[Vision2020] Look for the Union Label (was "Wal-Mart cause and effect")

[Joan Opyr]

On 21 Nov 2005, at 07:21, keely emerinemix wrote:

> Umm, Jeff, you seem to have missed the point, and then another, in 
> your post:
>
> 1.   The importance of the film's message is not subject to 
> mass-market acceptance.  In other words, whether or not the film is a 
> blockbuster doesn't matter.  I would hardly expect a documentary about 
> the world's largest retailer to command the audience of the new Harry 
> Potter movie, but I don't discount the worth of the former because it 
> doesn't compete with the latter.  Unfortunately, the pain and 
> suffering portrayed in the movies didn't involve special effects, car 
> chases, wizardry and Angelina Jolie -- but I'm glad to be one of the 
> folks who was able to sit through it nonetheless.
>
> 2.  The quotes you post on how much the movie sucks include defiant 
> assertions that Wal-Mart is great because you can get pretty much 
> everything you need in one place for less money.  If I, or you, or the 
> spoiled American consumer were the point, that would indeed be 
> germane.  But we're not, and it isn't.  The film expresses in a 
> hard-hitting, heart-wrenching way the devastation wreaked upon people 
> and communities because of the cherished belief that our convenience 
> -- MY convenience -- is the only thing that matters.  Quotes from 
> people who stubbornly cling to the belief that they are the measure of 
> all things only prove the film's point.
>
> I know that you and I view Wal-Mart differently, but I think your 
> arguments are better made without references to links that illustrate 
> points you probably would do better to avoid.
>
> keely emerine mix


Dear Visionaries:

Here's a statistic for you -- if every American bought (or was given as 
a birthday, Christmas, Chanukah or Kwanza present) just one 
USA/union-made garment per year, we'd inject an estimated $9 billion 
into our economy.  Amazing.  We could save or even create some American 
jobs; help offset our unsustainable foreign trade deficit; and perhaps 
re-learn the lyrics to that great "Look for the union label" song.  
Anyone out there old enough to remember that one?

Look for the union label
When you are buying
A coat, dress or blouse . . .
(Something, something, something)
The union label . . .
It means we're able
To make it in the USA!

In the spirit of putting my money where my mouth is, I went to Spence 
Hardware today and bought a Carhartt insulated vest.  It was made right 
here in the US of A, and it proudly sports the UFCW Union Labor label.  
What did it cost me?  $44.95.  It was a few dollars more than the 
Chinese-made Dickie work vest, but my relative experiences with 
Carhartt and Dickie made the choice an easy one.  About a decade ago, I 
bought a pair of Carhartt work overalls for the whopping sum of $68.50. 
  It pained me to spend the money at the time, but I still have the 
overalls.  I wear them all the time, and there's not a rip or tear or 
faulty seam on them.  I've had exactly one pair of cheap Dickie 
overalls; they didn't make past the first repair trip underneath my '76 
Suburban without ripping the pocket off the ass.  I think they cost 
$20.  So, that's $20 for, say, ten pre-ass rip wearings versus $6.80 
per year for the high-quality, union-made Carhartt's.

Of course, this is all anecdotal.  Perhaps there's some foreign 
sweatshop out there that makes wonderful, rip-proof clothing.  I still 
wouldn't want to shop there.  Why?  For all the reasons Keely names.  
Thanks to my Carhartt's, my conscience is clear, and my ass is covered.

Joan Opyr/Auntie Establishment
www.joanopyr.com

PS: It can, of course, be hard to find USA/union-made clothing.  (You 
won't find *any* at Wal-Mart.)  As I have suggested before, try looking 
at Goodwill.  Try Spence or Tri-State.  Read the labels.  Try the 
Internet.  You can go to http://www.unionjeancompany.com and shop for 
denim products online.  As far as American-made boots or shoes are 
concerned, I've found that the Chippewa company still makes much of its 
footwear in the US.  You'll have to check the label, however.  I've got 
one pair of workboots made here, and another pair made in China.  Guess 
which ones leak?

PPS: Yes, I am on a tear about Chinese-made goods.  Some might consider 
this evidence that I am xenophobic.  I'm not.  I am concerned that 
China has an appalling record of human rights abuses, that too many of 
its factories use slave, prison, and child labor, and that China floods 
the world market with cheap, shoddy, sweatshop-made goods, some of 
which have been re-labeled so that buyers think they come from 
worker-friendly states.  Dishonest practices, all.  Caveat emptor: 
buyer beware.  Know who made the clothes on your back, and make an 
informed decision.  Is that too much to ask?

PPPS: Saundra is right.  From this day forward, I'm swearing off 
Wal-Mart -- a decision made easier by my purchase last Friday of enough 
Costco "Big A Family" toilet paper to decorate a Macy's Thanksgiving 
Day float.
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