Obama: Caterpillar will rehire if stimulus passes

[Mrs.J06 4]

I really hate what our fvcking government has done to us over the years, bringing in the dictatorship China in for cheap labor was just too much. We frought them for 13 years, was no problem at first, they were supplying chit, but give even monkeys enough time, they will develop a super computer, we had to throw in the hat two years ago and shut down the doors, could no longer compete. Yep, over a 1,500 people were laid off, I was one of them. My job is in China now, but doing other things. Always had to do other things, getting very pissed off about that. But never to the point where I grabbed my gun to take care of the real problem.

You can hardly blame the government when all consumers care about is wanting everything cheap, cheap, cheap and don't care where it comes from.

Every time I find something NOT made in China I share my joy with my coworkers (all good, patriotic Americans) and all I get is the big-eyed-look that I was willing to pay that much for something made in the US.

Unless people stop buying a gazillion things they don't really need and switch to buying good quality stuff but less in quantity this will not change, not matter what the government does.

Ha, that translates into buying just about nothing, latest gimmick is assembled in the USA that translates into tightening that one loose screw. Wife and I became conscious of reading labels on produce, we good live on a constant diet of potatoes, just about the only thing left. Even replacement parts for my domestic vehicles are now made in China, and their ball bearings are piss poor. Sure can't buy a bicycle, toys, clothes, we hit just about every store in a 300 mile radius, all made in some foreign country for clothes, may carry USA namebrands, but made in China, Malaysia, Korea, even Viet Nam. Damn dog food has ingredients from China as do our drugs, the legal ones that is.

Consumers do not have any choice, it's the government that can make life miserable of USA manufacturing and determines which countries we deal with, wake up!

Sure you can, there are jeans made in the US (7 for all mankind, some Banana Republic), if you buy a KitchenAid mixer it's as least assembled in the US, buy a Japanese car that is at least assembled in the US and contains a high percentage of parts sourced in the US, which in my opinion is better than nothing. It's easy to run to Wallmart and complain about how everything is made in China!

I agree it's difficult to find totally US made stuff, but if people have a stroke if I tell them that one pair of jeans cost $ 80 or more, but rather want to buy 4 cheap pairs in the same timeframe nothing will change. People should do more research before they buy.

[Heracles 417]

Change was nothing more than a slogan designed for the feeble minded. How many people actually sat down and asked what this change was?

I just noticed on the news that Caterpillar said they will not be hiring anymore people.

[Heracles 417]

Sure you can, there are jeans made in the US (7 for all mankind, some Banana Republic), if you buy a KitchenAid mixer it's as least assembled in the US, buy a Japanese car that is at least assembled in the US and contains a high percentage of parts sourced in the US, which in my opinion is better than nothing. It's easy to run to Wallmart and complain about how everything is made in China!

I agree it's difficult to find totally US made stuff, but if people have a stroke if I tell them that one pair of jeans cost $ 80 or more, but rather want to buy 4 cheap pairs in the same timeframe nothing will change. People should do more research before they buy.

The American consumer shot themselves in the foot by not paying attention to what they are buying and from where. Yet focusing on price and convenience. Why buy 4 cheap jeans made abroad instead of 1 good jean made in America. Then again, the average Joe does not care if something is made in America. The average Joe does not care if the company they shop at is American owned. Yet the average Joe is the one who lost out with jobs being exported to other cheaper nations. Maybe this sort of stuff should be taught in schools since people don't get it.

While protectionist measures do not work, I also think we need to do what we can to ensure people are educated in what happens to the money when they buy a cheap TV or Jeans made overseas. Why do people think that European and other countries have such high sales tax. There is no point in promoting retail when so much is made overseas and little stays in your own nation.

Edited February 13, 2009 by Aficionado

[Peikko 1,575]

That Ave Joe guy is such a schmuck!

[Heracles 417]

That Ave Joe guy is such a schmuck!

They can only aspire to be like you.

[Peikko 1,575]

Yeah, but you are going all socialist on me dude, I can't relate. Corporations do whatever it takes to make money, that's the American way. The Ave Joe is pretty much screwed no matter what way you slice it.

[Dr. Obvious 49]

Sure you can, there are jeans made in the US (7 for all mankind, some Banana Republic), if you buy a KitchenAid mixer it's as least assembled in the US, buy a Japanese car that is at least assembled in the US and contains a high percentage of parts sourced in the US, which in my opinion is better than nothing. It's easy to run to Wallmart and complain about how everything is made in China!

Yep. Besides, the FTC has regulations about what can be stamped Made in USA and what cannot. No, maybe not every single component or material is of US origin, but the point is, someone's job(s) here was supported, and that is what is really important.

