Australian Made vs Off-Shore.

**JDNSW** · 25th June 2020, 06:04 AM

Originally Posted by donh54

To have a lifestyle like the days of "the Lucky Country", would be quite simple, if people just looked at how their parents/ grandparents lived.
Dad worked. Mum looked after the kids. They lived in (Most likely) a two or three bedroom home, had a 10 year old car, and didn't buy stuff they couldn't pay cash for.
The kids shared bedrooms, had one bathroom to use in turn, and, if they wanted a bike or a pony, the got a paper run or other part-time jobs to pay for it.

Simples!

Correct! When I started school, we lived in what these days would be called a "jerry-built" house, with a roof that leaked every time it rained. There was no heating of any kind except the kitchen stove, and with Dad working, there was not a good wood supply for that - nobody bought wood. No hot water system, weekly bath using a chip heater (job for small boys - one bucket of chips and small sticks) was an improvement on a basin of water warmed with a jug of water from the electric jug.

There were only three houses in the street that had cars - ours was 23 years old (two seat truck, kids in the back!), and none of them were less than fifteen years old. You commuted by public transport, walked or bike - even if you had a car, fuel rationing meant you could not use it for commuting. Dad, I think, put the car back on the road when rationing relaxed slightly, mainly so he could use its fuel ration to commute on his motorbike - very helpful when he was on nightshift and the public transport had issues.

As Don says - if it could not be paid for in cash, we did not get it - the only loan my parents ever got in their life was the mortgage on the house. Shortly before I started school we got a small radio set, built by a relative after he had been discharged from the army due to illness. The origin of the parts is shrouded in mystery!

But when us twins started school (youngest) we as a family were able to move up in the world - Mum went back to teaching (she had lost her job as soon as she married). Now that rarity, a two income family. This led rapidly to a washing machine, and a refrigerator, and even an electric stove and a slow combustion heater for the lounge room. And when I was in about fourth grade, a "new" car, only about eighteen years old. This actually had five seats for a family of five! We even go bikes a little later (second hand of course). Even started on house renovations, but this revealed the real state of the house, and led to the building of a new house by the time I was about fifteen. Built by the family, of course, with minimum professional help.

This description is life from a time when Australia had a large manufacturing industry! In a family that was well educated and relatively well off.

**Fatso** · 25th June 2020, 07:03 AM

Well bugger it , from now on i am going to do my best too not buy anything made in china , this may prove difficult at first too not buy the cheapest but i am sure it can be done . Will look for Ausie stuff if pos , Korea seems to offer more and more as time goes by . Have just had a guts' full of the rhetoric and crap that is coming out of China .

**Gav 110** · 25th June 2020, 08:36 AM

Originally Posted by Fatso

Well bugger it , from now on i am going to do my best too not buy anything made in china , this may prove difficult at first too not buy the cheapest but i am sure it can be done . Will look for Ausie stuff if pos , Korea seems to offer more and more as time goes by . Have just had a guts' full of the rhetoric and crap that is coming out of China .

Fully agree
If everyone was to take your attitude Fatso and try to buy Australian Made, they may not get the best value for money but they would create the best value for Australia (what’s the old saying “don’t **** on your doorstep)
Even if it is something is just assembled in Australia it would help keep jobs and money in the country
As Donh54 and JDNSW said, everyone can live on one income if they “sacrifice” a few luxuries and encourage their kids to earn a dollar or two to pay for their wants
(If they were delivering papers in the afternoon they wouldn’t have to waste away on the Play Box)

If you can’t pay cash for it, you don’t buy it

Gav

**Eevo** · 25th June 2020, 09:05 AM

Originally Posted by Gav 110

everyone can live on one income if they “sacrifice” a few luxuries

buying australian is a luxury due to the price.

**BradC** · 25th June 2020, 09:41 AM

Originally Posted by superquag

An Urban myth, I'd say. VOLVOs don't have enough British parts in them.... Proof ? - they don't rain INside onto your feet !

You’ve obviously never driven a 1,2,7 or 9 series with a blocked evap drain or leaky heater core.

