ASSEMBLED IN CHINA

Tim Cook of Apple stated that we lost our manufacturing ability long time ago:

“The U.S., over time, began to stop having as many vocational kind of skills,” Cook explained. “I mean, you can take every tool and die maker in the United States and probably put them in a room that we’re currently sitting in. In China, you would have to have multiple football fields.”

In addition many processes like, for instance, Surface Mount electronics are very repeatable and can be done in any country.  My speakers' components were manufactured in Taiwan but assembled and QCd in US.  Black piano finish would be too expensive to make it here and stay competitive.  Picture becomes blurry when you consider foreign companies manufacturing in US.  My old Toyota Avalon has 85% of parts made in US thus is more "American" than any other car.  Is Toyota a foreign company? Is Philips Dutch?  Companies (shares) belong to international investors (including US).  Is place of incorporation important?  One of the largest US companies Tyco was incorporated in Bermuda.  Isn't buying poorly or expensively made product only because it is "Made in USA" counterproductive?

1. chrshanl37

I'm glad you mentioned McDonalds. The wage they pay puts people below poverty level and I pay their supplemental income (gov. support) instead of McDonalds.
You are right about some audio stores going bankrupt initially, but later buying power of better paid workers will increase and stores will open door again.  The notion, from this thread, that Chinese stuff cannot be of the highest quality is simply wrong.  I read recently explanation by Leupold&Stevens (high quality optics) on the subject of manufacturing in China.  They stated that 99% of lenses come from China or Europe for the last 50 years.  Quality of their products is  superb.  I have binoculars.