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I don't buy anything from Harbor Freight. Everything in that store is garbage. Not a secret.
Actually the secret is that not everything in the store is junk. Like I've heard other say "25% is complete junk, 50% is so-so and 25% is great". Their Pittsburgh Pro ratchets and sockets are well respected. They are better than the Chinese ratchets Craftsman is putting out. Same goes for their impact sockets. I kow a couple of mechanics that are using their Earthquake 1/2" impact gun. Their green and grey handled screwdrivers are extremely well made too. Their wrenches are OK, fine for a shade-tree mechanic. Their pliers have gotten better too, still not great. To be clear, these are the Pittsburgh Pro line. Their Pittsburgh and non named tools are crap. I stay away from their power tools and consumables like zip ties and grinding wheels. Their Nitrile gloves are really nice too. Their full size toolboxes can't be beat for the price.
They listen to their customers and if a product is sub par but popular enough (a.k.a ratchets) they will improve them. If it still breaks, they have a lifetime warranty on them.
So yeah, they do sell junk, but they do have some real gems in there too.
It amazes me that people think it's perfectly okay that the American business community has completely abandoned the American people in the past 20 years, offshoring 100s of thousands of good-paying American jobs, so that they could avoid labor and environmental protection laws. They started "globalization," and now Americans are hurting, small town businesses across the nation are virtually shut down due to Wal-Mart, kids can't afford college (so they're filling up our colleges with rich Chinese kids), rich people from China and the Middle East are buying up property faster than one could imagine and thereby driving up prices, etc. But, apparently, for some people, selling out the nation for cheaply made goods is just fine, doing business with a fascist communist government is just fine, impoverishing Americans for "globalization" is just fine ("hey, I've got mine and that's all that matters"). When we had strong local economies and American manufacturing, the middle class was strong, college and cars were affordable. But now, it's a race to the bottom.
All of the stuff that I've purchased that's "Made In China" is absolute crap. Falls apart in weeks. Ugh!
I'm amazed when people say this and wonder if they realize how much stuff they use every day is made in China. Are there really people out there replacing their cell phones, TVs, spatulas, sweat shirts, etc. every few weeks because it all falls apart?
Quote:
Originally Posted by jmking
Good. Now what needs to be done is offshore your job, than everything will be even better. Then you can contemplate who moved your cheese.
So because that poster hasn't had quality issues with Chinese manufactured items his job needs to be offshored? Yeah that'll show him! How dare he share his personal experience with Chinese made products.
They started "globalization," and now Americans are hurting, small town businesses across the nation are virtually shut down due to Wal-Mart
I'm having trouble following your connection here. How does Walmart shut down small towns across America?
Quote:
Originally Posted by OrganicSmallHome
But, apparently, for some people, selling out the nation for cheaply made goods is just fine, doing business with a fascist communist government is just fine, impoverishing Americans for "globalization" is just fine ("hey, I've got mine and that's all that matters").
Ridiculous "impoverishing Americans" hysterics aside, follow these steps:
1. Pry open the device you typed this selling out buying cheap goods post on
2. Examine the writing on the parts inside, where was it made
3. Go buy a shirt that says "hypocrite" in big letters, shirt made in Asia too
04-28-2016, 07:41 PM
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n/a posts
Quote:
Originally Posted by jrkliny
They are capable of very high quality manufacturing. If Harbor Freight or Walmart or any other retailer buys the cheapest products to sell at cheap prices that reflects on the retailer, not the country of origin.
This.
Things are built like cheap disposable garbage not because that's all China can produce, but because that's what the US consumer will buy.