**4bee** · 25th June 2020, 10:09 AM

Originally Posted by Fatso

Well bugger it , from now on i am going to do my best too not buy anything made in china , this may prove difficult at first too not buy the cheapest but i am sure it can be done . Will look for Ausie stuff if pos , Korea seems to offer more and more as time goes by . Have just had a guts' full of the rhetoric and crap that is coming out of China .

We will still accept buying articles made in other SE Asian countries when possible albeit one of which is Taiwan but at least it is not CHINA otherwise it would be extremely hard to find just what one is looking for if solely looking for OZ manufactured stuff. All well designed & manufactured items. Finish is consistently good imho.

Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, South Korea & a number of others but it is a good opportunity for these countries to capitalise on resistance to Chinese products by people like us & it may just be the boost they need to improve their economy & products.
China wants to play silly buggers with Barley, Meat etc as well as threatening tariffs on other OZ stuff. then let us see how they fare?. From what I can gather their economy is struggling (?) & the president is in the hot seat to improve things but his & his cohorts threats do not do him any favours. I guess other countries are fed up with the bully boy crap coming out of China as well.
Still, what can one expect from a Communist Govt?

**workingonit** · 25th June 2020, 03:14 PM

Wonder why India is not an alternative market to China? We need a universal wage to level the playing field...then nations will rely on their own intellectual capacity to do things in house rather than chase cheap workers.

Regarding manufacturing in Australia in times of conflict, are we any better prepared than we have been in the past - overseas subs, boats, jets and vehicles? For example I wonder why we have no vehicle manufacturing at all when at the minimum we could have adapted an abandoned car plant to produced a 4x4 to replace the LRover (now with the way more expensive Mercs), also met our local demand from farmers, mining, and recreation - and an export opportunity to Africa, Sth America, or any other country with similar conditions - dust, long distances, river fordings and jungle. Where would we have been if all that subsidy had gone there instead of Ford, Toyota, GMH etc?

**jonesfam** · 25th June 2020, 03:38 PM

All news papers are "Delivered" on line now.
All the Local papers have disappeared.

A kid can't do a paper round.
Maybe lawn mowing? No, professionals do that now & the Gov would want their GST.
Working in a Supermarket? No, can't trust them to pay you properly.
Collecting & selling lost golf balls? No, be accused of stealing.
Not much a kid can do now until they are old enough to get a proper job.
The Golden Arches I suppose? No, Covid 19!
Jonesfam

**Fatso** · 25th June 2020, 04:09 PM

Originally Posted by Eevo

buying australian is a luxury due to the price.

Never used to be , can remember back when i was a young bloke where we had a basic wage system and every body did ok houses were affordable , you could quit your job on a Friday & start a new job Monday no problem . Most if not everything we needed was made in Australia , can remember when the first Jap stuff arrived in Oz and the stink it coursed , not buying Jap Crap etc .

Trouble is every one wants everything now at Chinese prices even if they only last 3 months like a K Mart Toaster i purchased for $9 , unlike the Sunbeam Toaster that lasted me 21yrs made in Oz .

Ah well i will still try my best to avoid anything Chinese at a lesser price , not that it will make any difference but at least it will give me a warm feeling knowing that the Chinese wont get my $ .

**superquag** · 25th June 2020, 07:58 PM

Originally Posted by workingonit

Wonder why India is not an alternative market to China? We need a universal wage to level the playing field...then nations will rely on their own intellectual capacity to do things in house rather than chase cheap workers.

Regarding manufacturing in Australia in times of conflict, are we any better prepared than we have been in the past - overseas subs, boats, jets and vehicles? For example I wonder why we have no vehicle manufacturing at all when at the minimum we could have adapted an abandoned car plant to produced a 4x4 to replace the LRover (now with the way more expensive Mercs), also met our local demand from farmers, mining, and recreation - and an export opportunity to Africa, Sth America, or any other country with similar conditions - dust, long distances, river fordings and jungle. Where would we have been if all that subsidy had gone there instead of Ford, Toyota, GMH etc?

If NEPAL can get their act together and manufacture (now ceased) a 'utility' station wagon, there's something wrong with Oz if we can't !
YouTube

Hulas Motors - Wikipedia

An Electric Car Made in Nepal ! Hulas Motors Nepal - which looks somewhat, um... familiar.

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