Second Negative

Made in the U.S.A.

Do you remember those old TV commericals that urged consumers to buy American? All you had to do was look for the “Made in the U.S.A” label. It sounds simple enough, but I don’t think I’ve ever looked. I just don’t pay attention. I don’t even look at the grocery store receipt. I’m not rich, just stupid. And in a hurry. To do nothing, somewhere else.

I downloaded a few “Made in the U.S.A.” logos the other day, and thought about adding them to something I was working on. Why not? I was made in the U.S.A, and I worked on that project in the U.S.A. But ultimately, it just felt ridiculous. One of those things you think about doing late at night, when you shouldn’t be thinking about doing things you wouldn’t normally do. Strangely enough, the logo might have been misinterpreted to mean something I wouldn’t have intended. Try to explain that to someone over 70.

Maybe I’m going a little overboard here, but outsourcing feels like treason. Yes, I’ve heard the economic arguments, and that’s fine. Some yahoos don’t think global warming is happening, and that’s fine too. Maybe some of the jobs really are too low level to fill over here. But plenty of them are not. Maybe we want too much. Most companies that outsource aren’t in danger of going under if they don’t. It’s business over people. It’s money over national pride.

We have a lot of state pride in Texas. There are bumper stickers that say “Texan first, American if I have time”. Maybe that’s why people don’t like us. Or maybe it’s because your state sucks. You pick. But the point is, I’ve probably spent more time thinking about why I’m proud of being a Texan, than why I’m proud of being an American. The reasons are probably pretty similar.

I am proud to live here. If called to defend this country, I’d go. Yeah, it’s easy to say that, but I’d do what I had to do. You probably would too. Of course, that doesn’t include wars started by anyone whose name rhymes with shithead. Oh wait. I should say, that doesn’t include pre-emptive strikes based on a bunch of bullshit.

Yes, Bush is “from” here. It’s not my fault. Just like the Dixie Chicks, I’m ashamed that he’s from Texas. It’s a black eye that we didn’t need. Luckily, nobody is going to ban me from the radio for saying so. Feel free to have your own wrong opinion. But Bush isn’t America. America will probably still be here when Bush is gone. I’m not happy about plenty of things the government does, but I’ll stay home before I go to Europe and put on a shirt saying I’m from Canada.