  
 Supporting American-Made Products and Services from American-Owned Companies 
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Until recently, most patriotic Americans' concerns of communist China were
military build-up and the overwhelming flood of imports. By the U.S.
government's own statistics of 20,000 lost jobs for every billion dollars of
trade deficits, China trade would lay off at least the entire city of
Jacksonville, Florida.
But now, America faces a China that is transfoming from merely an exporting
platform to a nation of credible industry that extends beyond the long history
of Nike, Tommy Hilfiger and other product knockoffs. Konka, a popular company in
Mainland China but relatively unknown in the U.S., had their TV sets distibuted
through Wal-Mart stores across the country, gaining an impressive 1% foothold in
an otherwise crowded U.S. market. Konka recently pulled out of the U.S. market
(none of their TV's were made here), failing to make a profit, but formidable
Chinese forces remain.
Haier Group, China's largest appliance maker, is another company well-known in
China but not well-known abroad. Haier is taking a different road than Konka,
opening up a factory in Camden, S.C. to make compact refrigerators. Again,
Wal-Mart has jumped at the chance to distribute the Chinese multinational
corporation's product, and with their help, Haier now has a 30% hold on the
compact-refrigerator market. Haier has realized something that Konka didn't -
it's better to put "Made in U.S.A." on their products rather than import them.
Haier also makes freezers, DVD players, air conditioners, flat-panel TV screens,
and microwave ovens. Konka will likely regroup and return someday. After all,
they produced 6.5 million TV sets last year, compared to 10 million made by
Panasonic's parent Matsushita. Few Americans realize that in their patriotic
desire to support America by buying Haier's made-in-USA compact refrigerators,
they are simultaneously supporting Chinese communists.
Since there is little we as average Americans can do to influence governmental
trade policy, the best bargaining chip we have is voting with our wallet or
checkbook every time we go into a store. It is almost equally important where we
shop as it is what we shop for, and America would do well to stay away from
stores like Wal-Mart, who are only making China's U.S. invasion easier and more
significant than ever.
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