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Thursday, May 19, 2011

Chro: Dec 1 2007

Hey Doc.

Yes?

I read that a company in Japan makes high-end diagnostic equipment to check blood samples for the presence of leukemia cells.

Ok..so?

Now these are big machines, you know. High-tech that only them Japanese can do. But this company outsources the manufacture of nameplates for these machines to China. It's cheaper there apparently.

Really! That's news.

Now don't pull my leg on this one doc. Everyone knows China is cheaper, even me who's been in this facility for the last 6 years.

Alright. What's your point?

Doc, it bothers me. These metallic nameplates just list the company's name and specifications and says "Made in Japan".

And again...your point is?

Is it ethical to emboss "Made in Japan" on a nameplate that's actually made in China?

Yes of course! Wait. Good. very good. Do you know what got you here into this facility in the first place? You think you think too much.

That's not the point. Is it ethical or not?

I'll get back to you on that. Remind me to cancel your newspaper subscription, IF you get them from tomorrow.

2 comments:

  1. There is a place called Usa in Japan, where I'm told, several companies set up office post-war just so they could truthfully put "Made in USA" on the labels of things produced there.

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  2. Hi, before someone picks up cudgels on Japan's behalf, I wanted to clarify that the "Made in Usa" story is just that--pure fiction. Another version of the story says that the town was renamed Usa to avoid the stigma attached to Made in Japan products in the States (they were regarded as shoddy and cheap--and have we done a u-turn since those times!). Maybe China can take heart from that. Cheers!

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