By: April Griffith
My fiancé and I have been searching for a car/truck for the last few months. Several people told us to buy American made cars, something I have heard said for years but never really understood why or how buying American made cars or products can help our economy. What makes something American made? Growing up I thought it was something made here in our country, like the Toyota car manufacturer in Kentucky. Those cars were made in the USA, but now I know the truth. I want to discuss further several points on how buying American products can help us, and what the consumer, and our country are doing to make this possible.
A brief history the United States adopted in 1933 the "Buy American Act", in the middle of the Great Depression, aiming at developing industry and construction and stimulating jobs creation in the United States. The spirit of this law is maintained in numerous legal acts affecting procurement by United States public entities and agencies. Most of the provisions aim at excluding foreign goods or foreign bidders from tenders launched by public entities. The Buy American provisions apply also to activities financed by the United States public budget. As an example, one could take the obligation to use United States air carriers when the flight is financed by the United States Federal budget (thus obliging all officials or Members of Congress on mission or even students benefiting from public grants to travel in United States-owned air carriers). These protectionist measures are expensive for United States taxpayers and introduce inefficiency and unfair competition in many economic sectors. This was a concern in the 30s and is still a growing concern today.
If we as a country bought American made products since the time this Act was made, then our country would not be in the condition it is currently. Factories are moving to other countries causing many Americans to lose their job to over worked and underpaid employees from that country. Occurrences like this are due to the deindustrialization, this is when the U.S. government allows American corporations to move good jobs out of the country. This means there is a wide spread shift in what companies are investing in. Dudley also illustrates this by stating "Over 1,800 manufacturing plants in Mexico"(407). The main goal these U.S corporations increase profits. Macionis describes this by saying, "...global corporations enter these countries to gain access to raw materials, inexpensive labor, and vast markets....to lower tax liabilities and to move money from country to country, profiting from fluctuating currency rates"(276). Keep in mind these multinational companies are willing to do anything to increase profits, even if it means betraying their own employees. Luis (a man who experienced this) says "Not only must you deal with anxiety of the unknown, you must also come to terms with what you have lost..., not what you have voluntarily give up, but what has been taken from you"(414). These Americans also have a rough time finding jobs at comparable pay. Manufacturing plant jobs are increasingly declining due to reasons stated earlier. United States Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the national unemployment rate was 9.8 percent in September 2009, seasonally adjusted, little changed from 9.7 percent the prior month and up from 6.2 percent a year earlier. In September, total nonfarm payroll employment decreased by 263,000 over the month and by 5,785,000 from a year earlier.
Consider other negative effects of deindustrialization. In Wolff's (an author for Science & Sociology) article, he writes on Moseley's (author of "The Falling Rate in Post War U.S. Economy") research of the U.S. economy. Moseley finds "...a very significant increase in the share of unproductive labor...from 46% in 1950 to 78% in 1980"(1). You can relate this statement because unproductive labor is low-paying service work. Moseley sees this as a major reason why the U.S economy's profits have been decreasing. Therefore, the loss of stable American jobs specifically leads to low-paying service work, which hurts the economy. To see how these factors are related you have to view it on a wider scale. Meaning that once the economy is hurt no one benefits. Everyone suffers because as the majority of Americans lose jobs their buying power goes down. When this happens, some U.S companies go out of business, and American's ability to purchase a variety of goods declines. Buying power decreases then further jobs are lost. The long-term affect could be an ongoing cycle of deprivation, which could lead to mass poverty.
The solution, Americans should buy American made products. This is true because once Americans start buying American goods; the demand for them will increase. Because of the rising demand, there will be more development of factories and/or plants. Many good job opportunities will then become available. Not only will the manufacturers benefit, openings in higher paying fields will increase. A few of these include the engineers of the building, the plumbing and construction companies. Hence, when all this is put into action many Americans will be on better economic standing. They will once again have high buying power. Rising profits for American base business and their employees will take place. All of this combined will keep the U.S economy and its citizens financially healthy. The government as to why they should buy American, in order to achieve this, must properly inform Americans.
Opposing views of this proposal will be disputed. First of all, to argue the loss of jobs, opponents would say that we should not be selfish, and deny unfortunate countries the benefits that American companies could bring. They believe multinational corporations offer great productivity, new jobs, and advanced technology. They feel that all these reasons combined will greatly enhance the poor society's economic growth. To argue this Macionis wrote on the research of some dependency theorists (Vaughn, 1978; Walterstein, 1979; Delcroix & Ragin, 1981; Bergesen, 1983). These theorist found that "Multinational investments ...actually creates few jobs, inhibits the growth of local industries, and pushes developing countries to produce goods for export rather than food and other products for local consumption" (276). Another issue is the horrible working conditions that exist because the companies want to cut back on cost. Multinational investments benefit neither our country nor poor countries. In fact, they only make those poor societies poorer by making them dependent on the U.S.
