Buying America Back: A Real Deal Blueprint for Restoring American Prosperity - Softcover

Alan Uke provides simple, breakthrough ways to empower the American people to actually impact our trade deficit. Anyone who is a consumer and is concerned about the state of the U.S. economy should read this book. -- Carlos Gutierrez, Former U.S. Secretary of Commerce and former Chief Executive Officer, Kellogg Company Buying America Back makes this simple point: Workers and consumers are economic allies and they should be empowered. Putting informed buying power into consumers' hands should be part of a concerted and comprehensive national manufacturing strategy. -- Richard L Trumka, President AFL-CIO Buying America Back is an easy read for anyone who is interested in stimulating the economy without using taxpayer dollars. As more products are produced globally, it's not as simple as buying American anymore. Alan clearly walks you through the relationship between where a product is made and how important a fair trade ratio is to the United States. By educating consumers on this, Alan proposes using consumer choice and economic freedom to succeed where the big government programs have failed--moving the economy and producing jobs. -- U.S. Rep. Brian Bilbray (R-CA) In this remarkable book, Alan Uke, an American-based small manufacturer and a concerned parent and citizen, helps us understand how the unbalanced trade championed by the financial elites on Wall Street and in the multinational corporations has undermined our national prosperity and strength and the standard of living of our people. He explains how and why a citizen-led consumer movement focused on buying goods made in America by Americans can be an important part of the process by which we rebuild our national well-being. This is an important book which fortunately is appearing at a key moment in our national history. -- Patrick A. Mulloy, former Assistant Secretary in the International Trade Administration of the Department of Commerce and a five-term member of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission There is a new awakening in the country that making and buying products in America is essential to strengthening manufacturing, encouraging economic growth, and creating jobs. Buying America Back is on the cutting edge of that movement and is aimed at changing the U.S. consumer culture to appreciate the quality and value of American-made products. Amen, and it's about time we put the spotlight on great American products. -- Jerry Jasinowski, Former President, National Association of Manufacturers Those who read this book will find that Alan Uke is pointing out one of the few directions that has a chance of changing the downward course that our country is currently on. -- Ralph Gomory, Professor, Stern School of Business, New York University; Former Head of Research for IBM; Former President of the Sloan Foundation; co-author of Global Trade and Conflicting National Interests Americans, more than any other people, love to fly their flag and parade their patriotism. In the face of a declining manufacturing base and the resulting loss of jobs in the middle class, Alan Uke makes a persuasive case for all Americans to walk their talk in Buying America Back. -- M. Brian O'Shaughnessy, Chief Co-Chair of the Coalition for a Prosperous America and Chairman, Revere Copper Products, Inc. San Diego entrepreneur Uke presents a straightforward thesis in this engaging policy proposal: consumer thirst for cheap imports has strangled U.S. manufacturing employment and stifled our economy. The manufacturing sector, which lost 5.2 million jobs from 2000 to 2010, accounts for only 10% of the economy compared with its dominant role in 1965. Uke explodes the myth of a shift to high-tech output and notes that Germany and other countries with higher labor costs than ours compete successfully with Asia. He argues convincingly that the offshore exodus of production facilities entails the loss of high-paying spinoff jobs, the departure of R&D facilities and other centers of innovation, and the erosion of service-sector jobs. The proper response, Uke plausibly argues, is not across-the-board protectionism or isolationism, but empowering the consumer by toughening disclosure of country-of-origin product data. Accurate disclosure would enable consumers to reward local producers or those with high local-product content. Uke perceptively points out that this approach is increasingly popular with food, and prevalent in many other countries. Determined consumer leadership on this issue, he maintains, could goad Congress into action and prompt corporations to revive domestic production. Uke's refreshingly invective-free writing and hands-on manufacturing experience compel our consideration; his proposal is simple and his goals are lofty. Attention should be paid. -- Agent: Bill Gladstone. (Apr.) --PUBLISHERS WEEKLY U.S.-based manufacturer, Alan Uke, makes the case for moving your money to Made in America and provides the point-of-sale labeling disclosure solution to give you this job-producing information. Vote with your pocketbook for a more self-reliant U.S.A. closer to home and your ideals. The kinetic Alan Uke wants to label America all the way to really Made in America. -- Ralph Nader, Activist; Presidential Candidate; Author, Unsafe at Any Speed Alan Uke provides simple, breakthrough ways to empower the American people to actually impact our trade deficit. Anyone who is a consumer and is concerned about the state of the U.S. economy should read this book. -- Carlos Gutierrez, Former U.S. Secretary of Commerce and former Chief Executive Officer, Kellogg Company

Cynics suggest that American manufacturing has reached the end of its road and is the price we pay for "globalization." Alan Uke sees it differently. In Buying America Back he outlines solutions to put control back in the hands of American consumers by helping them to make wise buying choices that help our economy and help to create jobs. Mr. Uke was the architect of the successful federal Automobile Smog Index. He is now proposing a bill before Congress to create a new country of origin label for manufactured goods. This informative but simple tag would help reinvigorate American industry by educating consumers to use one of the most effective tools they have--the power of the pocketbook. Surprising and enlightening, Buying America Back encourages us to take action to do our part as responsible consumers and conscientious citizens. American prosperity is not a thing of the past, and this book shows us the way back.