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When we outsourced blue collar jobs, we also eliminated middle class products. There are no more quality middle class goods because there are no more blue colla

When we outsourced blue collar jobs, we also eliminated middle class products. There are no more quality middle class goods because there are no more blue collar jobs.

andy99 3y ago
We all also now have $1000 phones and all sorts of other electronic crap that we spend money on. I agree that "the middle" is gone and it's all low end garbage or luxury. But I'd like to see an analysis of where money goes now vs then. I think there's probably a lot more recurring payments (phone, streaming, etc) plus electronics compared to older generations.
- thsksbd 3y ago
  Have you ever dreamt of your phone, something you hold onto and interact for goes at a time? You don't dream cell phones because (to your mind) they don't exist. They'rea boring box. Instead they are like the wardrobe to Narnia, a portal. Its what's through the glass that we're interested in. With that perspective I finally understand why people spend $1000 to get a faster, bigger phone. Their reality's lag, and how much of it they can see is tied to that update.
phatskat 3y ago
It’s more that the shareholders needed to be appeased, and CEOs realized they could save money by firing people and could make money by making things cheaply. You can hire less-skilled workers if you don’t intend (or care) that your product breaks, which saves money especially if you laid off your highly-skilled workers. There’s also no incentive to make a long-lasting product in a capitalist system, especially if your product does the thing it’s supposed to _really well_ and does it for a long time. Look at InstaPot - they sold like hot cakes…for a time. It worked great, did what it was supposed to, and lasted long enough that they couldn’t sustain their own successful business model. A car can last a decade and still run well, it just won’t have the bells and whistles of a newer model. Cookware by and large, and couches, don’t really get this kind of “refresh” outside of surface level details or features people largely shy away from like “Alexa-enabled” ovens. Out-sourcing comes into play because a company can pay even less for low-quality. I’m sure that if they could keep the jobs domestic and cheap, they would, but those pesky (/s) unions and minimum wages really stifled their innovation.

When we outsourced blue collar jobs, we also eliminated middle class products. There are no more quality middle class goods because there are no more blue collar jobs.

andy99 3y ago

We all also now have $1000 phones and all sorts of other electronic crap that we spend money on. I agree that "the middle" is gone and it's all low end garbage or luxury. But I'd like to see an analysis of where money goes now vs then. I think there's probably a lot more recurring payments (phone, streaming, etc) plus electronics compared to older generations.

thsksbd 3y ago
Have you ever dreamt of your phone, something you hold onto and interact for goes at a time? You don't dream cell phones because (to your mind) they don't exist. They'rea boring box. Instead they are like the wardrobe to Narnia, a portal. Its what's through the glass that we're interested in. With that perspective I finally understand why people spend $1000 to get a faster, bigger phone. Their reality's lag, and how much of it they can see is tied to that update.

phatskat 3y ago

It’s more that the shareholders needed to be appeased, and CEOs realized they could save money by firing people and could make money by making things cheaply. You can hire less-skilled workers if you don’t intend (or care) that your product breaks, which saves money especially if you laid off your highly-skilled workers. There’s also no incentive to make a long-lasting product in a capitalist system, especially if your product does the thing it’s supposed to _really well_ and does it for a long time. Look at InstaPot - they sold like hot cakes…for a time. It worked great, did what it was supposed to, and lasted long enough that they couldn’t sustain their own successful business model. A car can last a decade and still run well, it just won’t have the bells and whistles of a newer model. Cookware by and large, and couches, don’t really get this kind of “refresh” outside of surface level details or features people largely shy away from like “Alexa-enabled” ovens. Out-sourcing comes into play because a company can pay even less for low-quality. I’m sure that if they could keep the jobs domestic and cheap, they would, but those pesky (/s) unions and minimum wages really stifled their innovation.