Walmart claims HD DVD has won

[sunburnwilly]

We (the US) now ship raw materials to China, and import finished goods from them. That's the definition of a colony. [:'(]

We have been doing this for quite some time now . Where do you think Japan got the raw materials to build up it's millitary before WWII ?

[mas]

We (the US) now ship raw materials to China, and import finished goods from them. That's the definition of a colony. [:'(]

We have been doing this for quite some time now . Where do you think Japan got the raw materials to build up it's millitary before WWII ?

Funny, we do the same thing with Honduras...and a lot of other countries. But for all of the sad complaints, what brand of underwear do you buy? And why do I have the feeling that I don't want to know?

But then it would be too much to expect this grand country of rabid consumers to individually change into producers, wouldn't it?

[mas]

.

[mas]

And then, after you folks feel self-satisfied that you have identified all of the problems in the world, you can sit back, reflect and realize that:

[mas]

'Cause, after all:

[sunburnwilly]

We (the US) now ship raw materials to China, and import finished goods from them. That's the definition of a colony. [:'(]

We have been doing this for quite some time now . Where do you think Japan got the raw materials to build up it's millitary before WWII ?

Funny, we do the same thing with Honduras...and a lot of other countries. But for all of the sad complaints, what brand of underwear do you buy? And why do I have the feeling that I don't want to know?

But then it would be too much to expect this grand country of rabid consumers to individually change into producers, wouldn't it?

Fact is our primary export is junk .

[mas]

LOL!

And that makes China and all of the other countries so many like to denigrate "what" exactly? []

You know, I talk with friends in mainland China every day (literally), and the fact is, they can make anything we want at any pricepoint and at any level of quality we want. And they are motivated to do it! The irony is that all of the "Chinese junk" that everyone likes to complain about is speced by American importers to be exactly what so many love to complain about! And yet the masses line up to buy it and then blame the Chinese. Ironic? Ya think?

Let's see, how long ago was it that "Made in Japan" was considered to be a label designating junk as well. Now we dream of our cars working as well as a Japanese car. And until recently, Sony was a respected name as well. But then they did get an American CEO. There's an (albeit overly simplistic) irony there somewhere, but let me crawl around awhile while I try to ferret it out!

[]

The supreme irony? For all of the complaints we all seem to have about so many others, the MAIN problem isn't 'them', it's us! We are the facilitators, without whom the other derivative issues most likely either wouldn't exist or they would not be near the magnitude to which we so self-righteously object.

So WalMart is only a symptom supplying the answer to your need! They are not the cause of your problem unless you simply choose to myopically focus on the last link in the chain. So again, Walt Kelly's insight expressed so aptly by Pogo comes back to bite us on our own @ss! Enjoy! And by all means, each one of us, take a bow! After all, WE are the ones who have done it!

[]

[efzauner]

mas

Well said. The consume is King and as long as we continue to want the cheapest crap China is more than happy to make it for us. If you have young kids how often do you complain about all the junk toys in the McHappy Meals that use up the world's resources and end up burried in a garbage pile.. but we continue to buy them to make our kids happy... WE have the power to change our buying habits.

[oldtimer]

Main Entry: iro·ny

Pronunciation: 'I-r&-nE also 'I(-&)r-nE

Function: noun

Inflected Form(s): plural -nies

Etymology: Latin ironia, from Greek eirOnia, from eirOn dissembler

1 : a pretense of ignorance and of willingness to learn from another assumed in order to make the other's false conceptions conspicuous by adroit questioning -- called also Socratic irony

2 a : the use of words to express something other than and especially the opposite of the literal meaning b : a usually humorous or sardonic literary style or form characterized by irony c : an ironic expression or utterance

3 a (1) : incongruity between the actual result of a sequence of events and the normal or expected result (2) : an event or result marked by such incongruity b : incongruity between a situation developed in a drama and the accompanying words or actions that is understood by the audience but not by the characters in the play -- called also dramatic irony, tragic irony

[IndyKlipschFan]

And that makes China and all of the other countries so many like to denigrate "what" exactly?

You know, I talk with friends in mainland China every day (literally), and the fact is, they can make anything we want at any price point and at any level of quality we want. And they are motivated to do it! The irony is that all of the "Chinese junk" that everyone likes to complain about is speced by American importers to be exactly what so many love to complain about! And yet the masses line up to buy it and then blame the Chinese. Ironic? Ya think?

====================

Yep, all true...
And it pisses of the left and the unions and about everyone else who feels it is a us against them attitude. But when you can get a material or product built better, cheaper, than before.. I could argue it all day but the truth is if it was your company, you would do the same. If not, your not being true to yourself here or others that OWN the company. Motivation from working in the hot sun as a migrant worker near starvation.... for pennies a day to a real job often inside..(no child labor here) in the AC and making 87 cents to 1.00 an hour (And no you can't compare prices/ wages to here...) Goes a loooooooong way!

Progress for some requires change. And sometime change is tough. There is a reason that car parts were moved to smaller towns all over America. Cheaper labor.. When they got full of themselves... they went some place else.. When we have American workers making better cars from Japanese owners here and making MORE than their union brothers... It really tells the whole story. Sad, but true, were making crappy American Cars and Trucks and through competition Americans realize this too.

