OV9

Don’t know if this can be solved unless every country works together or goes to another country with cheap labour - most likely they’ll just stay where they are.
What is clear is that you can’t outsource key items to be created abroad or even depend on foreign companies making products on home soil as when something like this happens they all divert resources to their own country.

ZedLeg wrote: ↑Tue Apr 07, 2020 9:28 am It’s 60 years of corporate greed that’s got us here not the EU.

Where? To the highest average standard of living in history?

duncs500 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 07, 2020 9:45 am

ZedLeg wrote: ↑Tue Apr 07, 2020 9:28 am It’s 60 years of corporate greed that’s got us here not the EU.

Where? To the highest average standard of living in history?

To the point where we are totally reliant on importing products from a cheap labour force on the other side of the world because the companies we buy from closed all their old factories.

ZedLeg wrote: ↑Tue Apr 07, 2020 9:28 am How would brexit make us less reliant on Chinese imports?

It’s 60 years of corporate greed that’s got us here not the EU.

Fuck me, I actually agree with something you've written! That and consumer expectations of everything being dirt cheap.

We need to act as a group of nations though (UN, NATO, whatever) and all start to probably impose tariffs on anything manufactured in China to the point it is only marginally less expensive than a locally produced item. Then the superior quality of locally produced will make it a real false economy to buy Chinese stuff and take a punt (which was worth it).

I admit I'm guilty of this. I have bought Chinese clone disco lights because they are cheap and it's worth it, 2 are a bit dicky (they don't align at zero position properly) but I manually adjust them both each time. If they were more expensive, I'd buy Prolight, ADJ or Chauvet lights as I'd know they'd work, have a warranty and be reliable, but with the cost of the Chinese clones being 50% of the brands it's worth a punt.

I don't blame the Chinese people and bare them no malice, they have been oppressed by a tyrannical regime. When it didn't impact us directly it was easy to brush it under a large carpet, now the world has been impacted by their actions it's time it changed as there is no carpet big enough to sweep this under.

I've noticed a few small businesses claim they're going to be more careful with where they source their items from, whether it there will be any overall shift in the long term remains to be seen.

In reality - were China not a global superpower, with atrocities such as the mass incarceration of Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang, totalitarian opression of the freedom and human rights of its citizens, supression of free media, mass IP theft, etc. they would be almost certainly be the subject of international sanctions. If politically that's not possible, efforts must be exerted to get them to change in whatever other means is available to us.

Unfortunately - people are going to have to get over the fact that the Donald is the chief proponent of this approach...

ZedLeg wrote: ↑Tue Apr 07, 2020 9:09 am Making space in prisons so they don’t turn into big virus incubators seems like a good idea to me, no?

I'm not being serious, it's wishful thinking

NotoriousREV wrote: ↑Tue Apr 07, 2020 10:07 am

We need people like him on the TV during times like this

I've not fully made my mind up on China, is it right we make a whole country suffer because someone ate an undercooked bat? That could have happened anywhere in the world. Counter argument to that is the atrocious quality of the meat market where it all started, the over reliance on China for a large part of the global economy.

Trumps trade war already started businesses moving out of China and into other countries, if the world perception changes to seeing China as a negative and we spread eggs across more baskets then ultimately that can't be a bad thing, right? Or will China recede back into their ways and make the place worse off for it? It's certainly a complex subject.

For me an even bigger problem with China is transparency. How long did they actually have this before they were forced to reveal details because of the now departed whistleblower? I’d imagine their infection numbers and death numbers need to be taken with a very large pinch of salt as well. Same with all communist countries, like Russia and North Korea

Sorry but China haven’t helped themselves. They once again covered it up for over a month, imprisoned or bullied citizens of their country which first shared the story. Made up the true numbers which made the rest of the world underestimate it. Supplied fake test kits. In local media blamed Italy for the spread to China. Turned it political to try and show their might by building a hospital in a week which was never fully utilised. Send “aid” to the rest of the world with questionable equipment. Critiqued countries for banning flights from China and quarantining. The dirty wet markets continue to thrive with supposedly the same shite on sale.

They don’t learn and should have sanctions imposed.

And that’s before we go down their human rights record and their best effort to fuck up the environment. Fuck em.

Just heard from a colleague in Denmark that the schools will be open again after Easter. They are trying for herd immunity in the kids and because the older generation do not live with the younger family like they tended to do in countries like Italy it's seen as low risk to the older generation.

Will watch with interest as most UK families are similar, shan't go into the demographics here though.

Hmm. I'd imagine that generally the Danes are likely to be healthier though.

Mito Man wrote: ↑Tue Apr 07, 2020 10:43 am Sorry but China haven’t helped themselves. They once again covered it up for over a month, imprisoned or bullied citizens of their country which first shared the story. Made up the true numbers which made the rest of the world underestimate it. Supplied fake test kits. In local media blamed Italy for the spread to China. Turned it political to try and show their might by building a hospital in a week which was never fully utilised. Send “aid” to the rest of the world with questionable equipment. Critiqued countries for banning flights from China and quarantining. The dirty wet markets continue to thrive with supposedly the same shite on sale.

They don’t learn and should have sanctions imposed.

That won't increase shareholder value, and as such, it won't happen.

Had to pop to the post office to send something for work... on the newspaper stand they’ve had to put a notice up to ask people to “only touch the newspapers if you’re going to buy one. People need to stop licking their fingers to turn newspaper pages before putting them back on the shelf”.

This is what we’re up against....

Mito Man wrote: ↑Tue Apr 07, 2020 10:44 am And their best effort to fuck up the environment. Fuck em.

making shit for us over there that we use so we can pretend we’re not fucking up our environment over here.

Some truly stupid people around.

At least the sun's out to lift the spirits. Stocks are sharply up, can't think why unless someone knows something more than the media fear. I'll sit and watch as can't see us being let out and back to work soon.

Rich B wrote: ↑Tue Apr 07, 2020 12:18 pm

Mito Man wrote: ↑Tue Apr 07, 2020 10:44 am And their best effort to fuck up the environment. Fuck em.

making shit for us over there that we use so we can pretend we’re not fucking up our environment over here.

Part of making things cheaply is to not give a fuck about the environment so forcing the Chinese to sort this out may drive up prices but as they improve things any sanctions/tariffs can be reduced in line with the improvements.

We will as a population just have to get used to paying a bit more for things.