Wherein We Disrespect Soldiers...

[Red_Dazes]

People today were HORRID in general. I think I had one nice customer come though my line, and I was on register for most of my shift.... But it was mainly general suckiness.... The reason for this thread is the guy who went Fracking APESHIT.


So I wasn't involved in this (so if the Mods feel it should be a sighting instead feel free to move it), it actually took place when I was leaving for lunch, but I got to see/hear the whole thing (believe me there wasn't a single person in the whole store who didn't hear this guy)

So a guy goes to buy one of our scrapbook albums, it is one with the fun pre-made cover for the US Army. He went crazy when he read it was...guess what... made in China. Stormed up to my manager and yelled at her about how it was fucking disrespectful to our Vets to sell US Army things that were made in china. and How dare we and we are a horrible company. We need to support our OWN country.... for FIVE minutes... there was a LOT of language, and I just don't feel up to writing the whole bloody rant.

...in the end my manager looked at him, took the scrap book album and told him to get the HELL out of her store. When he left he screamed at the top of his lungs that we don't support our troops and anyone shopping with us is UnAmerican... and as soon as the doors shut behind him. Every single other customer in line laughed their asses off.....

.....It was the first true CRAZY I have seen so far at the Lobby.... but we are a young store, there shall be time plenty for us to acquire more crazy....

[Shalom]

You know, on the one hand, to a slight degree I think he has a point, although he certainly didn't need to be an asshole about it. (Not to mention that complaining to screaming at the employees in a retail store is going to accomplish exactly nil, other than making himself look like a moron; if he's that pissed off he should sit himself down and write a letter, on paper, and mail it to the corporate HQ. Not that this is likely to accomplish anything either.) One of my own pet peeves is American flags made in China, though I don't go off on store personnel about it, just grumble to myself a bit.

On the other hand, though, the reason so much manufacturing is done in China is because it's cheaper. I wonder, if he'd been given the choice, would he have been willing to pay twice as much, or maybe five times as much, for product made in the USA, or would he have gone for the imported stuff anyway?

((I should point out here, I do not agree with him about the store not supporting soldiers or being unAmerican; that's so far over the top it's fallen off the other side.)

[bainsidhe]

Wow. I work for a USA manufacturing company and our products are made in *here, USA*. Yet most of what I buy is made in China or somewhere else. So does that make me just somewhat unAmerican?

[MoonCat]

It's hard to find stuff that's not made in China. But yeah, screaming at store employees isn't going to change that! What, is this the first time this guy has ever seen merchandise made outside the U.S.?

[PepperElf]

i agree... he has a point about buying locally
but he's making it to the wrong people.

unless you are personally in charge of which company you order from, you have no ability to change this.


perhaps he should remember... you don't yell at the privates over the general's orders. granted you prolly wouldn't yell at the general either but... it's not the private's fault.

[Amethyst Hunter]

So a guy goes to buy one of our scrapbook albums, it is one with the fun pre-made cover for the US Army. He went crazy when he read it was...guess what... made in China.

I'm sorry that my brother flipped his shit on you.

[Shalom]

What, is this the first time this guy has ever seen merchandise made outside the U.S.?

I think his problem was not with generic "stuff made outside the U.S.", but "stuff intended to be patriotic and supporting specifically the American armed forces, but made outside the U.S.".

I had a similar WTF moment last year, when I was visiting the Smithsonian Institute with my families. There was one museum (I don't think it was part of the SI itself, but interspersed with them) in whose gift shop small plushie aquatic animals (dolphins, etc.) were sold to benefit environmental causes. I bought one medium otter, and on looking at the tag, found it was made, guess where . . . let's just say it's a country which does not have an especially admirable record when it comes to environmental responsibility. Struck me as being just the least bit hypocritical there.

[BeeMused]

We just moved our production facility from China back to Germany. A local flooding had reduced all machinery to scrap metal, so we needed to buy new machines anyway. With all the transport, customs, and insurance costs to get the merchandise from China to our warehouse, it costs about the same, and we're a lot more flexible now. Transportation and insurances (the shipping route goes through two pirate infested areas) are very likely to become more expensive, so in the end it'll be cheaper. Of course marketing is happy to tell all customers about Made in Germany.

As long as transportation and manufacturing is cheaper in China or someplace else, stuff will not be made in the US or Europe.

[wagegoth]

Supposedly, in about 15 years, income differences between most major countries will have evened out, and manufacturing items outside the U.S. will no longer be cost effective. We'll see.

[BaristaTrav]

Not to sorta threadjack.. but for 4th of July 2009 myself, my wife and her family went to this fireworks/concert thingy at a baseball stadium... it was.. well, as American and patriotic and apple pie as you can get. As part of the festivities, they were handing out little plastic American flags.. and printed prominently on the handle.. you guessed it: "MADE IN CHINA." I don't recall anyone griping that I could hear.. but it was very post-modern..

[Jester]

I drink wine produced in Spain.
I eat sushi made by people from Japan.
I drink beer brewed in Germany.
I love rum distilled in Guatemala.
I wear clothes made in China.
I eat tomatoes grown in Mexico.

But I buy PORN made in the GOOD OLE U.S. OF A.!

[wolfie]

I drink wine produced in Spain.
I eat sushi made by people from Japan.
I drink beer brewed in Germany.
I love rum distilled in Guatemala.
I wear clothes made in China.
I eat tomatoes grown in Mexico.

But I buy PORN made in the GOOD OLE U.S. OF A.!

Not quite what the Oak Ridge Boys had in mind, but similar in sentiment.

[Merriweather]

On the other hand, though, the reason so much manufacturing is done in China is because it's cheaper. I wonder, if he'd been given the choice, would he have been willing to pay twice as much, or maybe five times as much, for product made in the USA, or would he have gone for the imported stuff anyway?

What gets me are the ones that seem to think it's all a recent thing, that go back a few years and everything was made here in the US. Sorry, tons of foreign imports cause they're cheaper is NOT a new concept.

I recall taking a vacation when I was 8 or so, my Dad had always wanted to see the West, so we drove off from Florida, and basically traveled as far as we could, seeing things here and there, til we were half-way thru his vacation time, then headed back. My big thing was getting "souvenirs" from all the places we went. Somewhere in New Mexico, we stopped at this "authentic" (yeah, right) village, Navaho?? I think. I spent my allowance on this little leather purse with beading on it, so proud to have such a great authentic souvenir. Til a few miles down the road, and I found the "made in Japan" tag on it, and cried for ages over it not being "real". And this was back in 1963 or so.

[Mikkel]

There there, a Japanese beaded Navajo purse is much more exotic than the home grown variety.

[Tora]

Yeah, yet another reason I like being Canadian. *no offence to the American posters meant!! Don't eat me!!!* I can imagine people would be annoyed to find a Canadian flag made in China, but the vast majority of them wouldn't make this much of a production out of it. I can't imagine listening to someone in a dollar store screaming at an employee over a Made in China sticker, it's just seems so ridiculous.