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[-] B1ackmsth@lemmy.ca 174 points 6 days ago

The exact same thing they said about japanese-made cars in the 70s and in both cases they were right because american cars are trash.

[-] LifeInMultipleChoice@lemmy.dbzer0.com 118 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

I mean the CEO of Ford said it was humbling when he traveled to China to see what they were doing. Then he imported a Xiaomi SU7 to Michigan apparently so they could "study" it. The U.S. called that reverse engineering anytime China did such when I was growing up.

[-] Bytemeister@lemmy.world 27 points 6 days ago

IIRC, some executive at Ford imported a Chinese EV and prefers it over their own cars, says he won't give it up.

That's how captive the US is as an auto market. You think that guy is going to stop lobbying to prevent the cars he sees as cheaper and better from competing against his product?

[-] dreamingawake09@piefed.social 15 points 6 days ago

It's the same CEO, Jim Farley. He knows American manufacturing is smoked cause they can't keep relying on F150s forever.

[-] Bytemeister@lemmy.world 11 points 5 days ago

Especially when the current F150 isn't desirable. Every truck guy I know of wants old trucks with less tech and longer beds.

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[-] Bluescluestoothpaste@sh.itjust.works 4 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

I guess i dont understand the loyalty, if i was that guy id go to the chinese and be their main importer. Fuck ford their cars are plainly inferior, but jim farley is a free man and he can just call the chinese up and tell them he'll be the ceo of xiaomi USA and bring in their superior cars. That's how competition is supposed to work!

[-] Bytemeister@lemmy.world 3 points 5 days ago

That's what i mean, leave ford and drive them under with the chinese cars, make more money that way but it's not all about money, it's about them having more power over us.

[-] Saledovil@sh.itjust.works 28 points 6 days ago

How the tables have turned.

[-] VitoRobles@lemmy.today 10 points 5 days ago

If you look at history from the 60s to 2000s, America has a history of blaming another country for "stealing", then creating laws to slow them down only to adopt it because Americans can't build it as well.

America then reclaimed some market value with technology in the 2000s. But we're also at the mercy of the hardware.

I think America is banking on AI heavily, and other countries will do it cheaper (thanks to hardware, so called "stealing", and having better power supplies). America is reaching its peak and going into free fall.

[-] manxu@piefed.social 7 points 6 days ago

Agreed. Also, I want an SU7 so bad!

[-] M137@lemmy.today 5 points 5 days ago

because america is trash.

FTFY.

The irony is: the original theory of capitalism (in contrast with the clusterfuck that we have now) was based on the idea that competition breeds innovation - because those who didn't innovate would go out of business due to being surpassed by the others.

[-] Solrac@lemmy.world 27 points 5 days ago

And China is kinda steamrolling US in a lot of markets right now.

[-] gdog05@lemmy.world 11 points 5 days ago

Mostly in the areas of custom fabs, general manufacturing and not being run by fucking idiots.

[-] blargh513@sh.itjust.works 8 points 5 days ago

I don't work in manufacturing, in work for a giant popular retail company.

I swear to Christ, I have zero clue how it has survived under the gross incompetence of our leadership. I have never witnessed such stupidity in all my life.

These guys are beyond the pale. Getting mad and emotional and making stupid decisions on vibes. When their nonsense fails, they just blame it on anything but themselves and do the next dumb thing. If we didn't have stores everywhere, we would be dead. We only survive because you can't swing a dead cat without hitting one.

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[-] lemmylump@lemmy.world 46 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

Well too fucking bad UAW and NADA both supported trump and now here come the leopards to eat their faces.

Trump pisses off our closest ally Canada and now they have given a toe hold in NA to China, and continue to boycott America products and tourism. The tourism alone has taken away 1.3 billion so far this year.

Chinese cars are coming and there's nothing these fucks can do about.

Fuck them.

[-] Not_mikey@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 5 days ago

UAW and NADA both supported trump

Where are you getting that from?, UAW endorsed Harris and Biden also put a huge tariff on Chinese EVs and harris seems like she would've continued that.

