I don’t like China’s politics and human rights record. I’m also unimpressed with the quality of the majority of what comes out of China these days. So I try very hard to avoid “Made in China” products out of principle, and out of concern for quality. Alas, it is becoming increasingly difficult not to buy products that are made in China, especially here in Panamá where price is king, and the Chinese seem to own every single hardware store.
It was with this in mind that I set out to shop online for a good quality tankless water heater, willing to pay for the extra shipping. So I settled on a commercial-grade “pro” Bosch water heater. I ordered it and had it shipped to Panamá via my Miami-based cargo aggregator. Once here it ended up costing four times as much as the locally sold chinese units. I was happy with my purchase, until I noticed the dreaded little line on the box: “Made in China”. And here I thought I was buying German quality… Turns out this unit seems to be very well made and it was obviously engineered in Germany and built to Bosch’s specifications. Still, I feel like I’ve been taken.
Next I decided to order some high-quality and energy efficient ceiling fans (a necessary item in every room here in Panamá). So I bought online and shipped to Panamá some of the best fans money can buy. I bought some Emerson fans whose tag line is: “The Original American Fan Company”. You guest it, the box says: “Made in China”. I also bought some Casablanca fans, this company’s tag line is: “The World’s Best Ceiling Fans”. Well, yeah, they are also “Made in China”.
This is getting very frustrating: everything is now “Made in China”. There is no way to entirely avoid Chinese products anymore. Reminds me of the little scandal in Ottawa a few years ago, when tourists discovered that their little Canadian Moose and Mounted Police effigies were manufactured in China.
If you ever had any doubts about China taking over the world, don’t! The American empire is in steep decline and China is just gathering steam.
