Outsourcing ISN'T the answer

Yesterday on Crooks & Liars, Nicole Belle posted this: Senate Kills Import Drug Plan. She was upset at the failure of congress to allow Americans to get their drugs from other countries, because they are cheaper.

Two hours later, C&L had another post from Nicole Belle about problems with China's imported fish meal, which made its way into fish farms in America. Time to become a vegetarian

Obviously there are some cross-currents here. We've seen what Free Market foodstuffs from China have done to us recently.

Do you REALLY want cheap drugs made in Mexico that AREN'T even certified by the FDA?Good luck with THAT. Certainly the FDA has some major issues right now. Well, every industry oversight watchdog group has suffered under the dubious leadership of George Bush, with his penchant for appointing ex-industry officials into positions that call for someone with an bent on REGULATION, not looking the other way.

But besides that, America needs laws that affect Big Pharma's pricing here in America. "Free" market it's not. Our solution isn't outsourcing every single product we buy- That just hurts the country in the end. We need to fix our country and the corporate mindset that is ruining us from within. We need to fix the price-controls that Big Pharma, Big Oil have set up.

AND- We, as a people, need to stop buying the cheapest crap we possibly can. THAT is what supports the sweat shops and the child labor factories of the world. Why buy cheap crap that you have to replace six months later?

Spend a bit more for American produced goods of quality. If the American people were NOT in a race to the bottom of the heap in ALL of our endeavors, and were willing to invest a little more money in our own products, we wouldn't be in this mess.

And hell, I say that, and I'm broke. But I'll spend an extra $20 on groceries just so I'm not funnelling the profits to China via Wal-Mart.

Our country is disintegrating before our very eyes. And contrary to most progressive logic, I am telling you it IS a moral issue, just not the one you expect. Our greed is what is killing our nation, our incessant lust for more and more, fueled by a disposable economy and a disposable society.

Yes, for the time being, Americans unstoppable addiction to buying all manner of useless crap has kept dollars changing hands and somewhat fueled the economy. But when all the profits end up overseas, in the end we are destroying our own economy for some false sense of staying afloat.

Wal-Marts are in every major community in our country. Do you know what a Wal-Mart is?

"It's the cheapest place to get stuff, thats what it is!" you say.

Well, there's more of a price than you realize. Wal-Mart makes everything so cheap by short-changing their American workers, with no health care and no benefits and by their communist-like, union-busting ways. There was a time when every single object in Wal-Mart was American made, not too long ago. And Sam Walton got rich off that. But now, the people who run Wal-Mart get most of their goods from China, Pakistan, South America and other countries.

So the "discounts" you get are made possible by hurting America. Small businesses, that Republicans like to claim they support are dying off. Big business is the only thing thriving in the U.S. under an administration that bends over backwards for the ultra-rich. Regular Americans suffer, and CEOs get multi-million dollar bonuses for closing U.S. factories and opening up cheap factories in third world countries with an employee base that aren't much more than slaves.

There's a big vacuum over every major corporate operation- and that vacuum is effectively sucking money straight out of America and shipping it to every other country in the world, even countries that don't like us so well. Those small businesses, that used to line every main street in America- they are empty now. We have no one to blame in the end but ourselves.

Stop short-changing America. Spend a little extra if you have to, but I think that you will find that the few dollars you put back into American products and American workers is money well invested. This is how we, the people can save our country. Our politicians won't do it for us, they are too busy stuffing their own pockets to look further into the future than their own retirement. Our retirement? We won't have one if we don't start taking care of our own country RIGHT NOW.

UPDATE: A Question:
"How do you find "stores" that sell American made products without spending all your time and shoe leather? If you has an answer to this question, I would LOVE to hear it."

All you have to do is exercise a little effort. Products are required by law to state where they are manufactured. If you are forced to shop in Wal-Mart, then take an extra minute and buy American products. The Internet is invaluable for this information. And get others involved as well. Network your efforts and it makes everything easier.
Here a few links I found in the past two minutes:

http://www.madeinusa.org/

http://www.howtobuyamerican.com/

http://www.buyamericanmart.com/

Yes, it takes a little more effort and time, but Ask not what your country can do for you, but what YOU can do for your country!
;)