[-] lemmylump@lemmy.world 4 points 5 days ago

UAW was very spilt on endorsement, but extremely together supporting trumps tariffs.

NADA is full on maga.

[-] uriel238 23 points 5 days ago

Capitalists don't like honest competition, since it requires them to research positive innovations.

But Marx tells us (in Das Kapital ) that the capitalist will always be seek to bypass regulations and ultimately capture the regulating government.

And yes, the scientific advancements of the moon shots returned $14 for every $1 spent. Using that as a reference, lobbying federal and state governments return $120 for every $1 spent.

TIL private equity consolidated all the firetruck manufacturers into a single entity, and then slowed the rate of production, more than doubling the price and the wait time. Firehouses can no longer afford trucks.

[-] DreamlandLividity@lemmy.world 6 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

Honestly, calling people like this Capitalists is like likening all communists to Stalin. The idea of capitalism is based on competition. If you are eroding competition, you are eroding capitalism.

But Marx tells us (in Das Kapital ) that the capitalist will always be seek to bypass regulations and ultimately capture the regulating government.

I am assuming he neglected to mention that the same type of people will seek to capture the government in any system. Socialist, communist, capitalist, feudal, doesn't matter.

The means they use to capture the government are different. To intention is the same.

[-] Fluke@feddit.uk 10 points 5 days ago

This appears the fundamental flaw in every single governance system we've tried thus far. The sociopaths will always take over, consolidate power, and abuse and exploit everyone else for their own benefit.

Capitalism or Communism, both as vulnerable, both have failed for the same reasons as far as I can make out.

[-] DreamlandLividity@lemmy.world 1 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Well, while USA failed, there are many countries where the combination of democracy and capitalism succeeded to various degrees. Not ever perfect, but way better than anything else tried.

[-] affenlehrer@feddit.org 4 points 5 days ago

We need dark triad personality screening and trat it like a disability that disqualifies them from participating in politics or leadership roles. It's bad for them, they can do other things. Completely blind people also shouldn't be bus drivers.

[-] DreamlandLividity@lemmy.world 1 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Just capture the testing procedure and you capture the government. That is the fundamental flaw of "allow only X to run for office".

[-] CandyPants@lemmy.ml 28 points 5 days ago

Its because they don't actually want free markets. They want captive markets in a corrupt system that they can influence. The last thing want is to be forced to make a decent product at an affordable price

[-] lobut@lemmy.ca 19 points 5 days ago

When they want to move manufacturing or people lose their jobs ... these guys are all "this is just business".

[-] Gerudo@lemmy.zip 20 points 5 days ago

It wouldn't be devastating if you read the room and made AFFORDABLE ANYTHING. Why do you think your own company couldn't keep the $20k Maverick in stock for years? Why do you think your $100k Lightning didn't sell well?

Make affordable, decent vehicles, and you won't have to worry about overseas competition.

[-] plyth@feddit.org 17 points 6 days ago

This is backwards. Capitalism is the disruption of free markets to create extraordinary profits for some and higher costs for most. Ford is doing Capitalism. What Capitalists don't want are free markets.

[-] Triumph@fedia.io 13 points 6 days ago

People definitely do not understand that free markets and capitalism are different things.

[-] db2@lemmy.world 12 points 6 days ago

It's intentional, like the conflation of capitalism and democracy. It doesn't make sense if any thought is put to it but that doesn't happen enough.

Capitalism is to broad of a term to say it's different.

Subforms of it may differ (i.e. to my knowledge there is no free market capitalism, although at this point likely better than what especially USA does have...). I'd say free market capitalism is the purest form of it though.

The reality is unfortunately worse (e.g. fossilized energy is still substituted, lobby is much too strong etc. regulations at this point do more damage than good).

And I say all of this as a communist...

[-] Saledovil@sh.itjust.works 4 points 6 days ago

Capitalism refers to economic systems were economic decisions are made by private, rather than public, actors.

