I started to write a comment on my friend's blog. Her and her husband thought about only buying from the US for a while. Here's what my comment turned into.
I've been thinking a lot about international trade lately. Buying from the US does insure certain things: US minimum wage for workers, certain standards for pollution, and a relatively small carbon footprint. Those are the ideas off the top of my head.
At the same time, doing some reading, I came across this quote: "By 2002, [global trade] dropped to just 2% despite Africa having 12% of the world’s population. If Africa could regain just an additional 1% share of global trade, it would earn $70 billion more in exports each year. " I think there are real advantages to letting money be sent to third world countries.
Also, buying organic is something I've been thinking about. Even if we buy USA cotton, there can still be a lot of harm done. Cotton accounts for about 3% of all commercial crops in the world and about 25% of worldwide pesticide use.
I think there are a lot of things to think about, and it can be daunting, but you guys (Parsons, and other friends) have a good start.
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4 comments:
i love that you love to think about these things. You are my favorite.
Thanks Weeg, I enjoyed reading your thoughts. To be honest, I would love to support Africa. The trouble is, nothing is made there. Everything I see has a made in China, Japan, or India label slapped on it. So for now, US it is.
right, most of african countries are still considered peripheral in that they have raw materials but do not produce enough goods for export. semi-peripheral nations like taiwan have the manufacturing (sweat shops) and core nations like the US buy the stuff and make money by shipping it around everywhere. yikes.
It's interesting; I love the idea of buying American because it promotes jobs in the United States. Why am I more concerned about jobs in the United States? That's a great question. I think a lot of my reasoning is because I heavily support labor unions. It's complicated, to be sure, but I think some of your points make a lot of sense.
I'm glad you have a blog, too.
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