Chinese recalls: Honey and Tires now

Deep down inside one has to wonder if China is doing these things on purpose. It's just one thing after another that seems only incidental but these incidents are mounting up. In my line of work I had an incident where I was scrutinized by a Chinese firm over a quality issue, I knew it was bogus and just had to laugh it off.

 

maybe we should put the honey on the tires...it would help them stick together better...

 

I like saving a buck or two whenever I can, but you get what you pay for.

Whenever I buy tires, I look at safety and performance (hey, I drive a sports car), then compare prices at different places.

As to honey, why would you buy imports when you can buy Florida orange blossom honey, or clover honey, or Alaska wildflower honey?

But, when I want a VCR or DVD player, it's probably going to be Chinese or Korean. Better prices, not that important, and I can buy half a dozen for what it would cost to manufacture one in the USA, if they were still made here.

Many of our purchases have gone overseas because of competition.

In the case of cars, the Japanese build superior cars. But, their economy is similar to ours, so there's no real cost savings.

In the case of electronics, the Chinese simply build them much cheaper.

However, cheap does not surpass the need for safety. So, be careful about saving a buck or two on food, tires, cars, etc.

 

A couple of months ago I was looking at tools. The tools from the All American Steel Tool Company were made in China. The "Made in China" on the back of the package was so small that I could barely read it. The pliers were so flimsy that I bent them out of shape with one hand. If at all possible, avoid all such cheap tools - you may end up hurting yourself if they break.

Of course, all this recall for inferior products make in China can be summed up in the words of the old addage - let the buyer beware