Economic Insecurity…Does Made in the U.S.A. mean anything anymore?
October 15, 2008 by ThoughtRocket
When I go to the college campuses I find many students shell shocked by America’s economic crisis and the fear of their future jobs being offshored. They think it’s the new normal. But I remind them that the future can be different. The idea that the “Flat World” is inevitable and that all high-paid manufacturing jobs are destined to go to low-wage countries is nothing but corporate propaganda. It’s simply the easiest way to lower costs and juice profits quickly. There is another way to achieve economic success. It’s called quality. Remember, we used to lead the world in it.
While our children are quaking in their Nikes, Germany, the country that exports the most industrial goods in the world, is a great example of what a commitment to quality yields. With only 82 million people, Germany continues to expand its exports to over 100 billion dollars worth of extremely well engineered cars, precision tools, and advanced technology products. Their total manufacturing employment has been reduced by only 2% over the past 15 years, while their wages and benefits are high and their 7-week vacations legendary.
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Taken from Will Marre’s,
The 4th American Revolution: What We Can Do Together
DOWNLOAD PDF: Economic Insecurity
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How do they do this? Well, according to the OCED, Germany’s manufacturing productivity per hour is higher than ours. But the real reason is that they make great stuff that the world wants.
Common sense tells us our economy is rotting. GM’s collapse isn’t due to labor costs. Aug. 2008 marked the 10th straight monthly sales decline for U.S. automakers. GM dropped 20% and Ford was down 27% whereas Toyota and Honda fell less than 10% (GM, Ford Drag U.S. Car Sales to 10th Straight Decline).
GM just isn’t making quality cars people want. Japan is doing that instead. While Asian automakers continue to grow, U.S. manufacturers shrink faster than Custer’s army at Bighorn.
Common sense tells us something’s up, and it isn’t good. Is this really the best American industry can do? Five years ago America’s top auto executives told Congress we didn’t want hybrids and never would. That’s just stupid. Common sense tells us that when the once world’s largest corporation reduces its work force by almost 50% in a growing market, something’s wrong. Wall St. thinks layoffs are necessary, even healthy. But it’s only necessary because of years of leadership failure. Today, GM claims to make great cars, but if they were, wouldn’t they be exporting Buick’s and Chevy’s the way BMW and Honda export their cars?
Of course we’re busy creating new jobs at McDonalds. “Service worker” is code language for low-paid folks selling junk to other low-paid folks. We are world class at that.
Meanwhile, even with our dollar’s value shrinking, making our goods cheaper for the rest of the world, “made in the U.S.A.” is not as impressive as it once was. Perhaps it’s because much of what is “made” in America is constructed of cheap parts made in Asia. Of course, our research and development jobs are moving to China as fast as we can buy plane tickets.
What’s the Greatest Thing We Can Do?
Question # 11: Is the gutting of American industry inevitable, as Darwinist industrialists claim, or is it a lack of vision, lack of leadership, lack of will?
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Where is that innovation that America WAS famous for? Outsourced with the jobs? I don’t think so. But how can you be innovative when corporate management and corporate culture are also rans with a paranoid sense of entitlement to whatever handouts they can get while blaming anything and everything that will get them off the hook of responsibility. Do GM, Ford, and Chrysler fit that bill, you bet. They have no excuse, their cars are crap and have been uncompetitive for a long time. They have been totally out of tune with the tastes of the marketplace. They have overpromised and underdelivered for a long time. Instead of dumping levels of bureaucratic, deadwood management (right up to and including the CEO) they layoff the workers as if it was their fault for following the misguided and totally off course directions of management.
Hell it’s not even like the Toyota process is a secret, it’s all out there for whoever wants to learn it and implement it. But not our Big 3, they’re too arrogant and egotistical. Why should we provide them with big loans because they are stupid, and especially when no one giving the loans is demanding the resignations of top management as a prerequisite. Corporate America has basically put it to the workers and the workers keep taking it and we Americans keep taking it just like we do when Congress puts it to us. We have to stop being so damn afraid and stand up and speak up like never before.
Let’s bring back the innovation and the quality that America stands for and show the world who we are again. Frankly I’m tired of not seeing that good old made in the U.S. A label in practically every item in retail stores anymore. We’ve got to send the message that we want back our country, our corporations and our jobs so we can truly get back to work on re-building the American Dream, one step at a time.
Well, Made in the USA stands for quality that what they say but as times goe’s by forgien based companies are building cars in the US while US companies are making their cars in Canada and Mexico, what that stands for quality.
After all people consider our US based brands crap are not sure that time has taken to improve qulity with their products for a matter of fact their are US auto companies that are making good products most of them are made outside the US mostly Canada and Mexico.
Let say motorcycles that is one product in mind they say the original Harley-Davidson is the best well the truth is Harley-Davidson markets quality imitations from China delivers.