Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
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'Made In The U.S.A.' Is A Money-Making Investment Idea
"If you engage in certain type of business, the percentage of U.S. made content of those products U.S. must be disclosed. This applies to products like automobiles, textiles, wool, and fur products. There’s no law that requires most other products sold in the U.S. to be marked or labeled Made in USA or have any other disclosure about their amount of U.S. content. However, manufacturers and marketers who choose to make claims about the amount of U.S. content in their products must comply with the FTC’s Made in USA policy..."
Years ago, I told the story on Fund Alarm of the blue jeans manufacturers doing business out of Saipan. (A more recent clean-up of the astounding abuses has pushed virtually all of them out of Saipan--- where the USA flag flies.)
Brand X (I forget which, but it's one of the big, recognizable brand names) had their jeans completely made and ready to wear in Vietnam. Then they shipped the jeans to Saipan where others simply sewed-on a US flag onto the pocket with the words below: "Made in the USA." There's one of the biggest, heinous, damnable misrepresentations I've ever heard of. Actually, "misrepresentation" is an understatement. Why don't we call it what it is: a LIE.
.....So, go ahead and make money. Just don't pretend to know where the stuff was actually manufactured, sewn, put together or created.
Reply to @Ted: I'm sorry. But you might consider the 305 horsepower 4 cylinder model. It's higher gas mileage could help your frugal budget during these hard times.
MagLite flash lights until a couple of years ago bear the label "Made in the USA" Not many more! The last flash light bulb supplier has shutdown in the USA so they have to buy the bulb from elsewhere in the world but the rest was still manufactured in the USA. Now with the label gone they have more incentive to outsource the rest as well.
But at the end of the day were are all voting with our wallets. By always going to the cheapest products we are basically saying we don't care. We are just happy to wave our American flags on 4th of July that are made in China and also get entertained by fireworks that are made there. So, I guess it is pretty late to complain.
Maybe on a day like today, where a kid (or underachieving adult) are striking for $15/hr as a minmum wage we could start a dialogue about training kids (underachieving adults) with productive skills that foster and support middle class wages...flipping burgers isn't gonna cut it.
I would actually like to see a lot more kids working jobs in general. Lower the miminum wage so that a larger base of workers can work (gain skills). Maybe throw some bennies in with the lower wage...discounts, scholarships, training programs, preventative health programs (gym membership, team sports), etc. Call these bennies "Earn Work Points" that can be redeemed for spending discounts, training tuition costs, etc.
On the other side of this experience would be a kid better prepared to demand a living wage and a resume from this low wage work/training system that help foster it.
"Hand a kid an X box and he'll sit down and play with it incessitantly...teach him how to program and manufacture an X-box and he'll at least put it down for 8 hours a day."
Reply to @Investor: Hello. You're absolutely right. However, it is the LIE that I object to the most. Nothing worse in this world than a LIE. Which is why the politicians can't convince me of anything. One party lies out of one side of its mouth, and the other major party uses the other side to lie to us. "Truth in advertising" is a joke. A BAD joke.
We are here. I don't see anything else that is required in order to expect to be able to live a decent life with freedom and dignity. Part of living with dignity is not being required, anytime, anywhere, to work for slave wages. ...Yes, all things are relative. In Asia they are working for peanuts. Yes, they do. Which only illustrates how much further they are being exploited. We already have the wherewithal to provide basic necessary services to all. We're not doing it. If some people don't want any MORE than that, chalk it up and let them simply survive. Beyond that, the vast majority will want to learn and earn and grow and make their lives better. But NO ONE can do that on $8 per hour.
Comments
http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2013/12/05/2015-ford-mustang-officially-unveiled/
Regards,
Ted
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2013/12/04/ford-mustang-2015-styling-chassis-engines/3820457/
Read more: http://www.uswatersystems.com/blog/2013/09/the-made-in-usa-lie/
Years ago, I told the story on Fund Alarm of the blue jeans manufacturers doing business out of Saipan. (A more recent clean-up of the astounding abuses has pushed virtually all of them out of Saipan--- where the USA flag flies.)
Brand X (I forget which, but it's one of the big, recognizable brand names) had their jeans completely made and ready to wear in Vietnam. Then they shipped the jeans to Saipan where others simply sewed-on a US flag onto the pocket with the words below: "Made in the USA." There's one of the biggest, heinous, damnable misrepresentations I've ever heard of. Actually, "misrepresentation" is an understatement. Why don't we call it what it is: a LIE.
.....So, go ahead and make money. Just don't pretend to know where the stuff was actually manufactured, sewn, put together or created.
MagLite flash lights until a couple of years ago bear the label "Made in the USA" Not many more! The last flash light bulb supplier has shutdown in the USA so they have to buy the bulb from elsewhere in the world but the rest was still manufactured in the USA. Now with the label gone they have more incentive to outsource the rest as well.
But at the end of the day were are all voting with our wallets. By always going to the cheapest products we are basically saying we don't care. We are just happy to wave our American flags on 4th of July that are made in China and also get entertained by fireworks that are made there. So, I guess it is pretty late to complain.
We found the enemy and it is us!
I would actually like to see a lot more kids working jobs in general. Lower the miminum wage so that a larger base of workers can work (gain skills). Maybe throw some bennies in with the lower wage...discounts, scholarships, training programs, preventative health programs (gym membership, team sports), etc. Call these bennies "Earn Work Points" that can be redeemed for spending discounts, training tuition costs, etc.
On the other side of this experience would be a kid better prepared to demand a living wage and a resume from this low wage work/training system that help foster it.