It amazes me that people think it's perfectly okay that the American business community has completely abandoned the American people in the past 20 years, offshoring 100s of thousands of good-paying American jobs, so that they could avoid labor and environmental protection laws. They started "globalization," and now Americans are hurting, small town businesses across the nation are virtually shut down due to Wal-Mart, kids can't afford college (so they're filling up our colleges with rich Chinese kids), rich people from China and the Middle East are buying up property faster than one could imagine and thereby driving up prices, etc. But, apparently, for some people, selling out the nation for cheaply made goods is just fine, doing business with a fascist communist government is just fine, impoverishing Americans for "globalization" is just fine ("hey, I've got mine and that's all that matters"). When we had strong local economies and American manufacturing, the middle class was strong, college and cars were affordable. But now, it's a race to the bottom.
That's it. We need some scapegoats and you found a bunch. Remember when lots of products were made in the USA? Only a few were made overseas but they were cheaper so they sold and pretty soon it was like a snowball rolling down hill. For a while there was a big campaign to BUY AMERICAN. The public would not support the extra prices.
Then there were the local businesses with high prices, limited selection and limited hours. Walmart and the other big chains like Lowes and Home Depot and KMart came to town with better service, better selections, and more convenient shopping. Why would the customer pay more for less? And what was good about sales clerks standing around waiting for customers?
Some people embrace change, adapt, and prosper. Others whine, look for scapegoats and conspiracies and for them the sky is always falling. Some are winners; some are losers.
Things are built like cheap disposable garbage not because that's all China can produce, but because that's what the US consumer will buy.
Pretty much everything I buy is better made, more durable and cheaper than what I could buy years ago. That would certainly include cars, where the old American made cars truly were designed for obsolescence and were of very poor quality. That would include clothing. The quality is better than years ago and in real dollars a fifth the prices I used to have to pay. That would include TVs, all sorts of electronic items, cameras, bicycles, and on and on. Food is amazing. Prices in real dollars have gone down and there is endless variety. I have been buying LED bulbs to replace my compact fluorescent bulbs. The new bulbs are fairly expensive but use much less energy and last for decades of use. At least they are supposed to last decades. I have had a bunch in use for 5 years with no failures.
It seems to me you need to look hard to buy the cheapest discount items and then you will find some low quality products. That has always been the case. There were cheap goods years ago.
I can only think of a handful of disappointing purchases in recent months. I bought some potatoes from Costco that turned green within a few weeks. I think they came from Idaho, definitely not China. I bought a king sized blanket for $18. I think from WalMart or maybe Costco. What was I thinking? Of course it pilled up and shed. It came from Bangladesh. I have a couple of heavy throws that I keep on the couch in the winter. They are holding up really well after a few years of use. They did come from China.
Where are you shopping and what are you buying that is cheap disposable garbage?
I'm having trouble following your connection here. How does Walmart shut down small towns across America?
Ridiculous "impoverishing Americans" hysterics aside, follow these steps:
1. Pry open the device you typed this selling out buying cheap goods post on
2. Examine the writing on the parts inside, where was it made
3. Go buy a shirt that says "hypocrite" in big letters, shirt made in Asia too
Do your research. Walmart determines all prices on the market. An American manufacturer says to Walmart: "We can make this part for $.06." Walmart says: "China can make it for $.02." American manufacturer says: "But we have to pay decent wages and follow environmental laws." Walmart says: "Take a hike." When American manufacturing off shored to China, thousands of American businesses could not compete and shut down. Many once thriving American small towns are abandoned ghost towns today.
And when one in four American children live in poverty, nothing "hysterics" about it, pal.
Bill Gates could move all manufacturing back to the U.S. and still make an obscene profit. But why should he? He's got the world by the b*lls. He and his ilk have nothing but contempt for America and Americans.
That's it. We need some scapegoats and you found a bunch. Remember when lots of products were made in the USA? Only a few were made overseas but they were cheaper so they sold and pretty soon it was like a snowball rolling down hill. For a while there was a big campaign to BUY AMERICAN. The public would not support the extra prices.
Then there were the local businesses with high prices, limited selection and limited hours. Walmart and the other big chains like Lowes and Home Depot and KMart came to town with better service, better selections, and more convenient shopping. Why would the customer pay more for less? And what was good about sales clerks standing around waiting for customers?
