the worse the economy gets, the better the excuse to buy cheap chinese goods.

This has been 20 years in the makig. The purpose of NAFTA was to destroy the American manufacturing sector, which it has. "Free trade" is a joke and needs to be abolished to brings jobs back to hard working Americans. Even so, American products are still the best in the world.

Originally posted by Zosynspiracy
reply to post by enigmalone

 

1/3 of all US pay goes towards CEO! And we wonder why the Middle Class is broke! LMAO! Americans are idiots who've lost their voice. They keep cow towing to a system that they hope someday might help them get ahead all in the name of capitalism but they fail big time in realizing that capitalism long left America and has been replaced by state corporatism.

The reason for this is what the Govt has NOT done.
Large companies got around monoply laws by owning a large share in several industries. Now they are "Too Big To Fail".

The key to this country was small business. The average person is the one too blame for the mess we are in. Everyone loves a better price on everything, but sometimes you have to have a conscience to go along with it. You wouldn't want to buy something from a religous group as not to support them, but it's ok to buy stuff from China that is Communist...........shameful............

Last year some of us wanted to re-instate the "Buy USA made" deal. The whole world spoke up about that one. I say screw them, as they want to see us fail.

Screw all of you. Buy American Made. Pay more now to bring back everything we have lost. The long it goes, the more it costs to not make it here. You think you saved two dollars on that item, when it is going to cost you 100's in the long run.

Seriously. Think about it! It is never too late to start.

reply to post by SphinxMontreal

Even so, American products are still the best in the world.

this is quite arguable, believe me when i say i wish it wasn't, but cars, many other goods are a high quality made elsewhere. not necissarily china either. japanese autos, italian hiking boots etc...................
many items that once were made in the us and are made elsewhere now, are being manufactured cheaper, but not of a lesser quality.
not all of course.

Originally posted by rubbertramp
reply to post by SphinxMontreal

 

Even so, American products are still the best in the world.

this is quite arguable, believe me when i say i wish it wasn't, but cars, many other goods are a high quality made elsewhere. not necissarily china either. japanese autos, italian hiking boots etc...................
many items that once were made in the us and are made elsewhere now, are being manufactured cheaper, but not of a lesser quality.
not all of course.

What! Are you kidding! Show me a car that is at least 50% made in America. I dare you!
The money is not in assembly, it's in the parts supply.

reply to post by rubbertramp


This is a very good point. I drive a Toyota FJ cruiser. In fact the only cars I've ever owned have been a Toyota pick up truck with a 22RE engine and a Honda Accord. These cars RAN FOREVER! The older Toyota pick ups with the 22RE engine were some of the most reliable ever built. You wanna compare a Ford Ranger to a Toyota pick up? Be my guest!

I actually own a pair of La Sportiva hiking boots. Some of the best made boots out there if you ask me. I also buy Filson clothing (made in the USA) but that stuff is EXPENSIVE! It's hard to buy American. Danner doesn't even make many of their boots in the US anymore. Made in the US doesn't carry the same quality it did 30-50 years ago that's for sure.

Originally posted by Zosynspiracy
reply to post by rubbertramp

 

This is a very good point. I drive a Toyota FJ cruiser. In fact the only cars I've ever owned have been a Toyota pick up truck with a 22RE engine and a Honda Accord. These cars RAN FOREVER! The older Toyota pick ups with the 22RE engine were some of the most reliable ever built. You wanna compare a Ford Ranger to a Toyota pick up? Be my guest!

I actually own a pair of La Sportiva hiking boots. Some of the best made boots out there if you ask me. I also buy Filson clothing (made in the USA) but that stuff is EXPENSIVE! It's hard to buy American. Danner doesn't even make many of their boots in the US anymore. Made in the US doesn't carry the same quality it did 30-50 years ago that's for sure.

Unofrtunately Made in the USA products often do have to cut corners to compete cost wise with not made in the USA Products that are made with cheaper labor and resources abroad.

Most Made in the USA products as a result are very high end retail items for people with an eye to quality and money to invest in quality oriented purchases.

A fair portion of them though that are priced to be competitive on the Wal-Mart scale of quality aren't that quality oriented because of the corners they had to cut to bring a similiar priced item to market domestically.

Wal-Mart has so changed the scope of retail by squeezing out so many mom and pop retail outlets many manufacturers in the U.S. have found Wal-Mart does dictate to them what price points and levels their products have to be in order for Wal-Mart to carry them as a retailer.

Many manufacturers have had to look overseas to meet those price points and it is the number one reason manufacturing is flooding overseas because Wal-Mart controls so much of the retail market and there are few other outlets or distributors for low end goods.

What's important to understand and most people don't that if you look at those American Made Products of quality manufactured for the discerning and afluent shopper you will see the actual inflation that's been hidden for decades from you.

If a 1970's made in America Shirt cost 12.95 and Wal-Mart still sells a cheap made in China Shirt for 12.95 in 2009 while a Made in America quality shirt of much higher quality but the same quality of 1970 retails now for 129.95 instead of 12.95 that's the real rate of inflation and how wages have been kept so low is giving the working poor an outlet to buy cheap basic necessities and Wal-Mart has fulfilled that role, gotten rich off that role and destroyed the manufacturing landscape in America as a process.

The American Made Toyota HiLux, Corolla, and Tacoma pickup came from the US NUMMI plant in Northern California.

HiLux - www.nummi.com...

Tacoma - www.nummi.com...

Corolla - www.nummi.com...

The plant was recently found to have the lowest defects of any Toyota plant. However Toyota is now considering closing the plant, not because of quality, but because of the economy.