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American companies contract out factory work so they can wash their hands when improprieties show up. They know this shit goes on and their quest for greater p

American companies contract out factory work so they can wash their hands when improprieties show up. They know this shit goes on and their quest for greater profits is more powerful than their social conscience. Apple could easily run the factory itself. If this meant a loss in profit then we must ask ourselves why it would mean a loss in profit. It would mean a loss in profit because Apple itself would never run a factory that was unsafe or exploited the workers. And this is the reason Apple and other Western companies share in the blame.

philwelch 17y ago
"Apple could easily run the factory itself. If this meant a loss in profit then we must ask ourselves why it would mean a loss in profit. It would mean a loss in profit because Apple itself would never run a factory that was unsafe or exploited the workers. And this is the reason Apple and other Western companies share in the blame." This is a fallacious and ignorant argument. To understand why, stop and consider why things like AWS and Google Apps exist, just for starters. Then think about why Apple doesn't own their own cargo ships for international distribution, and why Apple uses FedEx rather than driving their own delivery trucks. There's no essential reason that manufacturing is any different. Apple's a design, development, and marketing company, not a manufacturing company. They don't know shit about manufacturing and they wouldn't be able to accomplish much by hiring the people who do. If you'd really rather buy a laptop from a company that runs their own manufacturing, buy a Lenovo. Of course, they're manufactured in China, and Lenovo doesn't do anything to audit the labor practices of their own factories, so we'll never know what goes on in there. But at least they're not evading responsibility for things they'll never tell us about.
- yequalsx 17y ago
  It's not an ignorant argument. Of course Apple isn't going to own or control every piece of the puzzle for getting its products here. But there is a reason their factories are in China and not in a country that has, you know, actual labor standards. Steve Jobs needs more money and people like you need cheaper products. I'm sorry. They don't own the factory so they are absolved of guilt and people like you can shop without thinking about the bad externalities with the current arrangement.
  - starkfist 17y ago
    The reason Apple uses Chinese suppliers is because the Chinese are the only ones who can do the supplying. There is no other place to get a computer made. Apple could start a factory in the USA, but it would take 10 years to spin it up. Chinese labor would need to be imported because nobody in the USA has the right expertise. The factories in the article are not Apple's. They are Chinese factories owned by Chinese companies run by Chinese people. This isn't old school imperialism. This is new school global trade. Apple already leans on the Chinese to clean up their labor practices, which is arguably more imperialistic behavior than doing business with them.
- yequalsx 17y ago
  These standard imperial justifications you and others give are part of the reasons why we are looked upon negatively by the developing world. We have exploited on a massive scale and very few Americans/Europeans care. We are a hug part of the problem and out collective morality is so poor that we actually buy the argument, 'We don't actually do the exploitation, we pay someone else to do it for us.' This is a shitty country.
  - philwelch 17y ago
    I won't buy a Lenovo laptop if you won't. After we run the Chinese out of business I'm sure they'll thank us for not exploiting them anymore.

philwelch 17y ago

"Apple could easily run the factory itself. If this meant a loss in profit then we must ask ourselves why it would mean a loss in profit. It would mean a loss in profit because Apple itself would never run a factory that was unsafe or exploited the workers. And this is the reason Apple and other Western companies share in the blame." This is a fallacious and ignorant argument. To understand why, stop and consider why things like AWS and Google Apps exist, just for starters. Then think about why Apple doesn't own their own cargo ships for international distribution, and why Apple uses FedEx rather than driving their own delivery trucks. There's no essential reason that manufacturing is any different. Apple's a design, development, and marketing company, not a manufacturing company. They don't know shit about manufacturing and they wouldn't be able to accomplish much by hiring the people who do. If you'd really rather buy a laptop from a company that runs their own manufacturing, buy a Lenovo. Of course, they're manufactured in China, and Lenovo doesn't do anything to audit the labor practices of their own factories, so we'll never know what goes on in there. But at least they're not evading responsibility for things they'll never tell us about.

yequalsx 17y ago
It's not an ignorant argument. Of course Apple isn't going to own or control every piece of the puzzle for getting its products here. But there is a reason their factories are in China and not in a country that has, you know, actual labor standards. Steve Jobs needs more money and people like you need cheaper products. I'm sorry. They don't own the factory so they are absolved of guilt and people like you can shop without thinking about the bad externalities with the current arrangement.
- starkfist 17y ago
  The reason Apple uses Chinese suppliers is because the Chinese are the only ones who can do the supplying. There is no other place to get a computer made. Apple could start a factory in the USA, but it would take 10 years to spin it up. Chinese labor would need to be imported because nobody in the USA has the right expertise. The factories in the article are not Apple's. They are Chinese factories owned by Chinese companies run by Chinese people. This isn't old school imperialism. This is new school global trade. Apple already leans on the Chinese to clean up their labor practices, which is arguably more imperialistic behavior than doing business with them.
yequalsx 17y ago
These standard imperial justifications you and others give are part of the reasons why we are looked upon negatively by the developing world. We have exploited on a massive scale and very few Americans/Europeans care. We are a hug part of the problem and out collective morality is so poor that we actually buy the argument, 'We don't actually do the exploitation, we pay someone else to do it for us.' This is a shitty country.
- philwelch 17y ago
  I won't buy a Lenovo laptop if you won't. After we run the Chinese out of business I'm sure they'll thank us for not exploiting them anymore.