Time to buy some tires

[swissarmychainsaw]

I just bought tires from "tirerack.com" and I learned a good lesson.

I shopped for a long time for a good deal on a tire, I went to several shops and got price quotes.

I found the tire I wanted (BFgoodrich Made in USA) and ordered them from TireRack because they only charged 16$ per tire delivered. All the other vendors charged at least double that. Crazy right? Order me in!

Then the delivery happens. at 10:15 no one was home, so he had to come back. When he does he tells me his life story!

And here's the deal. The delivery guy (onTrac) tells me that he only gets 1.25 (I assume per tire) delivered. So when he missed the delivery he just eats the gas he spent driving this way. These guy are independent contractors and have to pay for their vehicle, gas, everything including the scanning devices they use to track packages.

I have to say it made me really think about the whole "amazon.com" world we live in. If we are not paying Americans enough, who work full time, to earn a decent living, then what the hell are we doing? We are already exploiting cheap labor in China, but man to hear this guys struggles was too much.

When I was a kid everyone had an *awesome living building cars. Now what? we force American workers to compete with Chinese labor?

I bought BFGs because they are made in America, but that (to me) implies that people are paid a living wage to make, and deliver them too. What happens when they stop paying me enough to live!

Ok rant off, but be mindful of the supply chain that brings you your goods!