by restrangled 31 Replies latest social current
Lawrence: BINGO
Had America not given free trade status to China, things might have been different, but now it's too late. Wait until China begins to collect their amount of the trade inbalance, and pulls in their markers. We'll see who will be doing slave labor.
R
I believe TransFairUSA is one I'm familiar with.
Certified fair trade coffees and other fair trade agriculture might be of interest to you.
I think the Organic Consumers Association (US) might also be helpful.
Also, there is something on the web you can look up; I think it is called SweatShop Watch (or something). Your local co-ops may have ideas for you as well in helping find more humane ways of shopping.
GOOD LUCK!
ed. to add:
I think the root of the problem is we depend too much on others. I know there are certain thing we might not be able to produce but there is a lot that we can. I think we should all be more self sufficient. I depend to much on the "system" to live. We have the knowledge and technology to be able to produce our on food , clothes, electricity and so on.
The first red flag for all of us..... if you have called your credit card company about a problem. The answer sweat shops are all in India. If you wish to speak to an english, state side emplyee it's going to cost you. I have had more fights than you can imagine. These people can barely speak english, and yap at such a fast pace you have to ask them to repeat it about 3 times, ....in the end they can't help you. Count on $7.50 to a $10.00 charge to get anything resolved.
Every large business has been sold out. My suggestion is to do zbusiness with the smallest local retailers you can, including going to your local Farmers market to get fresh fruits, vegs., and plants~
r.
OMG, Amex is even in India. I had a problem last month, and it took me hours on the phone with India to get it resolved. Had this been a native speaker, it would have been done in 10 minutes.
And, don't even get me started on Dell computers with Indian people. GRRRRRHHH!
Customer service died & went to India.
I got a "boo" Halloween present. It was all bought from the Dollar General, made in China, with candies made in China. I threw it all out.
Skeeter
Restrangled, I don't consider myself "Canadian" at all (I'm aboriginal) and I make no apologies for ANY government, but I find that getting your dander up over China is going to do diddly squat.
History will run its course. The point I was trying to make was that America and Britain were just as bad in their infancy as China is now, but things evened out somewhat over the course of time. It's not the apocalypse, our planet is not in peril.
The only thing this all means is that we might see a big cultural shift, and this is something that has gone on since humans first got together in large social groups.
Change happens, you've just got to deal with it and adapt or go extinct.
New toy recalls made in China announced today October 25, 2007
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific_business/view/307832/1/.html
Thank you, r., for making us aware ... I had no idea!
CoCo
Ahhhaa! Fresh frozen pizza's from California, very expensive in your grocer's freezer. They are called California Pizza Kitchen.....looks like all fresh ingrediants for California...supposedly from a famous pizzaria from there.
I called their 800 number was put on hold and after they asked for the Sku number I was told, "well, it's about 1% from China......(that means wheat gluten).....I told the girl I will not be purchasing their products in the future, and she was going to forward the message to the purchasers of ingrediants. That also means other pizzas have higher contents of Chinese based ingrediants.
Just call the 800 number on the package of food you are eating. They don't have to list where the food came from, but if you call,.....they have to admit it. On any jar, can, frozen food item etc., the 800 numbers are there for you to get an answer.
r.
What about that stuff we all have on British menus - is it fau gras or something which is derived from force feeding geese via tubes to enlarge their liver which is then served up on menus. Two councils in England have banned it from council menus! And if you consider the plight of other livestock, you end up considering things like beef and lamb to be superior products because at least they roam around and have a life!
