While reading Chernow's biography of George Washington, a thought: after Independence, there was a shift to buying less fashionable American-made clothing. Washington's clothing for his first Inaguration was made in Hartford and, while not as fashionable as English-made clothing, helped shaped buying habits for years.
Isn't it time for Americans to forsake some foreign-made, and often cheaper, goods as a show of patriotism? Consider it a voluntary tax to pay a few extra dollars for something, knowing that it is helping the American economy.
Or is the Buy American movement doomed to fail, given consumer demand for cheaper and cheaper goods? With inflation rising in China, is the era of cheap goods over? Would that help shift consumer habits toward buying more American-made goods?
Something to think about.
