Mike Pence’s Dollar Store Dream Is Killing
The American Middle Class

FTA - "So sure, consumers may have access to cheap goods (that are cheaply made), but at what cost to the health of our nation?" Pencester, think about this question for a minute or two. Or you are way past your sell-by date, pal.

What a stupid, nasty, LITTLE person.

Every time I hear about cheap goods, I go back to thinking about my hometown back in Wisconsin. Today, it has 2000 less people (down from 13000) than when I lived there in the 60s and 70s. The factories which employed many of the workers are all torn down and vacant. When I was a kid, there were four Catholic churches, each with its own grade school. Today, there's only one Catholic Church and no grade school, since the remaining population has aged. I left in 1979 for Texas. The town near where I live has grown from 25,000 then to 100,000 now. Schools are being built up right and left, with nearly 10,000 homes platted in the area I live (between that city and another). I spent many of those years in Texas in the pharmaceutical business. We had manufacturing plants in the USA, primarily in Puerto Rico (aided by tax laws to encourage good jobs in that island, ended by President Clinton). Now, the company I worked for (acquried late in my career by a major US muti-national firm with a significant medical operation) has its production facilities in China (with a modest amount in Ireland). A couple years ago, the China product was cut off due to a "COVID shutdown" in the China plant, putting a significant damper on the product needed for accurate diagbistuc umagung. I put the decline of our industrial base right at the Democrats and Republicans who were willing to sell out our American workers for campaign contributions. Fortunately, President Trump and the MAGA Republicans are working to reverse the trend. It took 50+ years for us to get in this mess. It may take a decade or so to fix it.

American success focused on doing things BETTER, not just cheaper. Quality was equally important. And that's what suffers most from making cost of purchase the top criterion. Our products generally did things better and seemed to last forever. Now, we see a plethora of things giving mediocre performance and seem to break after one or two uses.

pontius pence wants us reduced to penury. and misery, and bugs, jamais de la vie, pinhead

Most intelligent people (and companies) try to buy goods and services based on value. Value is the properly weighted combination of price, service and quality. And sometimes innovation.

Stupid, stupid man.

It is well past time to leave Mike Pence out of every conversation unless we are talking about history! He is a "Former" everything!

Here's a quote that seems to fit into this discussion: 'There is hardly anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man's lawful prey.' John Ruskin I first read this back in the 70s, on the wall at---of all places---a Baskin-Robbins ice cream parlor. We have allowed ourselves to be lawful prey for too long. Buy American, make American.

I'm beginning to wonder if Donald Trump even talked to Mike Pence before selecting him as VP. This man has a very small intellect.

It's so telling when clowns keep acting like clowns.

Cheap trinkets are not cheap. They have cost us $37 trillion over the years. Some people still don't get it.

Why oh why doesn't this turkey just go away...his time in the limelight is over...long over....

Years ago, I was in a meeting with a VP of a large hospital group. In the meeting where were discussing a possible contract, one of the directors said whatever I offered, he could get it cheaper from another (a company that had LOST the national bid). The VP said the worst thing he ever heard in his careet was "I can save you a nickel on that. I soent loads of dollars chasing that nickel. We saved some nickels and lost a lot of dollars.

Pence has proven himself to be just what he was on Jan6...a coward....he's adrift in the Washington DC swamp and hoping for a rescue by President Trump...he's on the television to try and get some support from the MAGA crowd....and accepting a Kennedy award from Caroline doesn't make you credible ....WE have our Kennedy...Bobby is doing a great job with MAHA....he's had his struggles in his life...but has risen to the challenge....not just smiling and accepting an award....

Poster #3, you wouldn't believe how many blank stares you STILL get from some people with statements such as yours - "I put the decline of our industrial base right at the Democrats and Republicans who were willing to sell out our American workers for campaign contributions." Imo, your statement is 100% correct. I've also seen much of the rest of what you wrote about when living in different locations around the country the last 50 years, then going back years later. Pretty abysmal how widespread the damage is from our reps selling us out.

"Cheap goods are a big part of [the American Dream.” says Mike Pence. But cheap goods are actually expensive because they cost American jobs and economic longevity." So the dilemma the American public has is either a short time economic gain or a future gain for manufacturing brought back to our country. President Trump is working for our future not for a momentary shot of sugar (monetary gain). We pray for our country that we choose wisely.

Pence is a moron. When was the last time that self righteous GOP grifter was in a dollar store? Would I rather buy my kids cheap, possibly dangerous junk toys that will be broken by the time we get home or pay a few dollars more knowing my fellow community members have safe, good, supportive jobs right here making a good wage and making our community and country stronger? Gee Merv, that's a tough one but I gotta go with the jobs.

Way back when the offshoring of manufacturing started, it was sold as getting moving polluting industries moved out of our country to be replaced by clean information industries. As a result, we have all kinds of information about how our country is economically going to hell in a hand basket because all the good paying manufacturing jobs were sent overseas.

Where does Mike Pence think he will end up? He's never going to be a go-to anything on the right. He needs to shut up and sit down somewhere. He should bask in the fact that he was VP to one of the greatest US presidents ever. But he can't do that, since he was a traitor to that president. So he should just shut up.