You Can't Make This Stuff Up

[lektrode]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

its all becoming quite clear indeed - oh, say can you see:

Team USA To Be Decked Out in Uniforms Made in China

U.S. manufactures could have easily made the uniforms — and for less.
Here’s how much the uniforms cost:
Men:
Beret – $55
Tie – $125
Belt – $85
Shirt – $425
Blazer – $795
Trousers – $295
Shoes – $165
Women:
Beret – $55
Scarf – $58
Belt – $85
Shirt – $179
Skirt – $498
Blazer – $598
“Why shouldn’t we have pride not only in the American athletes, but in the American manufacturers and laborers who are the backbone of our country?” Lepore said to ABC News. “Why? What’s wrong? Why was that not a consideration?”

probably because of the same 'consideration' that gave us solyndra....

and yet MORE NEWS WE WONT SEE ON THE 6PM DRUG SHOWS (aka the big3 evening news/drug advert 1/2 hour)

As Paul Harvey would say "The Rest of the Story"

The company who designed the uniforms, Ralph Lauren, has received less scrutiny. Few outlets have noted that Ralph Lauren himself is a prominent contributor to President Obama and the Democratic Party.

Reid was quick with his call to burn the uniforms, but will he call on his own party to torch the large donations from this particular outsourcer?


http://michellemalkin.com/2012/07/13/harry-reid-lauren/

this will likely lead to more calls from some about muzzling the blogosphere
(now that its working against them...)

[lektrode]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

That's the point I was trying to make. Thank you.

To add: It's this kind of profligate spending that leads to bankruptcy. Haven't the people making these purchases learned anything? I bet they could have taken bids from American manufacturers that would have been a fraction of these prices.

Is this kind of stupidity reflective of governments and corporations around the world? Apparently so.

hmmm... good point....lets see:
greece hosts the summer games a few years back, spending billions setting up for a temp use = bankrupt
vancouver hosts winter games, the lead developer (intrawest, after selling itself) files shortly before or after (dont have all the specifics at hand, but you get my point), with vanc's housing bubble apparently in the processs of popping
london is up next and they are printing like mad, but i guess "this time will be different" ?

[kriden]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

What's laughable is the cost for those items. Why go to China if you are going to pay those prices. Or do they mean they fly in a tailor from Shanghai to personally measure and make each outfit?

Funny how everybody has to use opportunities like the Olympics to shave a little fat off for themselves. I wonder how many palms got greased to arrive at those prices? The poor sap who actually make the garment probably got a few bucks too.

As Paul Harvey would say "The Rest of the Story"

The company who designed the uniforms, Ralph Lauren, has received less scrutiny. Few outlets have noted that Ralph Lauren himself is a prominent contributor to President Obama and the Democratic Party.

Reid was quick with his call to burn the uniforms, but will he call on his own party to torch the large donations from this particular outsourcer?


http://michellemalkin.com/2012/07/13/harry-reid-lauren/

[jk]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

re the prices on the clothes: don't forget these were designed by ralph lauren. do you think the price of a ralph lauren shirt, skirt, whatever, is dependent on the cost of manufacture? you pay for the label/designer.

[shiny!]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

Yes.
We have a couple small independent restaurants run entirely by immigrants from South America that are OK.
Otherwise it's bad Tex-mex.

I hope you mean that Tex-Mex is being done badly, not that Tex-Mex is bad, because good Tex-Mex is food of the Gods.

(Displaced San Antonian here. The food's the only thing I miss from there.)

[thriftyandboringinohio]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

Is central Ohio as bereft of real Mexican food as Florida?

Yes.
We have a couple small independent restaurants run entirely by immigrants from South America that are OK.
Otherwise it's bad Tex-mex.

[shiny!]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

What's laughable is the cost for those items. Why go to China if you are going to pay those prices. Or do they mean they fly in a tailor from Shanghai to personally measure and make each outfit?

Funny how everybody has to use opportunities like the Olympics to shave a little fat off for themselves. I wonder how many palms got greased to arrive at those prices? The poor sap who actually make the garment probably got a few bucks too.

That's the point I was trying to make. Thank you.

To add: It's this kind of profligate spending that leads to bankruptcy. Haven't the people making these purchases learned anything? I bet they could have taken bids from American manufacturers that would have been a fraction of these prices.

Is this kind of stupidity reflective of governments and corporations around the world? Apparently so.

[flintlock]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

What's laughable is the cost for those items. Why go to China if you are going to pay those prices. Or do they mean they fly in a tailor from Shanghai to personally measure and make each outfit?

Funny how everybody has to use opportunities like the Olympics to shave a little fat off for themselves. I wonder how many palms got greased to arrive at those prices? The poor sap who actually make the garment probably got a few bucks too.

[jk]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

i thought it was a benneton ad.

[don]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

Keep in mind the target demographic.
For someone making $250,000 / yr, that's an hours pay for the tie, the whole outfit from a day's pay.

People who don't work for wages and make millions a year wouldn't give a moment's thought to a few hundred bucks.

I just paid 15 bucks for a Chipotle burrito and a beer, manufacturing cost of maybe a dollar all together.
That $15 might be a whole day's wage for the person who made my cell phone; they'd call me nuts to spend that much money on a small bowl of rice with traces of meat, even with the weak beer.

Is central Ohio as bereft of real Mexican food as Florida?

[jpatter666]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

Keep in mind the target demographic.
For someone making $250,000 / yr, that's an hours pay for the tie, the whole outfit from a day's pay.

People who don't work for wages and make millions a year wouldn't give a moment's thought to a few hundred bucks.

I just paid 15 bucks for a Chipotle burrito and a beer, manufacturing cost of maybe a dollar all together.
That $15 might be a whole day's wage for the person who made my cell phone; they'd call me nuts to spend that much money on a small bowl of rice with traces of meat, even with the weak beer.

Let's not even get into $600 for an iPhone....

[cobben]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

Let's see if we understand this correctly. A group of Saudi university students knock together a prototype one-off, and the next thing you know the Kingdom is on the verge of becoming an auto manufacturing center. Sure...

Rise of the 'maker movement'

What does 'do-it-yourself' culture mean for the future of development?


A traditional leader of American technology innovation, the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), has sought to capitalise on the maker movement as well by providing leaders of the maker movement with grants. Below is a model of the "open source military vehicle," created by DARPA via a social media platform to crowdsource a design for the next generation Humvee. The winning entry was created in just 14 weeks.

[thriftyandboringinohio]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

I can not believe those prices! $125 for a tie? $498 for a skirt? $58 for a scarf? That's a simple square of fabric, for heaven's sake!

Keep in mind the target demographic.
For someone making $250,000 / yr, that's an hours pay for the tie, the whole outfit from a day's pay.

People who don't work for wages and make millions a year wouldn't give a moment's thought to a few hundred bucks.

I just paid 15 bucks for a Chipotle burrito and a beer, manufacturing cost of maybe a dollar all together.
That $15 might be a whole day's wage for the person who made my cell phone; they'd call me nuts to spend that much money on a small bowl of rice with traces of meat, even with the weak beer.

[GRG55]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

I can not believe those prices! $125 for a tie? $498 for a skirt? $58 for a scarf? That's a simple square of fabric, for heaven's sake!

Yes, and a Hermès handbag is just a bit of stitched up leather. ;-)

[GRG55]

Re: You Can't Make This Stuff Up

Are those real people - they look like mannequins . . .

I was going to suggest they're Lauren models for the photo-shoot that was done in China...but it must have been indoors with that fake blue sky...