Quote:
Originally Posted by gnu
... Americans scream at any increase in price of the products that they purchase. We can only afford our lifestyles as it is because of being able to purchase goods from around the world. Could any of us afford to live in this country if we only purchased American made goods?
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Isn't this the truth! Americans are adamant about buying CHEAP! Businesses are folding, but Wal-Mart continues to do well. Why? Keep in mind that 1% of ALL of China's GNP is Wal-Mart! Doesn't anyone wonder at that? My wife needed a pair of dress shoes in a hurry while we were away from home, checked every possible place to buy shoes, couldn't find any, and reluctantly ended up at Wal-Mart (where we decidedly prefer NOT to shop in spite of low prices--and some think we're nuts...), and bought a pair of simple women's dress pumps for SIX DOLLARS. We had not only been willing but WANTED to spend more for better quality but couldn't find anything. How can anyone make a living wage when a pair of shoes RETAIL costs $6?!
We were and still are world leaders, among other nations, in technology. But manufacturing is gone, whole industries--steel is one example--have disappeared completely, and it's our service sector that produces what few jobs have evolved. By and large you can barely feed yourself and keep a roof overhead on a service job.
Economically speaking, we're in deep excrement....