America Is A Dumping Ground For Junk
- Thread starter Roosh
- Start date
So true. You cant even use brand names as proxies for quality. I moved into a house with a dishwasher that broke 3 times under warranty. After the warranty ended, I decided to purchase a high quality appliance that would just work. I ended up buying a Bosch. But almost all the lines of Bosch washers you can find in mainstream stores are the same junk made in some Mexican factory alongside the other crappy brands, and they slap a Bosch control panel and label on it. Many times they even share factories, so you are essentially overpaying for the Bosch name but getting the same crappy product you thought you were avoiding.
There was only ONE model I could find that was manufactured in Germany, and it cost 3-4 times as much. As a matter of principle, I don't believe in buying crap, so I bought the absurdly priced German unit (zero problems in 5 years). At this point in life, my time is worth much more than my money so I will pay extra simply to know the product I own is going to work and not need repairing or replacement.
But you can't even look to brands. You can many times look to the country of manufacture. You will rarely find crap being made in Germany or Japan (really most of Europe). Europe has much stronger consumer protection laws, where many of the products in the US that come with measely 90 day warranties get 2 year warranties in Europe, or else they are not allowed to sell there. It's basically a rule that prohibits junk, because the seller would have to keep replacing junk that broke within 2 years.
This is all the result of capitalism, which prioritizes profits of the holders of capital over everything else.
It's also one small cut among many which atomizes and destroys any national allegiance among a people. When everything you buy is junk and you have no connection to the products through local factories or knowing they are made with quality, you just feel like an insignificant shopper in a mass market, instead of a member of a functioning community and society.
There was a great article on seeking out quality consumer products in the Christian Science Monitor a few years back. I remember they specifically mentioned Carhartt clothing as high quality, and I started buying them (haven't had to replace a single piece yet). But the author did the math and proved mathmatically that it was almost always cheaper to buy the durable expensive product over the cheap crappy one that needs frequent replacement (and that was ignoring the value of your time!)
www.csmonitor.com
Wow found it.
There was only ONE model I could find that was manufactured in Germany, and it cost 3-4 times as much. As a matter of principle, I don't believe in buying crap, so I bought the absurdly priced German unit (zero problems in 5 years). At this point in life, my time is worth much more than my money so I will pay extra simply to know the product I own is going to work and not need repairing or replacement.
But you can't even look to brands. You can many times look to the country of manufacture. You will rarely find crap being made in Germany or Japan (really most of Europe). Europe has much stronger consumer protection laws, where many of the products in the US that come with measely 90 day warranties get 2 year warranties in Europe, or else they are not allowed to sell there. It's basically a rule that prohibits junk, because the seller would have to keep replacing junk that broke within 2 years.
This is all the result of capitalism, which prioritizes profits of the holders of capital over everything else.
It's also one small cut among many which atomizes and destroys any national allegiance among a people. When everything you buy is junk and you have no connection to the products through local factories or knowing they are made with quality, you just feel like an insignificant shopper in a mass market, instead of a member of a functioning community and society.
There was a great article on seeking out quality consumer products in the Christian Science Monitor a few years back. I remember they specifically mentioned Carhartt clothing as high quality, and I started buying them (haven't had to replace a single piece yet). But the author did the math and proved mathmatically that it was almost always cheaper to buy the durable expensive product over the cheap crappy one that needs frequent replacement (and that was ignoring the value of your time!)
When should you buy brand name clothes?
Almost every article of clothing you buy has a brand label on it somewhere. Does paying attention make you a "brand snob" or a discerning consumer?
Wow found it.
MADE IN THE USA SINCE 1889
In the midst of our current global economy, Carhartt has proven that affordable clothes can be made right here at home, and be successful.
Since 1997, more than 600 textile factories have closed in the U.S. Today, less than 2% of the apparel purchased in the U.S. is actually made in the U.S. Carhartt gear is part of that 2%, yet we often far exceed that number. Since 1998, Carhartt has made more than 80 million pieces of apparel in the U.S. Though we do manufacture some of our durable products offshore, we have never stopped making products in the U.S. since we started in 1889. Everything Carhartt makes is designed in Dearborn, Michigan, just a few miles from our original HQ.
Carhartt employs more than 2,000 American workers, and more than 1,000 UFCW union members. Our “Made in the USA” line is built in four factories in Kentucky and Tennessee. In 2015, Carhartt purchased 19.5 million pounds of U.S. cotton from Mt. Vernon mills in Georgia—enough American cotton to cover more than 19,500 football fields. Crafting American-made products is an important part of Carhatt’s DNA, and important to the hardworking American towns where we build these products.
By giving Americans a choice to buy product actually made in America, Carhartt has ensured the survival of the American worker. No brand makes more rugged workwear in the U.S. than Carhartt – and we’re proud that we can dress a hardworking American, head-to-toe in the best workwear money can buy without charging a premium for manufacturing here. We exists to serve the worker, and without him or her, we wouldn’t be in business. Since 1889, we’ve never stopped making clothes in America. And we’ll never stop outworking them all.
