Why everything is made in China?

[Jaga]

During way back from shopping today my daughter asked the philosophical question: "mom, why everything is made in China"?

Frankly, I did not know how simply to answer this question. I tried in the "logical way". China has the largest population in the world. I did not want to say about global market and cheap Chinese labor.

When we were back at home, I was flipping the channels and I noticed that they had something about "made in China for Mardigras". They were showing young girls in the Chinese factories doing beads and being paid very little.

Still, I have the mixed feelings about it (not completely negative), since these girls, although they earn little money and live in poor conditions are better off working that not working.

But there was a huge contrast to see drunk crowds in New Orleans and the Chinese girls who are punished while caught chatting while working.

[freetobe]

Jaga,
The U.S. can't solve the world's problems, we try but we are better at exploiting them. We are not alone in this. The American people are no different then Europeans(we are descendents) when it comes to this. We exploit our own but what could be worse then the Asian and Euro-Asian exploitation of their people. It's been going on for centuries. I, too am saddened by this.But, why the contrast of exploited Chinese women and drunken celebrations in New Orleans?

[jimpres]

Jaga,

I went shopping at a store in Rypin to find Christmas ornaments. All were made in China. You have to got to specialty stores to get the glass ones made in Poland.

Cheap labor rules

[bescheid]

Jaga

Yes, parenting...You have a growing youngster on your hands. She has questions of the world around her, and she will turn to you for answers, so what do you do? Well, what do you look for in research? You look for truth and answers. For she is not different, for this is what she seeks, is truth.

And yes, also have I the similar experience {with both a son and daughter}. I told them the truth of the questions they asked. Most was a pleasant truth, on occasion, an un-pleasant truth. I was not happy, but I explained to them the answers they searched for. If I was unable to provide the answer, I would tell them so and/or find the answer.

As a parent, we must be focused in honesty with our children, for they in-turn, will so do with their own in future time. The most proud I have been, has been to over hear one of my children speaking to another with this remark {I know, for father said so}.

The exception though, was my daughter, as she grew, so were her nature growth, this was to my wife of that time for that duty.

The China queston? What is wrong with the truth?

{Chinese people are paying the price for rapid developement of their industrialization manufacturing base}

Charles

[Bob S]

Cheap labor and cheaper prices paid by consumers. Would you pay $40. or $50 for a mouse manufactured and made in the US or would you rather pay $5. for the exact same thing made in China. Don't fault the country or people: the blame lays with the consumer. If no one bought the items made in China than there would be no market for them. ;D ;D

[freetobe]

Bob,
I was shopping in Target today, looking for a new box grater. They had at least four differnt brands ranging in price from $12 to $20. All were made in China. I went home and polished up my old $2 made in the USA grater which I purchased ten years ago. Still works fine.

[uncltim]

Garage sales rule!
Because the american consumer really has no say in what products are offered. I made a conscious decision to only buy used or at thrift stores.
I will confess that I have a weakness for good quality antiques. The upside to this is that my furniture will be worth what I paid for it or more when I sell it or die.
I cant force retailers to sell american goods. but I can refuse to buy imports.

[Bob S]

;D Many times it is the older items that work better than the new stuff. There was a time when quality mattered more than new and glitzy. I have three items that are over 50 yrs old and they still work great: one is an old knife sharpner, another is a meat grinder and the other is a pressure cooker: the pressure cooker has directions on how to sterlize Veternay and other Medical tools for those who live on a farm. ;D ;D

[nathanael]

Why is everything made in China? It needs not be! Bob is right that, "if no one bought the items made in China, then there would be no market for them." But there is a better way to break this vicious circle of China dependency! Here is my proposition: people need to buy cheap, and will always do so. That is correct. But here is the deal: they do not have to buy from China! Our government can produce even more cheaply here at home, using a combination of the unemployed labor, prison labor, juvenile delinquency labor, and yes, the temporary migrant and illegals' labor from Mexico (this latter could benefit both Mexico and the U.S. in the long run). Don't we have 2.4 million "laborers" in jail every single year? Are not our unemployed and laid-off workers in the millions? Why are we deporting illegals, instead of putting them to work for three months in a labor camp for a dollar an hour, like the salary the Chinese get? Let's put all these people to work every single day to break the China dependency! Then we will have our Chinalike-free-labor here at home and we will not need China! Our unpatriotic corporations can keep doing what they are doing there. We will flood our markets with our own cheap products, and let's see who will win! They have to pay transportation across the ocean: we will distribute our products by Armtrack and Trailmobile, with made in the U.S.A. written on them! This will end the enormous yearly trade deficits with China as we have known them, will put many Americans in supervisory positions, and will reduce our national debt while restoring the dollar!