What are we doing to help Americans buy American made products? First, we are writing papers and making websites and blogs to get the word out and show people what products is American made. Secondly, as a country recently brought about the Cash for Clunkers. The original intent of the Cash for Clunkers bill was to lessen our dependency on foreign oil by scrapping inefficient vehicles and replacing them with newer, more efficient vehicles. This was the government's plan to boost the auto industry here in the U.S., by having people buy cars made from car manufacturers here. Sure, there is another motive behind it. Our government just bailed out the all but one of the United States car industries and buying American made cars would "move" cars necessary to help redeem the industry. Although the plan did not go, quite the way it was supposed to it still made work for many in our country, and although not all the cars were made in America some were assembled and some parts were made. Therefore, the program did help the American economy keep working for the time being.
Lastly, those who disagree, claim that not buying American does not directly affect them. True it does not affect them when they buy foreign made products that were created and have their own companies in their country. These companies do not take away American jobs. It can be seen as a balancing act of trade between the U.S and other countries. We sell our goods overseas and they sell theirs in the U.S., without the loss of either country's jobs. We can see how they will be affected wrongly by referring to the U.S economy again. When the economy is hurt, they too must suffer. When the economy is in this unhealthy state no one will be able to purchase any products other than those needed and then they will buy based on price rather than were it was made.
Americans losing jobs, a suffering economy, and bad consequences for the U.S.' future and the exploitation of disadvantaged countries are all serious problems that stem from deindustrialization. By purchasing from corporations who practice deindustrialization, one is adding to and approving of the problem. Think of the proposal, Americans should buy American made products; it makes sense to act upon it. Not supporting multinational companies is the only way to change or prevent this and to buy American made goods.
Works Cited
Ferguson, Susan J., et al., eds. Mapping the Social Landscape: Readings in Sociology. California: Mayfield, 1996.
Macionis, John J. Society, the Basics. 3rd ed. New Jersey: Prentince-Hall, 1996.
United States Department of Labor, http://www.bls.gov/news.release/mmls.nr0.htm
Wolff, Edward N. "Is a Discussion of Unproductive Labor Still Productive?" Science & Society. 58 (1994): 204-210.
A brief history the United States adopted in 1933 the "Buy American Act", in the middle of the Great Depression, aiming at developing industry and construction and stimulating jobs creation in the United States. The spirit of this law is maintained in numerous legal acts affecting procurement by United States public entities and agencies. Most of the provisions aim at excluding foreign goods or foreign bidders from tenders launched by public entities. The Buy American provisions apply also to activities financed by the United States public budget. As an example, one could take the obligation to use United States air carriers when the flight is financed by the United States Federal budget (thus obliging all officials or Members of Congress on mission or even students benefiting from public grants to travel in United States-owned air carriers). These protectionist measures are expensive for United States taxpayers and introduce inefficiency and unfair competition in many economic sectors. This was a concern in the 30s and is still a growing concern today.
If we as a country bought American made products since the time this Act was made, then our country would not be in the condition it is currently. Factories are moving to other countries causing many Americans to lose their job to over worked and underpaid employees from that country. Occurrences like this are due to the deindustrialization, this is when the U.S. government allows American corporations to move good jobs out of the country. This means there is a wide spread shift in what companies are investing in. Dudley also illustrates this by stating "Over 1,800 manufacturing plants in Mexico"(407). The main goal these U.S corporations increase profits. Macionis describes this by saying, "...global corporations enter these countries to gain access to raw materials, inexpensive labor, and vast markets....to lower tax liabilities and to move money from country to country, profiting from fluctuating currency rates"(276). Keep in mind these multinational companies are willing to do anything to increase profits, even if it means betraying their own employees. Luis (a man who experienced this) says "Not only must you deal with anxiety of the unknown, you must also come to terms with what you have lost..., not what you have voluntarily give up, but what has been taken from you"(414). These Americans also have a rough time finding jobs at comparable pay. Manufacturing plant jobs are increasingly declining due to reasons stated earlier. United States Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the national unemployment rate was 9.8 percent in September 2009, seasonally adjusted, little changed from 9.7 percent the prior month and up from 6.2 percent a year earlier. In September, total nonfarm payroll employment decreased by 263,000 over the month and by 5,785,000 from a year earlier.