LOOK FOR THE ‘MADE IN THE USA’ LOGO ON CARHARTT.COM
When you see this logo, you know this gear was made right here in the US of A
FEATURED MADE IN THE USA PRODUCTS
Well Carhartt it is then. F. China.
I'm in Texas, where some people have debris from the winter storm (pipes burst, flood damage to drywall and stuff) still sitting out by the curb. My biggest trees just dumped all their leaves, so I have about a dozen bags of leaves sitting by the curb waiting to be hauled off. Normally the trash collectors pick these up. But they've been sitting there for a week. I called the trash company today to ask what was up.
Turns out the landfills are backed up from all the storm debris all over the city and we just have to wait. I produce a small amount of trash, never come close to filling my bin and this amount of leaves happens once a year.
"The landfills are full." Eek.
Turns out the landfills are backed up from all the storm debris all over the city and we just have to wait. I produce a small amount of trash, never come close to filling my bin and this amount of leaves happens once a year.
"The landfills are full." Eek.
Gehenna truly will burn for eternity.
Leaf mould makes first-class compost, though it takes a couple of years to break down properly. Do you know any gardeners?
When I had a big garden, I'd've gladly had those bags off you. Had I not been on the other side of the Atlantic, of course...
Some years I garden myself, but I haven't gotten to composting yet. If they don't pick them up soon, I'll probably just dump them in a big pile in the backyard and let nature take its course. Mostly it was just weird and sad to hear "the landfills are full." Full of tons of cheap, worn-out junk, I'm sure.
I am in Illinois. We are in tornado alley and oftentimes the Mississippi or one of the other rivers floods and causes a great deal of damage. If any RVFers own land out in the middle of nowhere that isn't that far from a major highway you should consider startging a business focusing on debris removal. Below is the blurb from a Debris Management Class that I had a few years ago:
Description: | This one day course is designed to provide participants with the ability to manage enormous amounts of debris that a disaster can produce. The importance of having plans containing standard operating procedures for all aspects of debris management is emphasized. Various situations that debris cause are discussed and the consequent actions necessary to return a community to pre-disaster conditions are addressed. Participants will have the opportunity to apply what they have learned during group activities. Items the students are required to bring to class: - Copy of street map for municipal personnel or county map for county personnel - Debris Management Annex/SOP or Plan - Local disaster declaration boiler plate - EOP/Local ordinance that would identify any emergency powers available following a local disaster declaration being declared |
There is a lot of federal money available from FEMA and DHS for cleanup. Check out your county/region's Debris Management Annex and see what they do with stuff. There is a whole science to debris sorting and most people shy away because you are dealing with the EPA, FEMA, local and county governments, etc. It is a lot of paperwork and a lot of politics. Most people don't want to try and untagle that Gordium Knot so they leave it up to major regional contractors who have the contacts and know how or they suffer in silence because their community is too small to have a knowledgeable emergency manager. Sometihng for you young RVFers who have some construction/contracting know how to look into.
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This article is about getting rid of amazon but Amazon is one of the PRIMARY drivers for cheap junk- they literally target quality manufacturers and undercut them by cutting corners
thefederalist.com
In addition, I noticed Amazon pilfering from the work and ingenuity of smaller sellers by making or inserting cheap overseas imitations of highly popular goods, undercutting their price point.
“No competitor is too small to draw Amazon’s sights,” the Wall Street Journal noted in December. “It cloned a line of camera tripods that a small outside company sold on Amazon’s site, hurting the vendor’s sales so badly it is now a fraction of its original size, the little firm’s owner said.” An earlier WSJ investigation found Amazon targets popular products and vendors to take over their market share, often with inferior products. I was finding that true all the time.
I Haven’t Used Amazon For Almost 3 Months And I Don’t Miss It One Bit
I’ve been an Amazon user for about 15 years, and an addict since we became Prime members about three years ago. It’s been easy to kick the habit.
thefederalist.com
In addition, I noticed Amazon pilfering from the work and ingenuity of smaller sellers by making or inserting cheap overseas imitations of highly popular goods, undercutting their price point.
“No competitor is too small to draw Amazon’s sights,” the Wall Street Journal noted in December. “It cloned a line of camera tripods that a small outside company sold on Amazon’s site, hurting the vendor’s sales so badly it is now a fraction of its original size, the little firm’s owner said.” An earlier WSJ investigation found Amazon targets popular products and vendors to take over their market share, often with inferior products. I was finding that true all the time.
