Jack: While I fully respect your right to post Charles Hansen's opinions, I also think that looking at the big picture is in order here as well. Does the Chinese worker, who is working in less than ideal conditions, have fewer rights than the unemployed American unskilled worker living without medical insurance or basic necessities in the ghettos of America (or Canada, or Brazil, or Kenya, or Ethiopia for that matter)? If you or Charles Hansen feel that way, you are either a racist or a nationalist, pure and simple my friend. I would say that it's much more politically correct to be a nationalist than a racist, but in a rapidly globalizing world it is no less morally correct. In the west we need to look to our governments for MUCH more leadership in areas of education to improve our workforces to compete in the global economy and be able to provide "value added" skills and labour. The fact is that we have become lazy in the west and we believe prosperity is our right, not something we need to earn. Billions of Chinese, Indians and Africans do not have these preconceived notions; an unskilled and uneducated workforce combined with unimaginative management is simply not going to cut it in the new millenium and General Motors-and perhaps high end American audio producers-are a prime example of that.
As a consumer, I feel no guilt in buying quality products produced in countries other than my own; I do, however, feel outrage towards our governments which do absolutely nothing to improve our lot, but focus instead on creating smokescreens for the public while they retain "power" and line the pockets of the economic elite. Our governments, and the people who elect them, better clue in to this or we are going to be in big trouble.
As a consumer, I feel no guilt in buying quality products produced in countries other than my own; I do, however, feel outrage towards our governments which do absolutely nothing to improve our lot, but focus instead on creating smokescreens for the public while they retain "power" and line the pockets of the economic elite. Our governments, and the people who elect them, better clue in to this or we are going to be in big trouble.