I read an article today about how we should buy American and that “We should have awakened to this a decade ago . . . . . . before CHINA owned us”…
Not so fast Sparky…
The comparison was for several things, but as one example, the author compared the manufacture country, company and price of light bulbs. The GE bulbs were made in Mexico while the “Everyday Value” brand bulbs were made in the USA and cost half as much.
Ok, so we figure, buy the Everyday Value bulbs and everyone is happy. Right?
But we assume that only the country of manufacture is getting the money. So, all the $2.49 for the bulbs goes to Mexico? What about the entire “machine” behind getting that bulb in the shelf? Does GE have a marketing machine? Absolutely! Are they in Mexico? I doubt it. What about the trucking firm that gets those bulbs from Mexico to the distribution center? The import company? The customs people? The people who create the packaging graphics?
Of course I could go on and on.
And maybe I’m making too big a deal about it. But, people are blanketed with guilt about not “buying American” yet we don’t see all the elements that go into that.
That said, sure, I like to “Buy American” whenever possible. And I certainly like to spend less $ for the same thing.