Heheheh De-motivator posters are pretty funy... sad.. but funny....

[WMcD]

Going back to what JM was talking about.

About 25 years ago I heard something similar about a small manufacturer; probably lamps or tables or clocks. They had a good mark up and then Sears started buying from them. The first year they were happy to have the business.

Then Sears wanted more in the second year. They made more. Money started rolling in.

The third year Sears wanted even more but at a lower price. Then as things progressed this way, the manufacturer felt they'd essentially been taken over by Sears and forced to make more and more with less of a mark up.

Now they had one big customer which dictated terms. And if Sears dropped them, they'd be out of business.

= = =

.It is easy to characterize Sears or any big retailer as the bad guy. But this sort of thing is so predictable that complaints by a manufacturer should fall on deaf ears.

Gil

[Spongeworthy]

I would NEVER incriminate myself w/PERDUE, but Walmart is a VERY DEMANDING ACCOUNT, along w/BJ's.

Strong-arm business practices are one thing, but demanding BJs? That's just sick!

Big Fini fan here. You are a funny dude.

[merkin]

Going back to what JM was talking about.

About 25 years ago I heard something similar about a small manufacturer; probably lamps or tables or clocks. They had a good mark up and then Sears started buying from them. The first year they were happy to have the business.

Then Sears wanted more in the second year. They made more. Money started rolling in.

The third year Sears wanted even more but at a lower price. Then as things progressed this way, the manufacturer felt they'd essentially been taken over by Sears and forced to make more and more with less of a mark up.

Now they had one big customer which dictated terms. And if Sears dropped them, they'd be out of business.

= = =

.It is easy to characterize Sears or any big retailer as the bad guy. But this sort of thing is so predictable that complaints by a manufacturer should fall on deaf ears.

Gil

I agree with you. Nobody told the manufacturer that they couldn't go sell to anyone else. Nobody told them that they had to sell to Sears in the first place. It is not right in buissness to hitch your wagon to only one horse and then complain when that horse decides not to pull you anymore.

[Jay481985]

And that makes China and all of the other countries so many like to denigrate "what" exactly?

You know, I talk with friends in mainland China every day (literally), and the fact is, they can make anything we want at any price point and at any level of quality we want. And they are motivated to do it! The irony is that all of the "Chinese junk" that everyone likes to complain about is speced by American importers to be exactly what so many love to complain about! And yet the masses line up to buy it and then blame the Chinese. Ironic? Ya think?

====================

Yep, all true...

And it pisses of the left and the unions and about everyone else who feels it is a us against them attitude. But when you can get a material or product built better, cheaper, than before.. I could argue it all day but the truth is if it was your company, you would do the same. If not, your not being true to yourself here or others that OWN the company. Motivation from working in the hot sun as a migrant worker near starvation.... for pennies a day to a real job often inside..(no child labor here) in the AC and making 87 cents to 1.00 an hour (And no you can't compare prices/ wages to here...) Goes a loooooooong way!

Progress for some requires change. And sometime change is tough. There is a reason that car parts were moved to smaller towns all over America. Cheaper labor.. When they got full of themselves... they went some place else.. When we have American workers making better cars from Japanese owners here and making MORE than their union brothers... It really tells the whole story. Sad, but true, were making crappy American Cars and Trucks and through competition Americans realize this too.

Heheheh De-motivator posters are pretty funy... sad.. but funny....

Just remember though that those pennies are not soo bad if you factor in the cost of living. Yes the pennies seem minicule to us in terms of we make say 1000 times more then they do but our products probably cost 500 times more over here then there. I remember seeing this documentary in china, where haagen daaz is trying to make a name for themselves as the ends all premium icecream. The thing is they charge the same price there as they do here, about 5-6 dollars a pint. The problem is in China a full 5 course meal at a fancy restaurant costs about 5 dollars. They are making the prices the same just to make it a very special thing, its a show off thing in china to treat guests and others that you really care for them by buying icecream that costs more than the meal. But marlboro is doing the opposite, lowering the prices of cigarettes to around 25 cents a pack I believe to encourage smoking.

[oldtimer]

"But marlboro is doing the opposite, lowering the prices of cigarettes to around 25 cents a pack I believe to encourage smoking."

Fabian warfare at its finest....

[Klipsched with Yamahas]

" About 25 years ago I heard something similar about a small manufacturer; probably lamps or tables or clocks. They had a good mark up and then Sears started buying from them. The first year they were happy to have the business.

Then Sears wanted more in the second year. They made more. Money started rolling in.

The third year Sears wanted even more but at a lower price. Then as things progressed this way, the manufacturer felt they'd essentially been taken over by Sears and forced to make more and more with less of a mark up.

Now they had one big customer which dictated terms. And if Sears dropped them, they'd be out of business."

Exactly, and it extends even further, but I can't comment any further except in generalities. The question was asked of me today, what if?

(2) things: You MUST be a reliable supplier which can meet the expectations of the purchaser and secondly, be large enough to satisify that customer when peak sales occur. (when there exists a demand/supply imbalance)