Made In, Owned by

I have always been uncomfortable with the "Made in America" label? Why would you buy something just because it is made in the good old U.S.A.? First off is the moral issue. Are people in other countries somehow less deserving of jobs than us? I like to think not.

But there is also the economic issue. Would all countries, regions, states, and localities be better off if they produced and consumed everything locally? Imagine if you could only buy a car made in your home town. Imagine if farmers could only sell locally. The same economic logic that applies on the local level applies on the international one as well.

In a similar vein, I find it just as strange to see products labeled "Women Owned" like the container of Old Home yogurt I recently bought.

Am I supposed to buy from a company because it is owned by women?

Using my well worn substitute trick I have with gender (i.e. do you feel the same about something if the genders are reversed) would you feel the same about a product from a company labeled "Men Owned"? Now some might argue that because most companies are owned by men that it is acceptable to state that a company is owned by women. But of course most companies are corporations and these are owned by stockholders. And given that women actually control more money than men, effectively women are the owners. It is bit like the deplorable under-representation of women in elected offices where it is difficult to blame men when the majority of voters are women.