Buy China

American appliance salesmen are full of shit.


Before my recent purchase of a replacement dishwasher the other day, I just wanted to know where the dishwashers were built. I just wanted to know where these things were built. Are these appliances just final-assembled at that location, are the parts actually sourced from there or from elsewhere, etc. Simple, basic questions. That's all. But no! They have no idea, no idea!, about the origins of the products they are selling. Perhaps because I'm the only one in the U.S. who asks. Just because a dishwasher's label is written in the Latin alphabet and model number is written in Arabic numerals doesn't mean the damn thing wasn't made in China.

I absolutely needed to know that whatever dishwasher I bought wasn't made in China. The reason is obvious; I want a dishwasher that won't have to be replaced again in three years' time. The Chinese manufacture such god-awful junk that I refuse to subject myself to the pain and discomfort of trying to fit a poorly spec'ed Chinese dishwasher into an exact 24" hole, of trying to fuck around with a door that won't latch correctly every eighth try, of stripping a cheaply built plastic 7/8" nut on the water hose flange, a lower rack that falls off the rails on its plastic wheels every ninth withdrawal, of having to replace a malfunctioning drain solenoid at quarterly intervals...I am willing to pay five to six times more for a well-built dishwasher so that I don't have to endure such torture, so that I don't have to enable the perpetual conveyor belt of Chinese junk to landfills in the United States.

That means I have to buy outside China. It means my Buy China program stops short at major appliances. I have an $1800 bill burning a hole in my pocket from the 2% Social Security payroll tax cut Obama gave us last winter and I blogged about how I was going to spend that on imported Chinese junk to goose our economy, but admittedly I can't do it when it comes to important energy consuming housal unit items such as dishwashers. I just can't do it. I will spend that $1800 on other less-important stuff from China like tuna, duct tape, alligator clips, tweezers, telephones, cuddle soft fabric softeners, barbecue tools, tackle boxes, dog grooming brushes, lead-laced toys for donation to disadvantaged American children at Christmas, shower curtains, compact fluorescent light bulbs, paper clips, erasers, sheet rock screws, flip flops, door knobs, carpet tacks, 9-volt batteries, gutter guards, binoculars, flower pots, zinc screws, American flags, toilet seats, shop towels, watering cans, spray bottles, shop vacs, scissors, latex gloves, envelopes, non-toxic fine tip markers, solar calculators, candle holders, mini-screwdrivers, backpacks, salt shakers, bicycle chain locks, liquid soap dispensers, fishing poles, NFL licensed wall clocks, boat fenders, jumper cables, personal space heaters, window coverings, toothbrushes, playing cards, thumbtacks, lip balm, #2 pencils, vinyl air mattresses, plastic rubbish pails, digital answering machines, staplers, hex nuts and magnifying glasses.

So all I wanted to know was where Bosch dishwashers were made. The answer I got from the salesman was "Germany."

Bosch, yes, is a multinational corporation headquartered in Gerlingen, Germany, but I had already looked over the labels affixed to the inside of the prospective dishwashing unit. I am fully knowledgeable regarding Bosch products because most of my woodworking power tools are Bosch and I'm completely satisfied with their production, with their fit and finish, with how they are built. I knew ahead of time that the Bosch dishwasher model I was pining for wasn't manufactured in Germany; indeed, this model was final assembled in New Bern, North Carolina.

The point is, we are not conditioned to think about such things as where stuff is built. As consumers we aren't conditioned to ask and consequently salesman are not conditioned to know. In much the same way the Dodge salesmen in 2006 had no fucking idea what gas mileage their products drew when we were buying their car; they were never asked before.

I suppose I shouldn't be so astounded at the level of willful incompetence around me. After all, I do live in the United States; I do live in the most feckless, consumerist nation on earth. I do live in a nation that gives not one consideration towards quality in consumerism, but a nation that gives price the only nod.

If I were an appliance salesman, I would take the same care as I do in my job as an electrical protection engineer -- I would understand the fundamentals. I would take the time to know about the stuff I'm selling, about who made it, about why one product is better or worse than the other. I would go beyond. Perhaps this is precisely why I don't sell appliances -- because I would care, while no other American would.