A Chilling Thought Last Night

[ThomWV]

I was out and about last night. Its rare that I drive at night these days but I was coming back into town from a country auction when I passed a small car lot on the outskirts of town. At my age oncoming lights blind me. Look out pedestrians.

It occurred to me that everything we buy these days comes from China. I just read the other day that the first Chinese cars are now, or soon will be, imported. Look out Toyota.

Cars and houses, about the only things left that are actually made here. GM said they will be laying off tens of thousands of people, and the Chinese cars haven't even got here yet. Look out UMWA.

We don't make anything anymore. Not a god damned thing. Houses? Nothing but wood boxes, sometimes not even wood. Well, what do we do then? That's what gives me the scary question.

If we don't make anything and the Chinese make everything for us one would presume we must be doing something for the Chinese. After all, why would they do anything for us if we weren't doing anything for them? But we aren't doing anything for the Chinese. Nothing, zilch, nada, not one damned thing. There might be billionaires making more and more off of all this shit we are getting from the Chinese but one thing is certain. Neither the Chinese people or ourselves is one bit better off for all of this "free trade" who's fruits we have supposedly been enjoying.

Let me say it again: 30,000 layoffs at GM.

So tell me, how long can this last.

I'm gonna quit driving at night.

[CanuckAmok]

1. What was the Vonnegut novel where the Chinese had completely...

...isolated themselves, and had secretly developed self-miniaturization and teleportation technology?

"I just read the other day that the first Chinese cars are now, or soon will be, imported. Look out Toyota."

China has been importing autos to Europe for a few years. They haven't had much impact on the market, because:

1) they don't build cars very well... several have been rejected by various European countries for not passing crash tests, etc.

2) many of the vehicles they produce use copies of patented parts from other vehicles, or sometimes the whole vehicle itself. China builds cars by buying a model of a Western car, taking it apart, and manufacturing each part on their own, without paying licensing fees. You can buy an exact (although mechanically substandard) replica of a mid-70s Toyota Land Cruiser or a BMW motorcycle in China, but they are blatantly in violation of patents and trademark. China is so often sued successfully for that, that it makes people reluctant to become dealers for these cars.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

2. For Your Eyes Only.... link.

http://www.mercola.com/2001/mar/7/visual_degeneration.htm