Dale and I have been giving serious consideration to where our stuff is made recently. It seems to all have been made in China. The more we think about it, the more distressing this is. We have talked about trying to not buy anything made in China. This should lend itself well to living on a budget and living a simple life. For example, I would like a new hand held mixer. I already own a handheld mixer, but it doesn't stand up on its own. This is a pain in the butt. So I considered asking for a new one for Christmas. Of course, they're all made in China. All of them. Even the Kitchen Aid one. And that's when it hit me. Do I want to support a regime which routinely denies basic human rights to its citizens and props up the government in Burma, allowing them to kill hundreds of innocent monks, just so I can conveniently stand my mixer on the countertop when I'm not using it? No.
I know that avoiding products made in China will not make me a better person. I still drive a Japanese car that consumes foreign oil. My gas money supports today's terrorists and my tax money is training tomorrow's terrorists, and in short, the impact of my life is far greater than I can comprehend or control. But this is one thing I CAN do.
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3 comments:
That's awesome. If everyone did something even as little as that, then the way we live would change. This is how the world changes, by being conscientious about the details. And, I can still not get the idea of a motor scooter out of my head. I just am not ok with where the gas money is going, and I don't care if I get cold and wet for it. Or even run over. Well, I'd have to think about that one.
Good for you!
Personally, I think every parent should refuse to buy any toys made in China until the Chinese can prove they are making them safely.
We are all caught in complex nets of global economics, and we feel powerless to do much about it. BUT, we can vote with our money. If Americans would use their economic power wisely, instead of spending wildly and without thought, we could solve a few things.
Two thoughts: 99.9% of the toys from China are safe. This is not so relevant to the (good) idea of not wanting to support China-- I have a lot of misgivings a out the next Olympics-- but rather to challenge the media distortion that all Chinese toys must be bad.
Second most of our oil is either domestic or from South America. Driving in this country does not directly support terrorism. Its just that we are wasteful and excessive in the oil we consume.
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