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In the January/February edition of Worth magazine, I came across a short piece by David A. Schwerin that I felt spoke directly to one of the many issues we here at Locallectual feel strongly about. The piece was titled “Expensive Discounts” and it addressed the issue of inexpensive goods made in China and the high environmental and social costs that come along with these cheap goods. These environmental and social costs are what are often known as the “hidden costs” because they are not reflected on the price tag of an item, but they are there nonetheless. Mr. Schwerin is the president of the Institute for Ethical Awareness and a visiting professor at Tianjin, China, University of Commerce, therefore he is uniquely positioned to understand the position that both Chinese companies and Western companies often hold in this global economy. He calls on both consumers and investors to improve the situation. Locallectual exists to empower the consumer, so let’s focus on what Mr. Schwerin believes is the consumer’s “painful” obligation; to boycott companies that follow irresponsible business practices, and to patronize those businesses that act responsibly. He rightly points out that doing so will often cost more in the short run, but that by not doing so, the result will likely be dangerous products along with filthy air and water. These are definitely steeper costs. (I don’t think that I am alone in my feelings that it is not necessarily “painful” to thoughtfully purchase a handful of high-quality, well-made, albeit somewhat more costly items, rather than buying a boatload of crappy ones.... anyone feel the same way?) Anyway, my favorite part of this entire article was the following: “Individuals of wealth have a special obligation to pay more for products made by manufacturers who protect the environment and ensure that their products are of the highest quality and safety. If those who can afford to pay more shirk their responsibility, they have no one else to blame.” Love it! Mr. Schwerin anticipates that the consumer costs are certain to rise as China’s product quality is improved, its workforce better paid, and its environmental safeguards enforced. Who can argue that this would not be money well spent? Now, he did not get into the carbon footprint issue associated with procuring the vast majority of goods from overseas, but I’ll save that rant for another day... At this point, a thought you and I might be sharing is “This is not a problem exclusive to China; I have heard of irresponsible manufactures right here in this country!” Unfortunately, that is true on occasion. (Just as it is also true that some Chinese manufacturers may be socially and environmentally responsible.) Anyway, this leads me to point out another way in which Locallectual is able empower its users: The ratings and reviews sections give users a chance to share their knowledge and experience with a product and/or company with others. If you have experienced shoddy workmanship, poor customer service, or know of sketchy manufacturing practices in place at a particular company, the ratings and reviews section is the place to (tactfully) share your experience. Our hope is that we see the majority of reviews in place as positive, maybe even glowing, but it is inevitable that there will be a few negative experiences here and there. And of course, the really, really bad ones always come out in the wash, don’t they??? Mr. Schwerin’s most recent book is entitled Conscious Globalism: What’s Wrong with the World and How to Fix it. I’m thinking that someone wants to read this book (or already has) and would like to write a little review for the library section. Anyone? Anyone? Karen
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