Edited February 13, 2009 by Wacken

[NickD 202]

Sure you can, there are jeans made in the US (7 for all mankind, some Banana Republic), if you buy a KitchenAid mixer it's as least assembled in the US, buy a Japanese car that is at least assembled in the US and contains a high percentage of parts sourced in the US, which in my opinion is better than nothing. It's easy to run to Wallmart and complain about how everything is made in China!

Yep. Besides, the FTC has regulations about what can be stamped Made in USA and what cannot. No, maybe not every single component or material is of US origin, but the point is, someone's job(s) here was supported, and that is what is really important.

What FTC, Carter only developed it long enough for Reagan to dump it. With Carter, the JC Withney catalog was only half as thick, all of that magic gas saving stuff they were trying to sell was history, it's all back again. What about all these infomercials and advertisements on TV that are pure lies.

We even had an FTC is our state, (WI) where you could call and complaint about your utility bill and they would do something about it, still have it, but only one guy left if you can reach him. He will tell you to buy your electricity or natural gas from somebody else like we have two of them in town. Or tell you to hire an attorney.

Also with Reagan, anti-trust laws were all but abolished, we have Reagan to thank for only have one software company that can screw us blue and have, Bush, Clinton, and Bush, didn't do a damn thing about it, and don't hear Obama talking about that either. Our China imports have increased by a factor of four under GWB, the lying #######, hopes he rots in hell.

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

Obama: it's not what he says but how he says it.

[Dr. Obvious 49]

Our China imports have increased by a factor of four under GWB, the lying #######, hopes he rots in hell.

Did we have to buy them? Corporations are only as good as the consumer that supports them. There are always alternatives. People just chose to ignore them because X was now .50 cheaper. No one likes to research the products they buy or even ask if it is necessary to have most of them.

[Dan J 277]

I really hate what our fvcking government has done to us over the years, bringing in the dictatorship China in for cheap labor was just too much. We frought them for 13 years, was no problem at first, they were supplying chit, but give even monkeys enough time, they will develop a super computer, we had to throw in the hat two years ago and shut down the doors, could no longer compete. Yep, over a 1,500 people were laid off, I was one of them. My job is in China now, but doing other things. Always had to do other things, getting very pissed off about that. But never to the point where I grabbed my gun to take care of the real problem.

You can hardly blame the government when all consumers care about is wanting everything cheap, cheap, cheap and don't care where it comes from.

Every time I find something NOT made in China I share my joy with my coworkers (all good, patriotic Americans) and all I get is the big-eyed-look that I was willing to pay that much for something made in the US.

Unless people stop buying a gazillion things they don't really need and switch to buying good quality stuff but less in quantity this will not change, not matter what the government does.

Ha, that translates into buying just about nothing, latest gimmick is assembled in the USA that translates into tightening that one loose screw. Wife and I became conscious of reading labels on produce, we good live on a constant diet of potatoes, just about the only thing left. Even replacement parts for my domestic vehicles are now made in China, and their ball bearings are piss poor. Sure can't buy a bicycle, toys, clothes, we hit just about every store in a 300 mile radius, all made in some foreign country for clothes, may carry USA namebrands, but made in China, Malaysia, Korea, even Viet Nam. Damn dog food has ingredients from China as do our drugs, the legal ones that is.

Consumers do not have any choice, it's the government that can make life miserable of USA manufacturing and determines which countries we deal with, wake up!

Sure you can, there are jeans made in the US (7 for all mankind, some Banana Republic), if you buy a KitchenAid mixer it's as least assembled in the US, buy a Japanese car that is at least assembled in the US and contains a high percentage of parts sourced in the US, which in my opinion is better than nothing. It's easy to run to Wallmart and complain about how everything is made in China!

I agree it's difficult to find totally US made stuff, but if people have a stroke if I tell them that one pair of jeans cost $ 80 or more, but rather want to buy 4 cheap pairs in the same timeframe nothing will change. People should do more research before they buy.

Our economy is very much linked to the economies of the rest of the world. Most of us see some benefit out of it in both the variety of products we have access to, and the low prices for most of them.

However, when it comes to our own jobs and way of life, we tend to get very nationalistic. We are all about protecting our jobs and our country's economy. But the fact of the matter is, our economy here in the US, is very very dependent on the health of the global economy. Most of the companies we work for have customers around the world. If we focus an economic recovery on just the US, and implement very protectionist trade, immigration and economic policies, it will fail. For the US economy to recover, we need the world economy to recover with us.

[SMOKE 1,426]

i think we officially call this thread JACKED!

welcome back Gary!

[Dr. Obvious 49]

Our economy is very much linked to the economies of the rest of the world. Most of us see some benefit out of it in both the variety of products we have access to, and the low prices for most of them.

The problem is at what cost to these benefits come? To be honest, I'd rather support manufacturing activities in countries where I know what the standards are and I agree with, not just the US.

[Nagishkaw 510]

As in, jacked up?

[SMOKE 1,426]

As in, jacked up?

no as in we hijacked Gary's thread.