Products not made in USA anymore

[Sweater Cows!]

19 Iconic Products That America Doesn't Make Anymore

[Sweater Cows!]

http://finance.yahoo.com/tech-ticker/19-iconic-products-that-americ...

[Dave]

Helpful tip for ya Sheila on posting links to websites that I discovered through trial and error...

When your posting a new thread, get to where you want to post the link, paste the link like you normally would and then highlight it like you were going to paste it. Once you've done that, click on what looks like a couple links in a chain... should be the third icon from the right on the tool bar above where you are trying to post a new subject. A small box will appear, paste the link to that and hit ok. When you go click on add discussion when your done, the link should appear.

Personally I kind of think its a redundant way of doing things and I don't know why Ning does it... but at least ya can do it.

[XLFD]

Thanks for the tip Dave. Before the change to NING paysites, your method didn't need to be done. Have you had any luck with posting videos on the thread head? Trial and error has been mostly error for me, although I think I did it once.

[Mary A.]

In my growing up years, just about all consumer goods we purchased were made right here in the good old USA. We were a proud manufacturing nation. Anything made in China was considered cheap, cheap, cheap. The tables have indeed turned.

Here are a couple of websites devoted to selling products made in the USA. Maybe some of you who truly believe in "Made in America" would consider purchasing a Christmas gift or two from one of these sites instead of from WalMart (sorry Dave).

http://www.stillmadeinusa.com/

http://www.madeinusa.org/

[AQUAMAN]

Good thread Sheila, great post too Mary. I've been saying the same thing about Buy American for a long time, almost 20 years. Now, the horse is definitely out of the barn, long gone, and almost irreversible at this late stage. There are so many factors that make this scenario possible, it's not funny. Small business has to have large permanent tax and payroll incentives to keep jobs here, and large penalties for exporting/out-sourcing jobs overseas, politicians have to cancel our phony trade acts of recent, and go back to expensive importation fees, excessive income, excise, user, sales, state, and local taxes need repealing at all levels of government, allow the middle income class to return to middle class status, the mentality that all mfg. jobs are sweat shops is phony and ancient, OSHA still has the power to close unsafe/illegal shops, so they need to do their job, and lastly, Americans need to see that light in all walks of life, just because you don't work in mfg., doesn't mean you aren't directly affected by these job losses in the long run, it's hurting us all, more than we realize, or often than not, too late. All this, and more could and should be accomplished. But, politics as usual is prevailing, that of, boost up our foreign enemies and allies alike, at the cost of the American. We can no longer afford this misplaced attitude and mentality, it's killing our economy for good! JMO

[Mary A.]

Your point is well taken, Aqua! Why are people so stupid?

[Guidothesemipsuedocaptitalistpig]

I don't know guys/gals I am truly mixed on this particular subject. I believe in buying American if they have an equal product at a close price. I cant justify a US car that costs 3-4k more and gets less mileage and less shelf life .You can argue those who build those cars do not make a living wage but this would be incorrect. In the country they live in they are paid better than most and tend to be the only employees who own homes etc. I lived in Korea for a couple years, and while the over all living conditions do not equal the lower class in the US they are quit happy for the most part. Japan is another matter. There.. the standard of living is getting to be quite good. Just because someone can claim a worker makes less that 5 dollars US an hour doesn't address the cost of living in his/ her location.
The jobs over seas mantra isn't always the case due to wages being cheaper either. Like in the case of the now mandatory CFL light bulbs ( incandescence's are soon to be outlawed due to environuts.) These bulbs are truly toxic to produce and no US plant wanted to deal with the Hazardous waste laws to produce them in good ole America. I think if we didn't have so many special interests fighting through lobby's as to what America should produce and how they should produces it. And if We didn't rob peter to pay paul in the interest of social fairness many of those jobs would never have left
. I do not buy off on its cheap labor argument all the time.
You may all gang up and beat me with sticks now.

[Willy]

Guido
Some of your points make sense but the cheap labor arguement is a fact. China for instance pays 25 to 50 cents per hour for factory labor with no benefits and no invironmental regulations. That's hard to compete against. The same problem exist in many Latin and South American countries. If Americans bought U.S. made products we would not have this problem. It's a consumer issue.

[Mary A.]

Unfortunately, saying Americans should buy U.S. made products is a moot point, unless we could do a miraculous about-face in this country and gear up for massive production of consumer goods in a short period of time. Of course, we all know that is unrealistic.

The "Me" generation" would go crazy without all their techno gadgets, hardly any of which are produced here. I believe we've sadly reached the point of no return. The generation coming up now never knew our country as a manufacturing great, and they don't care if we become one again. They are satisfied with the status quo, as long as they can keep buying their toys.

[AQUAMAN]

Good points there Mary and RJE. I remember one time about 10 years ago I insisted to myself I was going to buy whatever, can't remember now, an American made product. I must have traveled to 4 stores before I just gave up, there was none American made. On another occasion I found the only USA product made was about triple in price. So, I had to get it made in China. It IS a very labor issue, as RJE brings up, it's not just hard to compete, it's simply impossible! Low wage, no benefits, no regulations for safety nor polluting, no importation fees to ship here, add that all up, and it's ridiculous to try to produce anything here now. Unless, you have a niche for a new patented product, then, the foreigners copy it anyhow, as I believe they are exempt from lawsuits being they are not producing in the USA.

[Max]

Here is something that is not listed in masonco's links, but still proudly made in the USA:

This is a Colt WWI Model of 1911 US Army reissue.

Other guns still made in America include Ruger, Smith & Wesson, Henry Repeating Arms, Remington and others.

When we first moved to New Mexico several years ago, we only brought a few of our things. One of the things we didn't bring, that I missed right away, was my Stanley thermos (made in Tennessee, that I had bought about 30 years ago. I decided to go to the Walmart and buy a new one. To my dismay, on the bottom of it it said "Made In China".

After we had finally gotten the rest of our things, I decided to sell the "Made In China" thermos in a yard sale my mother in law was having. No one would buy it, but there were lots of people who wanted to buy my old, beat up 30-year-old one. I finally gave it away.

I have a Schrade knife (folding hunter) that I had bought years ago, made in America. Since about 2003 they are made in China. Thankfully, most Buck knives are still made in the USA.

A lot of my "things" I have had for a long time, and most were made in America, including my red Radio Flyer wagon, with the stake rack, that I bought for my son in 1986. I still have it.

I do go out of my way to buy American products. It is getting tougher all the time. Sad, but that's the world we live in.

[Guidothesemipsuedocaptitalistpig]

Consider this all. WE seem to have established that we cannot compete due to foreign interests labor practice being such that a ( good paying American jobs) cant compete. But on the other hand we are trying to socialize our medical care system and our labor system ( think cap and trade) so that we maybe the same as the low paying foreign job.
In the process of converting a Capitalist society to socialist one two things have to happen. One you must bring up the standard of the weaker country or party by inflating the value of its product or service. And two you must bring down the value of the superior one.
Does anyone see how this maybe occurring before our eyes in the world right now?

Think about this the rate of inflation (cost of goods rising exponentially) didn't not happen until we formed a central bank to ( artificially contro) the cost of products supposedly to stabilize the rise and fall of costs of products.