‘Made in America’ brought prosperity

“The job market is defying history,” your article in the Business section says. It further states that unemployment has risen for three straight months. Economists are in a quandary about why this is happening long after the recession has ended.

One doesn’t have to be an economist to know that without an improvement in employment there really is no recovery. It doesn’t take an economist to know that we can’t buy everything we need from China and other countries and expect the employment picture to improve much. If employment doesn’t improve, the so-called recovery will eventually implode. After all, it’s the working middle class that buys the goods found in the big box stores. Where are they supposed to get the money to buy these goods if they’re not working? Take all the items made in foreign countries out of Walmart and you will see a nearly empty store. Even an American flag is made in China. What a shame.

Once upon a time in America farmers produced all the food Americans consumed. American towns and cities were the home of factories that produced most everything the people needed. Factory workers bought the cars, clothing and other goods made in the factories. They depended on the food produced on the American farms. The farmers bought the clothing and equipment from the producers. This trade created the need for all sorts of middlemen necessary for an efficient transfer of all these goods. Most everyone prospered.

Today it is not like that. It is nearly impossible to find clothing made in America. Radios, televisions, toasters, hair dryers are all made overseas. If you’ve had occasion to call the customer service of a large American company you have no doubt talked to someone in India. So why are economist so baffled?

Ron Flowers

Elk Grove Village