On the other hand, I recently scored a gorgeous, glorious 100% wool area rug that retails for $1000+ (and nothing about it suggests it's not worth that price; it's a big rug) for just over a hundred bucks on Amazon. It's going to be hard for me to quit Amazon, because if you know how to dig, it is something of a dumping ground for really nice things that are really cheap because it's the last one or the packaging is damaged or it has a tiny imperfection, or some silly thing like that. The plastic wrapping around the rug had some mildew on it, that was all. The rug was in perfect condition.
The by-the-dumpster TV, it turned out, had one bad back light LED strip. But, $28 dollars worth of eBay parts later it is working perfectly today after about an hour's work. That was $28 delivered all new LED strips so all the backlights are new. Should last for years.
It really not that hard, just a lot of screws to take in and out. This was an older Vizio (assembled in Mexico) and it came apart fairly easily and was made much better than the last TV we had. To avoid cracking the LCD screen I did get some suction cups off eBay ($14) so I could lift he LCD screen straight up and out. I think a lot of people could watch some YouTube videos and do it themselves.
I have always liked repairing things, and now I am starting to focus on the more difficult electronic repairs. Recently soldered together an ESR (effective series resistance) meter that can test for some bad capacitors in circuit, and also a Q meter that can check for bad inductors. Reading up on how to repair switch mode power supplies. Sold some stuff on eBay recently to save up for a new-to-me Fluke 177 multi-meter--the high-end Flukes are still made in the USA, and it shows. That is one great instrument.
Watching Netflix series Broken as I read this thread. Indeed usa is a dumping ground for crap. Lots of fugazi crap.
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LawTalkingGuy
Robin
I still have my PS1, PS2, PS3, and PS4.
I have all of my original systems from Regular Nintendo to SNES and N-64. They're all in pristine condition because they were well-built and I always took care of everything I had because I understood the costs associated with each item.
Very early in life, around age 8-10, my father sat me down and explained his financial situation to me, so I never asked for anything along the lines of preppy jackets, elite shoes, or flashy clothing the way the majority of the other kids at school seemed to. They were always sporting the latest trendy fashion and I was wearing functional bland Big Box retail store jeans. If I got an electronic item of some sort, such as a gaming console, I took exceptional care of it.
My father bought me a $150 dollar graphing calculator in 8th grade which lasted me until my second year of undergraduate university when it finally just died. A lot of my classmates went through 3-4 graphing calculators in junior high school and high school because they dropped them, tossed them around, left them unattended to get stolen, sat on them, etc., they didn't care, their parents just bought them another one.
My father was very clear, "take care of what you have, if it breaks or wears out, we can get it replaced, but if you are trivial with it, frivolous with it, or you throw a fit and hurl it against the wall, don't expect to get another one."
I have a cousin who always got a new phone by destroying her existing phone. Her father would tell her, "you don't need a new phone" she would destroy her phone by smashing it against the wall or dropping it in the toilet, and then he would get her a new phone. If I had ever even thought to dare try to pull a stunt like that my father would have said, "congratulations, you now have no phone until you work and save your way to being able to get one, enjoy being without a phone."
LawTalkingGuy
Robin
My primary daily wear has always been Belleville 690 Waterproof USAF Flight Boots. I have been enamored with them since 2008 when I got them at Wright-Patterson and I never looked back.
It took a full 10 years for my first pair to really begin to fall apart to the point I decided to replace them because the soles were compromised and cracked. By then they were discontinued and being phased out and I had to struggle to find a boot place that had some. I bought two pairs on the spot. I did 18 months of intense off-trail hiking on a daily basis, attended 40+ rifle/pistol/tactical courses with a lot of running, movement, obstacle courses, and after 18 months my new pair had fallen apart from more action in 18 months than the prior pair had seen in 10 years.
I am now down to my last pair, I'm not sure this pair will last to the end of 2022, which leaves me sort of perplexed as to what to do once this pair falls apart.
Around age 18 I had been getting $20 dollar backpacks at Walmart and going through 2 per semester because they were falling apart every 3-4 months. I had been doing this since age 13 as well.
I finally wound up getting a $300 Blackhawk Tactical 3 Day Assault Pack to use as a daily backpack. I have had this pack since 2004 and it is still going strong, the zippers work, no holes, no tears, it is fine. The only problem is that it now smells like cat urine because one of my cats peed on it and the dry-cleaner doesn't clean backpacks. I'm now left searching for a business that does cleaning that is willing to clean a backpack. I don't want to get rid of the pack because the latest Blackhawk packs seem a bit flimsy to me in terms of the construction/material. The 2000-2005 era packs are much sturdier, heftier, more robust.
Bought a book bag in the Fall of 1991. Jansport, back when they were still made in USA. Cost $50. Still use it every day.
ralfy
Robin
One potential solution regarding home appliances is to find a commercial grade item but in the consumer price range. For example, my vacuum is a Henry Hoover. Or an analogue speedqueen washer with no computer.
The 1 Duke
Sparrow
The North Face makes a good quality pack. Around $100 Can.