[jimpres]

The statement 'if no one bought the items in China, then there would be no market for them" is the crux of the deal.
boycotts are something the Americans don't do.
If they did they should pick on gas supplier Exxon, Texaco and boycott them and then they would pressure the rest to drop the price.
Or better yet start harvesting the shale in colorado.

[kaima]

Buying everything from China will become real fun when we finally go to war with them ... what will we do, have them export our war materials from the south of China while we drop Chinese bombs on the North of China?



From Mike Mount
CNN
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Chinese military continues to increase spending on efforts to break into U.S. military computer systems, expand its Navy, and invest in intercontinental nuclear missiles and weapons to destroy satellites, according to the latest U.S report on China's military power.
The annual report from the Pentagon to Congress says China's total military spending in 2007 was between $97 billion and $139 billion, but it is hard to tell exactly how much was spent and on what.

In comparison, the U.S. military budget request for 2008 is $481.4 billion, not including war requests.

Pentagon officials said a chunk of China's spending went to cyberwarfare, because 2007 saw several "intrusions" believed to be from the Peoples Liberation Army. In the incidents, unclassified U.S. military computer systems were broken into and information was taken, according to Pentagon officials.

While the information taken was not classified, Pentagon officials said the worry is the Chinese hacking required many of the skills and capabilities that would also be required for a computer network attack.
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Last summer, a cyber-attack on Department of Defense computer systems took down the e-mail capability of hundreds of staffers for weeks, but the Pentagon still will not comment on who initiated the attack. It is widely believed among the military to have been the Peoples Liberation Army.

China is also investing heavily in and fielding improved nuclear intercontinental ballistic missiles and antisatellite missiles, according to the report.

The United States expressed its concern last year after China fired a missile at one of its old satellites and destroyed it, sending thousands of dangerous pieces of space debris into orbit.

The United States conducted a similar strike last month on a broken U.S. spy satellite before it re-entered the Earth's atmosphere. U.S. officials said the satellite was hit and broke into thousands of small pieces that burned up as they re-entered Earth's atmosphere.

The United States is also concerned about the purchase of more submarines by the Chinese navy as well as plans for more aircraft carriers. The Chinese once had a small Navy. Now the United States is keeping an eye on the growing service amid concerns over Taiwan.

The concerns include "China's near-term focus on preparing for contingencies in the Taiwan Strait, including the possibility of U.S. intervention, which is an important driver of its modernization," the report says.

Additionally, the Chinese have placed about 100 more short-range missiles on the shore opposite Taiwan in the past year, it says.

Pentagon officials worry the continued increase in Chinese military spending is slowly tipping the balance of power between China and Taiwan in China's favor. The United States has said it would help defend Taiwan if China invaded.

The report also says the Peoples Liberation Army is "pursuing comprehensive transformation from a mass army designed for protracted wars of attrition on its territory to one capable of fighting and winning short-duration, high-intensity conflicts along its periphery against high-tech adversaries."

Such an army, the report says, would have "the greatest potential to compete militarily with the United States and field disruptive military technologies that could, over time, offset traditional U.S. military advantages."

The United States says the lack of transparency by the Chinese on its spending poses "risks to stability by increasing the potential for misunderstanding and miscalculation," and that China has yet to explain to the international community the purpose of its military expansion, Pentagon officials said

[nathanael]

Mike Mount's report is of concern if read between lines, the things that Mike doesn't say. If China's total military spending in 2007 was "between 92 and 139 billion and ours 481.4 billion in 2008, this, if we factor their cheap labor and our cheap dollar, means that China has already surpassed the United States in military spending! Why? Because while it costs us 1.3 billion dollars to build a single stealth bomber (we just lost one in accident, but even this was ominously underreported), China can produce such bomber ten times cheaper, if she is able to steal the technology, as she did with the rocket stabilization. Another scary point is that China plans to build "aircraft carriers." Why would China need them, other than to attack Taiwan? Indeed, China has a lot to explain!

[uncltim]

Things are getting pretty scary in the world. Voices in the wilderness.