James Stuber’s June 12 guest column, “Internet products need labels that show nation of origin,” resonated with me.
Several months ago, I bought a single-lever faucet with sprayer for my laundry room sink. Though I try to avoid Chinese-made products, the price suggested that it was probably manufactured there. However, it was the only one I could find that seemed to offer what I needed.
After delivery from Amazon, it was clear that it would be too large for that purpose, so a friend suggested it as a temporary replacement for my old kitchen faucet. After installation, it was leaking. And now, just a few months later, the sprayer has stopped working.
I called Amazon, which seemed too eager to refund my purchase in full. I doubt that refund has come out of Amazon’s pocket; it is just a vehicle for selling shoddy goods at a profit.
In this case, the seller should take the loss. But not everyone who is inconvenienced by low-quality merchandise will complain. Ergo, Amazon and other companies have a vested interest in continuing to sell garbage.
Sen. Tammy Baldwin’s COOL Act would be a much-needed step in the right direction. I’d love to be able to say that going forward, I will be more diligent in avoiding anything made in China. But I finally found one at Costco specifically made for laundry tubs, from Kohler, an “American manufacturing company,” according to Wikipedia. And it wasn’t cheap. But guess where it’s made?