The US is still the world's largest manufacturer...
D. Redmond replied:
The EU is by far the world's largest economy and manufacturer - the US manufacturing base has been hollowed out for decades, and its GDP is less than 90% that of the EU...
.............
At approximately 4:30 PM EST, I left the office, sauntered across the parking lot under the watchful eye of various CCTVs (Daiwan Optical, S. Korea) and got in my car (VW Passat, made in Germany).
I had a long drive ahead of me so I turned on the built-in MP3 player (Blaupunkt GmbH) and listened to some French techno.
My (LG, S. Korea) cell phone rang. It was my wife calling (using a Panasonic cordless, Japan) from home to remind me to stop by Lowes and then the supermarket to pick up a few items. Resistance is futile so I took the next off ramp and doubled back.
While in the super store, I picked up a package of Sylvania (fabrique en Chine) compact fluorescent bulbs: we're replacing all the incandescents in our home to save money on our electric bill and reduce our energy consumption. I also bought a mop (made in China) a lamp (made in China) and a mortar appropriate drill bit (made in...wait, China).
A Whole Foods was nearby but I wasn't in the mood for lavender scented candles and parting with a lot of cash so I went to the slightly less chichi Genaurdi's, a southeastern Pennsylvania chain. All of the produce was American grown, some of it was even that holy grail of sustainability: local.
Back in my car, all my errands done, I rocketed down the (American paved) PA Turnpike towards home.
Once through the (American assembled, steel from Japan) door, I put the packages away, kissed my wife and that curious little girl and walked towards the (LG, S. Korea) microwave to heat some water for tea. "Sweetheart, could you push the button to start the rice going?" My wife asked. Sure. I walked to the (Japanese) rice cooker and pressed the start button. That was easy. What a futuristic wonderland.
I took the smiling little girl in my arms and climbed the stairs to the upstairs office room. I turned on the (Samsung, S. Korea) flat screen and revived the (Dell - American marketed, Chinese, S. Korean and Japanese engineered and assembled) computer to catch up on LBO Talk.
Downstairs, my wife was watching BBC America - British celebrity chef Gordon Ramsey was cursing at a misguided restaurateur on the large flat screen (Toshiba, Japan) television she surprised me with last year (few things say love like HD LCD which, by the way, isn't made in America).
Truly, this day provided many examples of the unshaken might of American manufacturing!
.d.