Americans have to be ready to bite the bullet on this if we are going to keep this country solvent. Cheaper is not always better. That may mean paying more for our products. But what is it worth to keep Americans employed and create a competitive business environment in this country? I have had enough of globalization that has gutted our industries, given us cheap poorly made products, and made us dependent and at the mercy of our adversaries. Our country is worth saving.
I am trying to get my EXPENSIVE 2nd LG refrigerator fixed in about 6 years. The first one's compressor went and they totaled it. I bought the 2nd one because it was all they had during the Corona scam. Korea makes crappy stuff. And don't get me started on China.
I remember when appliances were made in the US. They hardly ever broke down. They were made to last and companies and their employees took pride in the products they made. Back in the eighties, I had an old Crosley refrigerator from before the company was taken over by bigger companies like Maytag and Whirlpool. I kept beer in it. It kept that beer cold without freezing it. I loved that fridge. Decades old and it still worked perfectly. I think it was made in the late fifties or early sixties. I had an Admiral refrigerator that I owned for decades before the compressor started to give out. I don't even think the parts were still available for repair. I have a Samsung now going on 8 years. The icemaker quit. But, I don't use ice so I don't miss it. Other than that, it works great.
Globalization has slowly lowered product expectations for most Americans. Foreign cheaply made products are usually all that is available. You can't buy an appliance any more without purchasing an extended warranty because the products are made so poorly. Their entire business model of frequent replacement may be good for the company's bottom line, but not for the consumer. We are nothing more to them than leaks to be harvested.
My dad had an old 1930's Frigidaire in the garage that was still working in the 1980's and an Electrolux vacume from the same time period that still worked. He had a Buick that had 300,000 miles on it and he did all the repairs.
I really have no idea how old that Crosley was when I got it. A friend was going to have it hauled off. I asked him if it worked and it did. I was like, hell I'll take to my house. It looked rather fifties - maybe even forties - no sharp angles. Really rounded looking with what resembled a porthole on the door. Definitely post war though. Set it out on my patio and kept beer in it. It was great in the summer. Beer was icy cold. Beer and the grill. Living high.
My dad did all the repairs too. I think the only thing he didn't work on was the fridge. He fixed washers, toasters, the cars, lawnmowers, everything. He even built a couple of minibikes for us kids with spare parts. We even had one of those large tricycles and my dad put a lawnmower engine on the rear axle and built a wooden box seat over the engine so we could sit two kids on it. Then he made a small wooden wagon that hitched to the back to carry a few more kids. Whenever we had the bikes out, all the kids within a two block radius were at our house. Dad was the quintessential handyman and tinkerer. Those minibikes were souped up versus regular purchased minibikes - he was always trying to tweak performance. One of those homemade minibikes even had a clutch transmission. If you were not hanging on, it would leave your ass in the dirt. My friends were jealous. Could actually climb some pretty steep hills on it.
We lived in a house that even had one of those in built in vacuum systems - no need for a separate vacuum cleaner. Those were popular in So CA back in the sixties. That thing never broke down. The house was bought in 65 and I think it was built in the late fifties. No later than 1960. My mom didn't move out till in the early 90's after we lost my father. She sold it and the vacuum still worked. Made a tidy sum on the sale almost 30 years after purchase.
Americans have to be ready to bite the bullet on this if we are going to keep this country solvent. Cheaper is not always better. That may mean paying more for our products. But what is it worth to keep Americans employed and create a competitive business environment in this country? I have had enough of globalization that has gutted our industries, given us cheap poorly made products, and made us dependent and at the mercy of our adversaries. Our country is worth saving.
I am trying to get my EXPENSIVE 2nd LG refrigerator fixed in about 6 years. The first one's compressor went and they totaled it. I bought the 2nd one because it was all they had during the Corona scam. Korea makes crappy stuff. And don't get me started on China.
I remember when appliances were made in the US. They hardly ever broke down. They were made to last and companies and their employees took pride in the products they made. Back in the eighties, I had an old Crosley refrigerator from before the company was taken over by bigger companies like Maytag and Whirlpool. I kept beer in it. It kept that beer cold without freezing it. I loved that fridge. Decades old and it still worked perfectly. I think it was made in the late fifties or early sixties. I had an Admiral refrigerator that I owned for decades before the compressor started to give out. I don't even think the parts were still available for repair. I have a Samsung now going on 8 years. The icemaker quit. But, I don't use ice so I don't miss it. Other than that, it works great.
Globalization has slowly lowered product expectations for most Americans. Foreign cheaply made products are usually all that is available. You can't buy an appliance any more without purchasing an extended warranty because the products are made so poorly. Their entire business model of frequent replacement may be good for the company's bottom line, but not for the consumer. We are nothing more to them than leaks to be harvested.
My dad had an old 1930's Frigidaire in the garage that was still working in the 1980's and an Electrolux vacume from the same time period that still worked. He had a Buick that had 300,000 miles on it and he did all the repairs.
American made would be great.
I really have no idea how old that Crosley was when I got it. A friend was going to have it hauled off. I asked him if it worked and it did. I was like, hell I'll take to my house. It looked rather fifties - maybe even forties - no sharp angles. Really rounded looking with what resembled a porthole on the door. Definitely post war though. Set it out on my patio and kept beer in it. It was great in the summer. Beer was icy cold. Beer and the grill. Living high.
My dad did all the repairs too. I think the only thing he didn't work on was the fridge. He fixed washers, toasters, the cars, lawnmowers, everything. He even built a couple of minibikes for us kids with spare parts. We even had one of those large tricycles and my dad put a lawnmower engine on the rear axle and built a wooden box seat over the engine so we could sit two kids on it. Then he made a small wooden wagon that hitched to the back to carry a few more kids. Whenever we had the bikes out, all the kids within a two block radius were at our house. Dad was the quintessential handyman and tinkerer. Those minibikes were souped up versus regular purchased minibikes - he was always trying to tweak performance. One of those homemade minibikes even had a clutch transmission. If you were not hanging on, it would leave your ass in the dirt. My friends were jealous. Could actually climb some pretty steep hills on it.
We lived in a house that even had one of those in built in vacuum systems - no need for a separate vacuum cleaner. Those were popular in So CA back in the sixties. That thing never broke down. The house was bought in 65 and I think it was built in the late fifties. No later than 1960. My mom didn't move out till in the early 90's after we lost my father. She sold it and the vacuum still worked. Made a tidy sum on the sale almost 30 years after purchase.