Michael MacLean wrote: "I immediately thought of Frank when I stumbled on
this web site today. http://www.stillmadeinusa.com/";
Thank you, thank you, thank you. As someone who has been willing to pay a
little more to support American industry and the American Way, I have always
found it frustrating to search out "Made in the USA" products. This site
certainly provides a starting point for that searching! Price aside, how
many times in our long telephone visits did Frank and I lament the
difficulty in even FINDING American-made items. While shoddily made power
tools from Horrible Fright were annoying to me, I did not use them often
enough to quickly wear them out. For Frank, and for the trades, it is a
serious problem because reliability was essential to put food on the table
for his family! From my own business in woodworking, I could appreciate
Frank's frustration more than most.
I have always maintained that it is American consumer greed that has been
responsible for so much industry winding up in the Third World. By and
large, we as a people are more concerned with price than with quality and
reliability. Faced with the flood of goods made by foreign companies with
far lower labor and manufacturing costs, American manufacturers had two
alternatives: 1) find a way to lower the cost of their goods, or 2) go out
of business. To compete in the retail price war with the Ching Chan Chary
Co. in Quang Zoo, they have had to outsource their manufacturing processes
to the Third World. Given the choice of buying a zit-fitter with 20-cent
per hour labor costs or one with $20 an hour labor costs, Americans will
always opt for the 20-cent per hour item.
As Frank grudgingly admitted, his competitors had no problem buying Horrible
Fright power tools and using them until they crapped out. They could buy a
lot of cheap crap and still save money in the long-run. As a craftsman, it
was a philosophy that he could not in good conscience, accept.
Many thanks, Mike, for this great heads-up. If anyone else has good "Made
in the USA" tips, I would certainly appreciate them.
Buster
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