Hey! We noticed this “patriotic” display of red, white and blue “USA” merchandise over at a local Rite Aid store recently!
Isn’t that nice? Patriotic gear just in time for Memorial Day weekend (and then July 4th weekend after that!)
Affordable, too! $1, $2, and $3 items!
Hats, streamers and other freedom-based stuff to show how much you love the good ‘ole U.S. of A!
Oh, but wait a minute…
We inspected the items and realized they felt a bit cheap. Very cheap, in fact. Flimsy.
“Oh, that’s okay,” we thought, “they had to make it of lesser quality in order to make it less expensive, and within the reach of ALL Americans, no matter what their income level!”
Then we flipped the tag, and it all made sense:
Is “Made in China” still a Patriotic thing?
While many of us will chuckle at the hypocrisy of such “patriotic” merchandise that’s made in China. Some might even say it’s a slap in the face, right?
But on the flip side of the debate – the fact that we CAN have our things made in China is part of the options that American businesses have. Choice, right?
Or is it the fact that it would cost an arm and a leg to have it made in our own country? Are “we” partly to blame?
Do we give any credit that it’s an American company receiving the profits at least? Or are they taking jobs away from Patriotic Americans?
All interesting questions that can be raised from this simple consumer display of tchotchkes.
