US Olympic team kits were made in China | Sport | guardian.co.uk
"Kits for US Olympic athletes are American red, white and blue
"Kits for US Olympic athletes are American red, white and blue
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USA Olympic Team uniform is made in China - Congress is fuming.
- Thread starter mikedt
- Start date
Drhyde
Android Enthusiast
Ugghh...is this really what are politicians debate about every day? The economy is imploding around us and we're concerned about uniforms. Solution: don't accept the Chinese made uniforms and demand American made. Or one of these well-to-do politicians like say...Romney could buy them. At least he could earn himself a couple of nationalism points while still looking like a smug bastard.
Why is the economy imploding around us, maybe because of corporations like Ralph Lauren, et al, outsourcing all their manufacturing to China. Probably can't find any made in USA clothes these days, can you?
BTW it's because of outsourcing that I find myself teaching English in China. Sure beats a dole queue or filling shelves in a supermarket.
A.Nonymous
Extreme Android User
Personally I am thrilled that Congress is all over this. I'm glad they're tackling the most important issues of the day.
"What a privilege it is to be the outfitter of Team USA for the 2012 Olympic Games." Ralph Lauren
IMO it's not a good uniform anyway, they look like British Airways cabin crew from the 1990s.
Ralph Lauren responds to Olympic uniforms made in China criticism - National Conservative | Examiner.com
"Ralph Lauren says that the Chinese-labeled uniforms will remain for the Summer Olympic Games in London event which begins in two weeks, but he promises that the uniforms to be worn in the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia will be made in the United States."
IMO it's not a good uniform anyway, they look like British Airways cabin crew from the 1990s.
Ralph Lauren responds to Olympic uniforms made in China criticism - National Conservative | Examiner.com
"Ralph Lauren says that the Chinese-labeled uniforms will remain for the Summer Olympic Games in London event which begins in two weeks, but he promises that the uniforms to be worn in the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia will be made in the United States."
Gmash
Extreme Android User
Meh, is this really surprising to anybody? Most American flags are made in China too. Easy target for the politicians to summon up their phony outrage, (they're shocked, SHOCKED, I tell ya) but does it really make a difference in the scheme of things? I do admit I would prefer them to be made here for symbolic reasons, and what were they thinking when they okayed this? They had to know it would come out and be a PR disaster. Were they really trying to save a few bucks on the uniforms lol? I also agree they look like flight attendants. (wtf?)
Bob Maxey
Android Expert
My leather briefcase is American and my other bags are made in Canada from both Canadian and USA belting leather. My bike seats are made by hand in America. As are my boots, socks and jackets. My guess is the zippers are foreign made, but so what? My tailor makes my stuff from the best raw materials he can find.
I am not sure if there are American plants making fabrics as good as the silks he uses or the high thread count linens.
My favorite bikes are made here but my favorite "I hope to own them one day" bikes--Vincents Black Shadow and Scott Flying Squirrels--are not made here. Harley is made here but a Vincent can kick any Harley's arse on so many different levels.
I have a few suits made in America. They were made long ago and still stylish. My American suits lasted for decades and my suits made in Japan and one in England are every bit as good or perhaps a bit better than my American suits made today.
Several of my best shirts are handmade in England but from cotton coming from elsewhere. My cameras are made in Sweden and Germany, my cells are made "over there." One of my best cameras--a Kodak Master 8 x 10 View Camera, with Ektar lenses--was made in America and the quality is there. Lenses made by Kodak before most of you were born can beat almost every modern lens.
My favorite TV was made in America long ago and it still functions perfectly, but my best amps and audio components are made in Japan; a few in England and a power amp made in Canada. My next TV will come from 'over there' because we do not seem to make them Over Here.
I prefer American, but I also prefer the best. I'll never, EVER purchase American goods just because they are made here. The quality must be there or it is off to Sony I'll be a going.
I hate that we outsource so much, but again, I buy the best products because I want lasting value. My first truly great shirt (circa 1974) is still perfect although a tad too small. My American made fountain pen I got for graduation is still running strong and it is American.
When we start making things here that can compete with foreign products, I'll rise at 6 AM, put on my red, white and blue robe and trudge through the deep snow to be the first in line to purchase.
