Another member's recent blog post has set me thinking again. She writes of her concerns that we, as a nation, have sold ourselves out, that the out-sourcing of our jobs & the proliferation of free trade has somehow destroyed the fabric of this great nation. And, in many ways, I think I agree with her. But, what bothers me more than out-sourcing & huge trade deficits is something that I call the "Wal-Mart-ization" of America.

I seem to remember a time when virtually everything we bought was manufactured nearby. We imported very little, and usually what we imported was either very expensive and of higher quality than what was locally produced (how about those snazzy Italian-made loafers?), or it was cheap and shoddy (Remember Japanese transistor radios?). Now virtually everything we buy is made off-shore. Remember when Levi's were made in America? Now they're made in Mexico. The best shoes typically were made in factories in Massachusetts and could be counted on to last for years. Now those Florsheims are made in Brazil; if they last more than two years under constant wear, you're lucky. How did we get to this point?

But, what really bothers me is the obsession we've developed in this country with "value." When did we decide that cheaper was better? Let me give an example. I typically pay somewhere between $30 and $40 for a pair of jeans (yes, those Mexican-made Levi's) that I can wear for 3-5 years before I have to throw them out. Sure, I could go to Wal-Mart or Sam's Club & buy a pair of no-name jeans for $10; but I'll wear them out in a year. Then, I'll have to spend another $10 for another pair. Four years down the road, I've spent $40 for 4 pairs of jeans; the Levi's are still going strong. Now, you tell me. . .what's the better value? Remember Hathaway shirts? They were made in a factory in Waterville, Maine. Well-constructed, stylish, classically-tailored, you could buy a Hathaway shirt for around $35. I have three of them in my closet that I bought at the factory for $5 each. . .twelve years ago! I can still wear them & they still look great. How long does the typical dress shirt from a discount retailer like Wal-Mart or Target last?

Remember when we made the best cars in the world? Back in the 1950's what was good for General Motors was good for America. Today, General Motors is in danger of going out of business, largely because the Japanese produce a better, more economical, vehicle; and they sell it at a fraction of the cost of a comparable GM car. (The 2001 Chevy in my driveway next to the 1991 Ford seem to be exceptions to that rule!) Today, about the only American-made vehicle that can hold its own against its Japanese rival is a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. But here's the odd thing. . .Honda makes a great car, and an almost bullet-proof motorcycle (I know; I rode a 1984 Honda up until 2 years ago.) at a huge factory in Marysville, Ohio. Go figure. . .

We've lost our way here in America. We export raw materials and import finished goods, paying huge tariffs to nations that were once our fiercest competitors. Wal-Mart and other big-box retailers buy most of their products from China, Singapore, Korea, Brazil, etc. at ridiculously low prices and sell them to us for far less than comparable American-made goods; then, when the cheap imported products break, we blithely go back to Wal-Mart (or Target, or K-Mart) and buy the same shoddy, poorly-made, off-brand item because it's cheap. Hey, that DVD player lasted 2 years & it only cost $50. . .what a GREAT DEAL!! Was it really?

Where is our national pride? Even the food we eat is mass-produced and tasteless. Did you know that one patty in that Big Mac you had for lunch yesterday contains meat from approximately 1,000 cows? Yes, like it or not, we live in a global economy & we can't isolate ourselves. But, when did we become the world's dumping ground? When did we decide it was better to buy cheap, poorly-made goods from China as opposed to fairly-priced, well-made goods manufactured on-shore? Why don't we care that those Bass shoes we just bought are made in a factory in Puerto Rico or Brazil by workers being paid starvation wages and working 20-hour days? When I was in business school far too many years ago to think about, I learned two things: First, that businesses exist to make money. Second, that "profit" is not a dirty word. Today, when I see the huge sums of money that big-box retailers rake in, when I see Macy's buying up Marshall Fields and Kauffman's, when Sears has to buy K-Mart to compete with Wal-Mart, when the largest grocery store chain in the country is in danger of being forced out of business by the largest discount chain, when Exxon-Mobile (didn't those two used to be competitors?) posts record profits for three years running, when the minimum wage remains stagnant & families struggle to make ends meet in what's supposed to be the most affluent nation on earth, I wonder. . .

There's an old saying that goes something like, "It profits nothing that a man lose his soul to gain the world." Has America lost its soul? And, if we have lost our soul, what have we gained? Where's the profit? We're the children & grandchildren of "The Greatest Generation" (Thanks, Tom Brokaw); and the parents of the first generation of Americans to grow up to a LOWER standard of living than their parents. What happened to us?