The free market is a didactic model of a market with no barriers and no information imbalance.

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[-] switcheroo@lemmy.world 10 points 6 days ago

Devastating... like having Dump's policies close your manufacturing locations down and have to layoff all the workers? That kind of devastation?

[-] HCSOThrowaway@lemmy.world 10 points 6 days ago

Once again proving that corporations have no beliefs apart from "Make more money."

[-] thebasementcakes@leminal.space 11 points 6 days ago

Capitalism is when the government buys a stake in Intel, or tries to invest in AI companies or tariffs the world, or ...

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[-] ThatGuy46475@lemmy.world 11 points 6 days ago

If a manufacturer without labor laws competes with a manufacturer with labor laws it’s just not a fair fight

[-] rockSlayer 27 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

Are you referring to the US as the country without labor rights?

  • China does not allow at-will employment
  • Non-compete agreements in China are extremely limited and rarely applied to anyone below senior management
  • Wages and overtime are (theoretically) more strict than the US
  • China has paid vacation time that increases through years of employment regardless of company, more public holidays, marriage leave, parental leave, bereavement leave, and more
  • Discrimination and harassment must be proactively prevented in Chinese workplaces (though US workers are more aggressive in pursuing legal rights)
  • Chinese workers earn a pension, along with several types of social insurances
  • Workplace health and safety enforcement is increasing in China, as opposed to weakening enforcement in the US
  • Severance pay is required on most instances of termination in China (exceptions for performance and conduct exist)

Source

[-] VitoRobles@lemmy.today 11 points 5 days ago

America is nuts.

America has modern day slavery and we have states that are squishing the child labor laws.

Not to mention many folks who retire in America will be destitute because there is no social safety net.

[-] Doomsider@lemmy.world 5 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

Disgusting to hear about elders living in cars. It really sucks and to be honest me and my whole family are only a few paychecks away from losing everything. All the while expenses are increasing much fast than our income. We are starting to consider desperate ideas like making our own bread instead of buying it just to save money. Things are getting progressively more bonkers.

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[-] VeryInterestingTable@jlai.lu 8 points 6 days ago

I love competition! Except when I lose then competition is bad I need to change the rules so I'm the only one who wins. Yes I am way more deserving than other humans because I am me. And me is better.

Checkmate!

Wait, new rule you have to checkmate twice in a row to win.

Checkmate again!

New rule it only counts if we just ate salmon before playing.

Very good dish, checkmate!

New rule, you have to be me to checkmate.

[-] _druid@sh.itjust.works 8 points 6 days ago

Invisible hand at work

[-] nullspace@lemmy.world 8 points 6 days ago

Nooooo, you have to let us ship all aspects of car manufacturing overseas while we pocket the profits and use that money to attack green energy!

[-] Not_mikey@lemmy.dbzer0.com 5 points 5 days ago

There's plenty of competition in the US auto market, both from US, Japanese and European brands.

The difference is these cars are either made in the US or in countries with similar enough wages. Even cars made in mexico are required to have a $16 minimum wage as part of USMCA.

China is on a different level and allowing them to sell cars here without restrictions would cause a race to the bottom for wages in the auto sector, pushing back a lot of wins the UAW has gotten recently.

If they want to sell cars here they should get the same deal as mexico, require a minimum wage and labor standards.

[-] Evotech@lemmy.world 10 points 5 days ago

Why would cars be different from phones and other electronics?

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[-] theacharnian@lemmy.ca 7 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

Other than us crazies on the left, I don't remember anyone giving a fuck when industries were being obliterated in the global south because of WTO rules. All I remember is stories about competitive advantage, English cloth and Portuguese wine.

[-] Magnus@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 5 days ago

Chinese cars can't be sold in the US?

[-] prole 6 points 5 days ago

Buddy, I'd have bought a BYD like 3+ years ago if I could.

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this post was submitted on 30 Jul 2026
1033 points (100.0% liked)

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