Consider other negative effects of deindustrialization. In Wolff's (an author for Science & Sociology) article, he writes on Moseley's (author of "The Falling Rate in Post War U.S. Economy") research of the U.S. economy. Moseley finds "...a very significant increase in the share of unproductive labor...from 46% in 1950 to 78% in 1980"(1). You can relate this statement because unproductive labor is low-paying service work. Moseley sees this as a major reason why the U.S economy's profits have been decreasing. Therefore, the loss of stable American jobs specifically leads to low-paying service work, which hurts the economy. To see how these factors are related you have to view it on a wider scale. Meaning that once the economy is hurt no one benefits. Everyone suffers because as the majority of Americans lose jobs their buying power goes down. When this happens, some U.S companies go out of business, and American's ability to purchase a variety of goods declines. Buying power decreases then further jobs are lost. The long-term affect could be an ongoing cycle of deprivation, which could lead to mass poverty.
The solution, Americans should buy American made products. This is true because once Americans start buying American goods; the demand for them will increase. Because of the rising demand, there will be more development of factories and/or plants. Many good job opportunities will then become available. Not only will the manufacturers benefit, openings in higher paying fields will increase. A few of these include the engineers of the building, the plumbing and construction companies. Hence, when all this is put into action many Americans will be on better economic standing. They will once again have high buying power. Rising profits for American base business and their employees will take place. All of this combined will keep the U.S economy and its citizens financially healthy. The government as to why they should buy American, in order to achieve this, must properly inform Americans.
Opposing views of this proposal will be disputed. First of all, to argue the loss of jobs, opponents would say that we should not be selfish, and deny unfortunate countries the benefits that American companies could bring. They believe multinational corporations offer great productivity, new jobs, and advanced technology. They feel that all these reasons combined will greatly enhance the poor society's economic growth. To argue this Macionis wrote on the research of some dependency theorists (Vaughn, 1978; Walterstein, 1979; Delcroix & Ragin, 1981; Bergesen, 1983). These theorist found that "Multinational investments ...actually creates few jobs, inhibits the growth of local industries, and pushes developing countries to produce goods for export rather than food and other products for local consumption" (276). Another issue is the horrible working conditions that exist because the companies want to cut back on cost. Multinational investments benefit neither our country nor poor countries. In fact, they only make those poor societies poorer by making them dependent on the U.S.
What are we doing to help Americans buy American made products? First, we are writing papers and making websites and blogs to get the word out and show people what products is American made. Secondly, as a country recently brought about the Cash for Clunkers. The original intent of the Cash for Clunkers bill was to lessen our dependency on foreign oil by scrapping inefficient vehicles and replacing them with newer, more efficient vehicles. This was the government's plan to boost the auto industry here in the U.S., by having people buy cars made from car manufacturers here. Sure, there is another motive behind it. Our government just bailed out the all but one of the United States car industries and buying American made cars would "move" cars necessary to help redeem the industry. Although the plan did not go, quite the way it was supposed to it still made work for many in our country, and although not all the cars were made in America some were assembled and some parts were made. Therefore, the program did help the American economy keep working for the time being.
Lastly, those who disagree, claim that not buying American does not directly affect them. True it does not affect them when they buy foreign made products that were created and have their own companies in their country. These companies do not take away American jobs. It can be seen as a balancing act of trade between the U.S and other countries. We sell our goods overseas and they sell theirs in the U.S., without the loss of either country's jobs. We can see how they will be affected wrongly by referring to the U.S economy again. When the economy is hurt, they too must suffer. When the economy is in this unhealthy state no one will be able to purchase any products other than those needed and then they will buy based on price rather than were it was made.
Americans losing jobs, a suffering economy, and bad consequences for the U.S.' future and the exploitation of disadvantaged countries are all serious problems that stem from deindustrialization. By purchasing from corporations who practice deindustrialization, one is adding to and approving of the problem. Think of the proposal, Americans should buy American made products; it makes sense to act upon it. Not supporting multinational companies is the only way to change or prevent this and to buy American made goods.
Works Cited
Ferguson, Susan J., et al., eds. Mapping the Social Landscape: Readings in Sociology. California: Mayfield, 1996.
Macionis, John J. Society, the Basics. 3rd ed. New Jersey: Prentince-Hall, 1996.
United States Department of Labor, http://www.bls.gov/news.release/mmls.nr0.htm
Wolff, Edward N. "Is a Discussion of Unproductive Labor Still Productive?" Science & Society. 58 (1994): 204-210.
could not agree with you any more, I won't even go to walmart anymore, you may as well call it china mart
ReplyDeletewith conviction
alan korb
owner of "tufftables" LLC we are a 100% american made, all of our products are made with american parts. "TUFFTABLES.COM