OutofDate1980
Android Expert
"Unlike most Olympic teams around the world, the US team is privately funded and we're grateful for the support of our sponsors,"
Private sponsors are paying the bill, so the political uproar is odd. If Congress doesn't like it then publicly fund the team. They just need to explain to the public the need for taxpayers to foot the bill in order to clothe the team in proper attire.
Private sponsors are paying the bill, so the political uproar is odd. If Congress doesn't like it then publicly fund the team. They just need to explain to the public the need for taxpayers to foot the bill in order to clothe the team in proper attire.
OutofDate1980
Android Expert
The US Congress is privately funded and we're grateful for the support of our sponsors.
Drhyde
Android Enthusiast
Yeah, but isn't this the fate of all nations eventually? America is peaked in terms of technology and quality of life whereas much of the nations we export to (which is what we do when were not consuming) are either in impoverishment or stuck in a symbiotic relationship with us (China needs our grain, we need their...well...everything).
We're not heading for a fall because we no longer produce or manufacture goods, we're heading for a fall because our politicians keep putting the interests of lining their pockets ahead of the people they serve. We need to reduce corporate tax rates and create incentives for companies to create jobs here. Otherwise, there will continue to be less jobs for low-skilled people. Not everyone has the ability or the drive to go work at Google and program software.
Gmash
Extreme Android User
Please, people, stop buying the BS about corporate tax rates being too high. Taxes in America are lower than they've been in decades. With loopholes, companies as big as GE actually collect tax refunds or pay no taxes at all. It seems like the republicans strategy for everything is repeat something enough times and it becomes the truth, no matter how ridiculous. Can't say I blame them, though, since it seems to work incredibly well.
I don't like Romney either, but your post misses the point. While it's true that corporations, through loopholes, pay less than they should, that is not a counter-argument to the marginal tax rate argument. The problem with taxes is that they act as incentives: in particular, they often incentivize bad behavior. That is the argument against raising marginal taxes
All the loopholes incentivize tax avoidance activity in the form of tax lawyers and accountants (which is why lobbyists for those groups are always the most against a simpler tax code). However, a higher marginal corporate tax rate disincentivizes higher corporate earnings. If I am a corporation, all other things equal, a higher corporate tax rate will induce me, on the margin, to take on less economically productive activity. It is absolutely true that, all other things equal, America's high corporate tax rate will discourage corporate activity and ultimately encourage business to move elsewhere.
It is also worth noting that in the past (for example the 90's which so many people point to as a great time for American business when corporate taxes were also high) although America had a high corporate tax rate, most of the rest of the world had an even higher rate. If other countries have a lower rate, there is a cost to locating in America, and companies will consider that.
That said, I don't disagree with your point necessarily. The key issue is the "all other things equal" part. America is a vastly more attractive place for business in ways other than taxes, and the loopholes in the tax code make even the tax burden not a big problem. However, that can change, and you and everyone else can argue about "should" all you want but that won't help if businesses choose to locate overseas to take advantage of lower tax burdens.
OutofDate1980
Android Expert
That "all other things equal" is the kicker, it don't exist. High corporate tax rate can also incentivize reinvestments in the corporation.
Moving a business elsewhere involves more than corporate tax rates.
These economic power houses have a corporate tax rate of 0%.
Corporate Tax by Country | Global Finance
"The lowest corporate tax rates of the year were seen, unsurprisingly, in those countries known as offshore corporate tax havens
ElasticNinja
Android Expert
China can make them as good, and for less. So what harm, eh? Things change.
Protectionism is a failed idea, even if we all get notions of economic patriotism from time to time.
Protectionism is a failed idea, even if we all get notions of economic patriotism from time to time.
ItnStln511
Android Enthusiast
That's disgusting...and a slap in the face to American textile workers. Hopefully Ralph Lauren won't manufacture the clothes for the next Olympics!
Kathie Lee Gifford just read this thread & thinks this is horrible.
ElasticNinja
Android Expert
So the federal government should intervene in the national Olympics committee to force them to implement protectionist policies. Should the boats they row and the bikes they cycle be made in the US too? The Olympics is not about nations being dicks to each other.
ItnStln511
Android Enthusiast
Sure...for the same reason that American embassies overseas drive Cadillacs and Lincolns, and not Rolls Royces, Mercedes, and so on. Because they represent America.
saptech
Android Expert
Yep, sure should. Everything should be made in America. Especially when it's a world event!
Well he who pays the piper calls the tune and the US Gov't isn't the one doing the paying when it comes to the US Olympic team.