Some people embrace change, adapt, and prosper. Others whine, look for scapegoats and conspiracies and for them the sky is always falling. Some are winners; some are losers.
I don't know how old you are, but this isn't about "change" or "scapegoats." This is about the corporate gutting of people's local economies and the global environment. Spare me the "whiners," "winners v. losers" garbage-talk. Bottom line: the only sustainable economy, long-term, is a local economy.
When only a few things were manufactured overseas, they did NOT in fact sell. They were a joke. Nobody bought crap made in Asia. Only when American corporations decided that they could circumvent labor and environmental laws and exploit cheap labor overseas and thereby make a killing (a healthy profit wasn't good enough any more). And the reason Americans, the sheep that they are, flock to Wal-Mart and Lowe's is because: 1) they don't give a crap about what globalization is doing to impoverished people everywhere, what it is doing to the U.S., generally because they haven't bothered to educate themselves (and that's giving them a whole heap of the benefit of the doubt), or 2) they'd sell out their grandmother for a cheaper product. And just for the record: a lot of that crap made overseas isn't the least bit "cheap." Wake up.
Pretty much everything I buy is better made, more durable and cheaper than what I could buy years ago. That would certainly include cars, where the old American made cars truly were designed for obsolescence and were of very poor quality. That would include clothing. The quality is better than years ago and in real dollars a fifth the prices I used to have to pay. That would include TVs, all sorts of electronic items, cameras, bicycles, and on and on. Food is amazing. Prices in real dollars have gone down and there is endless variety. I have been buying LED bulbs to replace my compact fluorescent bulbs. The new bulbs are fairly expensive but use much less energy and last for decades of use. At least they are supposed to last decades. I have had a bunch in use for 5 years with no failures.
It seems to me you need to look hard to buy the cheapest discount items and then you will find some low quality products. That has always been the case. There were cheap goods years ago.
I can only think of a handful of disappointing purchases in recent months. I bought some potatoes from Costco that turned green within a few weeks. I think they came from Idaho, definitely not China. I bought a king sized blanket for $18. I think from WalMart or maybe Costco. What was I thinking? Of course it pilled up and shed. It came from Bangladesh. I have a couple of heavy throws that I keep on the couch in the winter. They are holding up really well after a few years of use. They did come from China.
Where are you shopping and what are you buying that is cheap disposable garbage?
Are you kidding? Clothing that falls apart after 10 washings? Kitchen appliances that don't last more than 5-10 years? 70% of America's small farmers driven off their land by agribusiness, who are toxifying the land at alarming rates in order to bring you that cheap food laced with pesticides (yeah, that's really "amazing") that I wouldn't in a million years feed my children. As for variety: how much variety do you need? Only toddlers need a new shiny object every day. Not to mention the thousands of small farmers in Mexico driven off their land because they can't compete with American agribusiness that has invaded their economy with cheaper prices.
Every heard of anti-trust laws? They were once enforced for a reason.
Not to mention that if our jobs hadn't all been shipped overseas, people wouldn't have to be concerned with buying the cheapest possible product, would they. Back when I was a kid and all economies were local and regulated, when there were no malls, when the only big box stores were Sears and maybe a couple of others, when downtowns were thriving with small family-owned businesses, when there was a strong and thriving American middle class, people could afford just about everything they needed and almost all of it was made in America. And it was INFINITELY of better quality that the often VERY expensive crap coming out of China. But hey, so what if Indian farmers are committing suicide because of Monsanto, so what if Chinese or Peruvian workers have to slave 12 hours a day for peanuts, so what if climate change from the ramped-up CO2 coming out of those factories and from manic global transport of goods will doom your children, at least you've got your LEDs at the price you want. You can call that "progress" if you want. I call it a profound moral failure on the part of the American character.
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