How do we get manufacturing back?

[Falvlun]

Its consumers responsibility.Buy American.

I agree. But then again, have you ever tried to find shoes made in America? It's really, really hard.

I used to feel great about buying Columbia and Jansport brands, because they were well-made, lasted forever, and American made. But even they have sold out.

I was thinking that well known brands, like Nike, North Face, Levi, etc, should have an "American Made" line. They can have their factories over in China, but then have a few factories here, as well. Charge more for the American made ones. I bet you people would leap at the chance to continue buying the brands they love that are made here at home.

 

[Thief]

Its consumers responsibility.Buy American.

I would love to....can't.

A long coat I bought on the net, came to my house in a tiny box.
Unfolded, it was all I expected...nice coat.
made in China....$120.

Tried to find an American version....I did.
$1120.

Needed a measuring tool.
Bought the China version...been years...works fine.
The American version would have been five times the cost.

If I buy American my pay check will need be many times what it is now.
Gotta fix for that?

 

[Terrywoodenpic]

The strange thing is that some companies manage to produce manufactured goods in virtually any country. Germany has a very large manufacturing base, and tends to make Very high quality products at a premium price, even though it could make those same products for less elsewhere.
The USA also has some world leading high end products, but out sources a high proportion of them, to increase their profit margin.

The UK is rather like the USA but has become a volume producer of other peoples difficult to Engineer products.

It seems that advanced economies must concentrate on the Advanced high quality product to find global markets, as well as the research and development that supports it.
Commodity products move down to the low cost producers in the third world.

 

[Falvlun]

I would love to....can't.

A long coat I bought on the net, came to my house in a tiny box.
Unfolded, it was all I expected...nice coat.
made in China....$120.

Tried to find an American version....I did.
$1120.

Needed a measuring tool.
Bought the China version...been years...works fine.
The American version would have been five times the cost.

If I buy American my pay check will need be many times what it is now.
Gotta fix for that?

I think the disparity in price is over-exaggerated in our minds. Think of little plastic toys or silverware or paper plates and stuff like that. You might pay $3 for the Chinese version, and $5 for the American. We can afford the $2. We just don't want to. And that's understandable, but that's not the same as saying it's impossible.

 

[GabrielWithoutWings]

I think the disparity in price is over-exaggerated in our minds. Think of little plastic toys or silverware or paper plates and stuff like that. You might pay $3 for the Chinese version, and $5 for the American. We can afford the $2. We just don't want to. And that's understandable, but that's not the same as saying it's impossible.

That may be true, but a difference of a 1000 dollars over a coat is not an over-exaggeration of disparity.

 

[GabrielWithoutWings]

Well, that's precisely the problem, isn't it? I am asking what are possible solutions to that problem? You can make it less desirable for companies to manufacture their goods with the 1/day labor force.

I have recently heard that increasing oil costs are starting to make it less economically effective to ship all of those cheap plastic goods from China, so some companies are actually considering moving back home. Plus 1 for oil dependency.

Sure, you can impose tariffs and start trust-busting and all that but seeing as how corporations are the ones paying major donations to politicians (unlimited now, thanks to Citizens United), that's a pipe-dream.

It would literally take an entire Congress and Presidency with people that vote on principle.

Virtually impossible. It's gone forever. Say good-bye.

 

[Falvlun]

That may be true, but a difference of a 1000 dollars over a coat is not an over-exaggeration of disparity.

No, but then again, one example does not prove the rule. Articles of clothing, like coats, tend to have mark-up values little to do with actual price of production, but subjective value imbued by current fashion trends, brand-name, etc. I'm sure you could find a similar American-made coat that doesn't cost $1000 more than the one he purchased. (But then again, it may cost $100 more... I don't argue that American made costs more, and often, substantially so. But it's not necessarily prohibitively impossible to choose to spend your money in that way.)

