How as a consumer do I avoid the moral dread of buying made in China when 99% of everything is made in China.
Become politically active (not just in the internet).
In buying products made in China, you're helping to raise a huge number of people out of crushing poverty. I've traveled through China across 25 years, and seen how their lives have improved, yet some are still trying to eke out subsistence, farming what looked like a 1-acre plot with an ox.
Yes, the CCP is evil. But the moral calculus is never simple, I don't think we can simply assume that the net effect of purchasing from China is morally bad. It does enable some bad things, but it also helps quite a lot of people.
I'm a firm believer in free trade and all that, as long as trade partners are of the same ideological bend, even if flawed. Not the country that's actively looking to rivalldestabilize every other Western democracy through backroom dealings.
For example, I'm planning on building a computer. I'm going to aim for components from Taiwanese and U.S. companies as much as possible. In terms of laptops, I won't buy a Lenovo, but would consider an Apple or HP, even though they're all at least partially made in China.
This is where you can actually make a difference as much as many people don't want to hear it.
for consumer electronics its pretty easy to find sites dedicated to popular models and from there you can easily see where something is made
if you are looking for house hold goods, furniture, dinner ware, and the like, consider buying used from thrift shops, donation centers, garage sales, and even ebay; all my dinner and glass ware is vintage anchor hocking and morgantown glass.
the other option is to consume less. most often people buy stuff when what they have already does quite well. it is also a leading reason why many don't have sufficient savings
That is the case for tech and some of the more crucial imports - cheap less important items will probably always be manufactured in China in high volume though.
1. Resolve to not care if anyone is hurt in the process of providing you with consumables. Come up with excuses why it's not your responsibility, avoid learning more about it, ignore it, live in denial. The moral dread is gone.
2. Acquire your goods somewhere else, which may involve more cost and difficulty. The moral dread may not be gone if you realize that simply not supporting the oppression does not stop the oppression (avoiding German products does not stop the Holocaust)
3. Consume less. Same issue as #2 though.
4. Actively work towards ending the oppression which is giving you moral dread. This may end the moral dread, even if you continue to consume their products.
#1 is what most people go with.
It started before that, sure. It very much continued after (into the 20th Century), and was a major feature of the post-independence westward expansion of the US.
Of course, the imperial conquest of Philippines presaged more USA imperial conquest elsewhere.
https://www.fairtradeamerica.org/shop-fairtrade/fairtrade-pr...
Ten Thousand Villages
Or through
The fair trade federation and their list of suppliers.
Disclosure: I work for a non profit tied to Ten Thousand Villages and I also sit on the board of a fair trade organization.
Many countries have a fake democracy cover. Even Hitler won an election with like the 99% of the votes (I wonder if the other 1% survived for too long.)
Also, does this label apply to the United Kingdom or Canada?
Why would it not?
It's not like the head of state wields power in a parliamentary democracy. We cut the head off the last monarch to try that 1649, more than 100 years before either the French or US revolutions.
So long as the Queen (royal family) has any political capabilities, Britain is a partial democracy at best. Realistically they're still a mixture of monarchy and democracy, as they have been for a long time. Although people certainly likely to pretend the royal family has no tangible role or political power (because they want to pretend to be a modern democracy, while retaining the monarchy which they culturally have affection for; which is another way of saying they want to have their cake and eat it too).
The queen is NOT involved in the running of state. The affairs of state are managed for her.
She’s is reminded of this every opening of parliament when the door is slammed shut in the face of her representative, Black Rod.
This bargain has been the basis of a stable and democratic form of government for 371 years.
I see no advantage in having an elected “figure head” for head of state if they wield no power.
Edit: ...although it looks like he’s dead so wouldn’t expect much in the way of speeches eh.
The intent would be a feelgood symbol manufacturers could attach to their products that would essentially give them a very slight competitive marketing edge - like the fair trade symbol, or the regionalities for cheese and wine, or the nintendo seal of approval, etc. This would be run through some kind of tiny registration fee for the symbol, which would then fund the central body of a few people checking the supply chains, dealing with the applications, and sorting out the advertising/branding.
If anyone has good ideas about this, post here. If anyone wants the idea and wants to do it, do it.