Apple Becomes the First 3 Trillion Dollar Company (Page 3): Sorry, want the same info from a left wing newspaper? It's more important if the story is true...it is. Apple is a horrific...

Canisdirus

burkphoto wrote:

Well, that's according to a right-leaning propaganda organization of dubious credibility. If I were choosing credible news sources to report about issues in the electronics manufacturing world, they would not be on the list.

https://www.allsides.com/news-source/washington-times-bias

How do people believe this canard? APPLE isn't guilty of slave labor. They don't condone it. They don't use it. They *have* dropped some supplier companies who had unsafe, unfair, or inhumane labor practices. When they learn of issues, they deal with them, just as they use environmentally friendly components and have a green energy policy (generating most of their own power and feeding excess back to the grid). They have built machines that disassemble and recycle old iPhones, iPads, and Macs. They have been a very socially responsible company in most respects.

Most of Apple's suppliers and assemblers are also suppliers and assemblers for other big name electronics companies. So if there are labor abuses, they likely affect those others as well.

The US labor force priced itself out of most of the world labor markets between 1960 and 1980. That phenomenon was the subject of many discussions in my economics courses at Davidson in the '70s. Our professors saw it coming and made many predictions that are largely true now.

Unfortunately, if Apple (or HP, or Lenovo, or Toshiba, or Panasonic, or... sourced manufacturing services from somewhere else in the world, they would not enjoy the quality advantages or cost advantages that they have now. Companies that don't source from countries such as China find themselves in a highly disadvantaged position with respect to their peers.

Fortunately, Apple gets most of its semiconductors from TSMC — Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. Taiwan is a constitutional republic with democratic practices... And TSMC makes the most advanced chips in the world. They make around a quarter of all the chips consumed globally.

In the 1970s, my Dad used to say we could go to war in the Middle East over oil, if there were severe enough shortages. I told my kids a while back that we might go to war over semiconductor manufacturing if China attacks Taiwan. TSMC is that vital. Fortunately, they are building a plant in northern Phoenix, AZ. With the chip shortages we have now, that plant can't get up and running soon enough!

Well, that's according to a right-leaning propagan... (show quote)

Sorry, want the same info from a left wing newspaper?
It's more important if the story is true...it is.

Apple is a horrific corporation.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/11/20/apple-uighur/

SteveFranz Loc: Durham, NC

Low wages overseas are a problem, but American production can make up for some or all of the wage discrepancy.

In my opinion, one of the key factors in outsourcing production is the difference in governmental oversite. In many of those countries where we have outsourced production, the local equivalent of our EPA & OSHA is non-existent. How many communities in the US would welcome a rare earth refinery or mine? Northern MN is right now struggling with the decision to allow nickel exploration/mining.

GEngel-usmc Loc: Spencerport NY - I miss Lakeland, FL

EPA is still holding SpaceX from launching it’s Starship, while China is stealing our lunch and launching their own Space Station. All due to Politics! Someone in the Admin does not like Elon Musk! It shows!

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

SteveFranz wrote:

Low wages overseas are a problem, but American pro... (show quote)

Ahh, yes, Minnesota, the land of 10,000 Lakes, ten trillion mosquitoes, and three-headed, seven-toed frogs. They're rich in mineral resources, greed to exploit them, and lack of concern for the environment. Unfortunately, you're right. Other countries don't have the same concern for the future that at least some of us do here in the states. "In the long run, we're all dead, so it's a free-for-all," is a stupid way to live. But much of the world lives that way.

SteveFranz Loc: Durham, NC

burkphoto wrote:

Ahh, yes, Minnesota, the land of 10,000 Lakes, ten trillion mosquitoes, and three-headed, seven-toed frogs. They're rich in mineral resources, greed to exploit them, and lack of concern for the environment. Unfortunately, you're right. Other countries don't have the same concern for the future that at least some of us do here in the states. "In the long run, we're all dead, so it's a free-for-all," is a stupid way to live. But much of the world lives that way.

I saw some of those weird frogs on the family farm where I grew up in southern MN. There were some weird frogs alright, but that farm produced vast quantities of food for American consumers.

On a related note, after I was released from active duty in the US Marines, I worked summers for Reserve Mining. They were major polluters in Lake Superior. They spent hundreds of millions to alleviate that pollution, but ultimately were put out of business.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

SteveFranz wrote:

I saw some of those weird frogs on the family farm where I grew up in southern MN. There were some weird frogs alright, but that farm produced vast quantities of food for American consumers.

On a related note, after I was released from active duty in the US Marines, I worked summers for Reserve Mining. They were major polluters in Lake Superior. They spent hundreds of millions to alleviate that pollution, but ultimately were put out of business.

Yeah, it's sad. Without regulation, we see major industries create major environmental problems. WITH regulation, we see the businesses go overseas, where labor is cheap and they don't care about pollution. Or, they go out of business.

To an average capitalist, that's just the way it is. Anyone see a way out of this mess? I'm a capitalist, but also care about the environment, public health, and the future. There's gotta be a way to make money in a safe environment.

Canisdirus

If you actually care about human rights...don't buy Apple...ever.

Dan Ellis Loc: St. Louis, Mo

I hardly even mentioned apples use of foreign labor as slave labor, that was someone else. I know that most big companies do the same thing and I don't fault apple any more than any big company for its labor practices. I have no problem buying product made in china or anywhere else for that matter. The one thing I have learned from this is to not express a negative opinion about a product or a company that most people seem to admire so I'll just keep my opinions to myself from now on.

SteveFranz Loc: Durham, NC

burkphoto wrote:

Yeah, it's sad. Without regulation, we see major industries create major environmental problems. WITH regulation, we see the businesses go overseas, where labor is cheap and they don't care about pollution. Or, they go out of business.

To an average capitalist, that's just the way it is. Anyone see a way out of this mess? I'm a capitalist, but also care about the environment, public health, and the future. There's gotta be a way to make money in a safe environment.

The problem I see is that the pollution doesn't really go away just because it is in China or some other distant country. It just takes a bit longer to affect us.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

SteveFranz wrote:

The problem I see is that the pollution doesn't really go away just because it is in China or some other distant country. It just takes a bit longer to affect us.

Absolutely true... But we shop at Walmart for imported goods and don't think about the stuff we buy and its dirty manufacturing processes. It's just not in our backyard... yet. Everything has a tipping point.