 

[Shermana]

No, but then again, one example does not prove the rule. Articles of clothing, like coats, tend to have mark-up values little to do with actual price of production, but subjective value imbued by current fashion trends, brand-name, etc. I'm sure you could find a similar American-made coat that doesn't cost $1000 more than the one he purchased. (But then again, it may cost $100 more... I don't argue that American made costs more, and often, substantially so. But it's not necessarily prohibitively impossible to choose to spend your money in that way.)

And here I agree with you, markup values from retailers (and wholesalers) are insane and have nothing or little to do with the actual price of the product and the labor costs. American manufacturers and retailers tend to be greedy and pretensious with their final price (hence why many go out of business), so the only smart thing to do is to buy foreign made goods.

And the regulations hit the smaller and middle-size producers the hardest, I see the regulations as an attempt to run them out of the competition.

 

[Falvlun]

Sure, you can impose tariffs and start trust-busting and all that but seeing as how corporations are the ones paying major donations to politicians (unlimited now, thanks to Citizens United), that's a pipe-dream.

It would literally take an entire Congress and Presidency with people that vote on principle.

Virtually impossible. It's gone forever. Say good-bye.

:sad:

You're probably right. I could see some political Oomph getting behind something like this-- Jobs! Stick it to the Chinese! More revenue!-- but, as mentioned in the OP, I don't know whether it would actually work, or simply send us spiraling economically as all the other countries refuse to buy American goods in retaliation.

 

[Revoltingest]

I heard a proposal about not taxing manufacturing profits.
I don't know if it's a good or bad idea, but I'm intrigued.

 

[Shermana]

I heard a proposal about not taxing manufacturing profits.
I don't know if it's a good or bad idea, but I'm intrigued.

Considering it's mostly a dead industry, we'd have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

 

[Falvlun]

I heard a proposal about not taxing manufacturing profits.
I don't know if it's a good or bad idea, but I'm intrigued.

Does it stipulate that the manufacturing jobs have to be American?

What about adding a tax or something to companies which outsource their jobs? Incentives and decentives.

 

[Sunstone]

American manufacturing is not going to return so long as our trade deals pit American manufacturing workers against the lowest paid manufacturing workers on the planet.

 

[Shermana]

American manufacturing is not going to return so long as our trade deals pit American manufacturing workers against the lowest paid manufacturing workers on the planet.

Gasp...are you saying that we need to take out all the bureaucracy and unnecessary regulations and let the market determine its own course?

 

[Sunstone]

Gasp...are you saying that we need to take out all the bureaucracy and unnecessary regulations and let the market determine its own course?

Of course not. We need trade agreements that protect American labor.

 

[Revoltingest]

Does it stipulate that the manufacturing jobs have to be American?
What about adding a tax or something to companies which outsource their jobs? Incentives and decentives.

I have no idea what the details are.

 

[Shermana]

Of course not. We need trade agreements that protect American labor.

What kind of penalties shall we impose on those who have things made overseas?

 

[Thief]

Gasp...are you saying that we need to take out all the bureaucracy and unnecessary regulations and let the market determine its own course?

That's true.
And to that effect...regulation is the only way to go.

But how do you prohibit...(by law)....outsourcing the labor?

And cheap labor doesn't always work.
Some province in China (the name I don't know), had a labor revolt.
No one showed for work.
The management had to concede labor demands, and surrendered a 33%
increase to wages.

I heard this by word of mouth.
The details of course are missing.
Just saying.

 

[Lavender]

I think that we need to encourage and support the creation of new, innovative ideas. Fewer regulations would be helpful in this area. We also want to encourage business to remain in the US. With our tax system being the highest in the western world, it's important that we look at lessening this to make America an attractive place to work. Reforming the tax code would be helpful also. .

Manufacturing in the US is not completely dead, despite reports. Recall this article from last week about the state of this sector in the US.

"Still Factory Champs"

Still Factory Champs - Latest Headlines - Investors.com

 

[Kilgore Trout]

Manufacturing is the new farming. Economies evolve with technology.