[wagglebee]

The only hope is that the day will come when there is another Tiananmen Square and this time the Chicoms will back down and crumble like the Soviets.

[wagglebee]

iPod Ping.

[Psycho_Bunny]

But they're designed in California!!!!!!

[HiTech RedNeck]

Here's what the Sunday Mail found: [suh-nip]

visitors from the outside world are not permitted;

So... they found this during their visit?

[Eagles6]

China has hard US dollars to support it's slave state, something the ussr never had. It will be a long time, if ever, before the people can overthrow them. Every dollar spent on chinese maufactured goods helps pay for iran and north korea's nuke programs, the chicom military and funds jihadis fighting our Troops

[GoBucks2002]

Normally, my answer to people complaining about their job, going on strike, the appalling labor conditions, etc., is that no one is holding a gun to their head and making them work here.

This taking place in the PRC, I am not so sure about that.

[HiTech RedNeck]

The iPod shuffles are made in Suzhou, Shanghai, where workers earn $100 a month. Sounds better doesn't it? Except these laborers must pay for their own food and accommodations – requiring about half their salary.

So, $50 a month buys room and board in China. Gummint subsidies, no doubt.

[Bob Mc]

Well, I wouldn't jumped to conclusions. It's also very likely, that without this iPod factory, many of these Chinese people would have no jobs at all.

[claudiustg]

It's likely that your shirt and pants and shoes are made by someone living and working in similar or worse circumstances.

[DeweyCA]

Why is it that we see no screaming headlines about the conditions of "iPod City" in the U.S. corporate establishment press?

Because Apple is owned and run by big-time Liberals like Steve Jobs, and now Al Gore. The MSM do not want to make them look bad by making this nes known. If Tom DeLay or any other prominent Pubbie ran this company, the MSM would be screaming about it more than they were about Kathy Lee Gifford's outsourced company's policies.

[mgstarr]

Yes all iPods should be made in America by happy and fat unionized workers. Sadly each unit would cost about $2k and increase every year.

And the point of the article is what? Should we not have iPods or any other modern technology device that has to be made overseas to be priced competitively?
Farah has absolutely no clue. I've been to similar factories in China and the workers (mostly female) are thrilled to have these jobs so they can earn more than they otherwise could in their villages. They save the money and then go back to buy land of their own and get married.

Oh wait, Go Pat Go.......

[dead]

I'm sure these Chinese workers would be much happier if the likes of Joe Farah succeeded and the Ipod factory was closed down.

That way, instead of having housing and food, plus fifty dollars a month, they could live in a storm drain and scour the dumps for food.

[cowboyway]

where we're OK with the worst kind of oppression, as long as we can't see it taking place.

Actually it's:

where we're OK with the worst kind of oppression, as long as we can't see it taking place can turn a tidy profit.

[GrandEagle]

What is happening to the American conscience and psyche that allows this kind of abuse?
Nothing is "happening". It is the same as it has always been. These things will go on until enough people throw it in the face of enough people and it becomes politically correct to address it.
Same thing as with slavery in this country. There were always those who were opposed to the practice, some of those even owned slaves.
Most people in "polite" society just didn't mention it because they liked the cheap goods that slavery provided.

A bit funny when you think about it, we have "environmentalist" here in the Mobile area who would like nothing better than for all the facilities (and the jobs they bring) to leave here. They don't mind if the go to a completely unregulated place like Mexico, they just don't want it here. In reality they are not really environmentalist then are they?
Same with slavery, most don't really mind it - they just don't want it here, and don't want to be reminded that they are supporting it.

Klinton was the Chinese best friend.

Cordially,
GE

[billbears]

Do you know where your iPod was made? Do you know by whom?

No. I don't care. If the product does what the manufacturer claims it does and it fits my needs then it doesn't matter does it?

Here's what the Sunday Mail found:
The laborers are housed in dormitories of 100 people each;
visitors from the outside world are not permitted;
workers toil for 15 hours a day;
employees make $50 a month – not even a quarter of the price of one unit;
the iPod nano is made in a five-story factory secured by police officers.

Toil?!? Joe, Joe, Joe...everytime I think you've gone off the deep end, you take it one more step. What's the average income in the local market Joe? Should they paid 'American' wages? What do you think that would do to the economy overnight Joe? From the manufacturer of the iPods in China

"In Shenzhen, our workers can earn at least 580 yuan ($72.50) a month, which is the minimum salary level fixed by the local government. Starting from this July, the basic salary will be adjusted to 700 yuan ($87.50) in line with the government's new standards," James Lee, senior vice president of Foxconn Technology, told China Daily. "It's hard to understand for many westerners but it's true that many of our workers are willing to work overtime to make more money. We don't force them to work overtime and won't allow them to work overtime for more than 20 hours a week," Lee said. The practices comply with the Electronic Industry Code of Conduct, which sets out basic labor and environmental standards for IT contractors, he explained.

The local labor department authority told China Daily that Foxconn is a leading company in the city and it has not received any complaints about it. "I don't think the government will launch a special investigation into Foxconn," the spokesperson said. However, a female worker at the factory said the working conditions were OK, but not everything was satisfactory. "We are just here to make money. Some factories are even worse," she said.

Foxconn Bristles at iPod 'Sweatshop' Charges

Find another dead horse to beat Joe. Your anti-capitalist, pro-union schtick is boring....

[Glenn]

Tell me:

What sort of job were these people working before they made iPods?

[dhuffman@awod.com]

And these are Americans, my fellows. I'm glad I'm old. I'm glad I live far far away, still in the US but a long ways literal and figurative from these simpletons.

Thanks for the article. When we first moved here I tried the TV (rotating broadcast yagi antenna) but saw only four versions of an Oprah show. Haven't tried it since. Our locals are amazingly talented in art and music so I haven't missed anything beyond our collection of a thousand or so CDs.

Our community is effectively gated by Death's Door passage and had a stiff admissions fee that keeps the rabble - like your respondents here - out. I like my tagline.

[the invisib1e hand]

all the liberal, forward thinking Mac users never give a thought to those, uh, people, who earn about enough to buy a latte or two a day putting their cutesy little latptops together.

[the invisib1e hand]

but whole foods won't be cruel to lobsters.

[TET1968]

"The laborers are housed in dormitories of 100 people each"

My Barracks at Ft. Bragg housed about 50 per floor (2 floors).

"Visitors from the outside world are not permitted"

Same same at my base in Dong Ha.

"Workers toil for 15 hours a day"

We toiled 16 + hours a day......under daily rocket & morter attacks.

"Employees make $50 a month "

While above the DMZ, in Dong Ha, I made more then that.
Not as much as a country club caddy, but still more.

[SamAdams76]

The iPod shuffles are made in Suzhou, Shanghai, where workers earn $100 a month. Sounds better doesn't it? Except these laborers must pay for their own food and accommodations – requiring about half their salary.

Oh, the horror. Half their salary goes for food and housing? No way would this happen in America. Does anybody here pay half their salary for food and housing?

I didn't think so.