Words & Banter

RED & BLACK … Made In The U.S.A.

Design by Sawyer Pennington, Underlying photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash


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If we had published this month’s column before July 4th, we could’ve written about independence. Now, it’s too late.


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July 4th may be celebrated with barbeques, parades, and fireworks, but I doubt many people stop and think about what our country’s independence means to each of us.


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I hate to break the news to you, but it’s summer. Kids are out of school, people go on vacation, and July 4th is a holiday. Not a solemn occasion.


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My point exactly. People forget its significance.

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I agree, but you’ve never been one to walk around waving the American flag.

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True, but there are other ways to demonstrate your patriotism.

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That’s a word you don’t hear very often. I wonder why.

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Part of me wants to say it is because it sounds old-fashioned. But, then I think about how “patriot” can have very different connotations in today’s political arena.

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PLEASE … no politics. In fact, there are days I wish I had a sweatshirt that said that.

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That is funny. And, there needs to be another one with “WARNING: I talk politics.”

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Well, add those to the long list of T-shirt ideas we have.

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Will do. Which reminds me, I need to send you the recent New York Times article about how “American Made” T-shirts are having their best year yet. Apparently, people are willing to pay considerably more for an American made T-shirt. And, ones from American Giant that had “American Made” printed on the front, and sold for $60, sold out the first day.

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Really? I remember the first time I thought about the concept of “Made in the U.S.A.” It was when you decided to print our book in the U.S.A. Before that, it never dawned on me to check labels.

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I guess you do not remember that advertising jingle from the late 1970s, “Look For the Union Label,” that touted buying clothing made in America.


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Nope. But I’ll never forget you were willing to print our self-published book here even though it doubled the cost. And although I still laugh when you say, “Printed in the U.S.A. is the most expensive sentence you’ll ever publish,” to this day, your decision still amazes me.


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It amazes me that it ultimately became part of a lesson plan for high school students. For me, it was just a business decision. There was no way I was going to send my money to China.


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I thought it was a very expensive decision, but I figured you knew what you were doing. Plus, it was your money.


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Since you own almost half of the company, it was your money, too.


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I don’t see it that way. I’m only contributing sweat equity, whereas you’re paying for everything.


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But, that does not change the ownership percentages. Or, the fact that not everything of value can be calculated in terms of dollars, contrary to what accountants may think.


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That may be true, but us “mere mortals” make most purchasing decisions based on cost alone.


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Which is why our printing decision makes such a great example. If you just crunch the numbers, it is a no-brainer. Print in China. But, sometimes, you have to factor in non-financial considerations … like your values and priorities.


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I understand that now, although, at the time, I thought you were crazy. Especially when you made R.R. Donnelley (RRD) defend their pricing.


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I wanted to understand why it cost so much more to print here. As expected, part of it was related to labor costs (we have minimum wage and child labor laws) and regulations controlling workplace health and safety standards. Plus, there were already significant environmental laws.


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And until we printed our book, I never even knew about any of those things. But now I realize how important they are.


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Important … and expensive. There is a price, often hidden, for maintaining high standards. Someone has to pay for it.


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Good thing you could afford it.


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Agree, but even if I were on a strict budget, I would have found a way to print in the U.S.A. I could have downgraded the paper, used a single-color press instead of a two-color one, or printed using a less expensive process. In fact, part of my logic for printing 25,000 copies was to get the cost per book down.


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I wish you hadn’t reminded me of that. I try not to think about how many copies we still have left. Having said that, for a self-published book, where we’ve spent more time on philanthropic pursuits in the education and criminal justice worlds vs. marketing, having sold more than 14,000 copies is pretty impressive.


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I guess that makes us a “bestseller” since 90% of self-published books sell less than 100 copies. But, the point I am making is that it is important to me that we support U.S. businesses.


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Says the woman with Hermes handbags from France and European cars.


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Does it make you feel any better that when it came time to replace my washer and dryer, I bought American made? Just because I may not always buy American does not mean I do not make a conscious effort to do so whenever I can.


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Well, from now on, I’ll try to be better about it. The key will be remembering to stop and think about it.


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Maybe we need to do a T-shirt that instead of declaring it was “Made in the U.S.A.” turns it into a question … Made in the U.S.A.?

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Make it a long-sleeve shirt or a sweatshirt, and I’ll take two!

Want to read other columns? Here's a list.

Photo by mevans on iStock
Since we first ran the conversation below, autism awareness has become more commonplace, but there’s a big difference between that and acceptance. (Which is why April is now Autism ACCEPTANCE Month.) Not to mention assumptions. Labels aside, don’t we all have something of value to contribute? Think about your different abilities (Black calls them “diff-abilities”), and you may find a new way to look at others, especially those with autism -- with respect, empathy, and a desire to better understand their situations, strengths, and challenges.


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Did you know that April's Autism Awareness Month? I wasn't aware (pun intended) of it until I read our local homeowner's monthly newsletter and it caught my eye.


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Actually, last month the founding organization, the Autism Society, changed "Awareness "to "Acceptance" to foster inclusivity, as knowing about something is very different from accepting it. But I am guessing that is not the point of this call.


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Although it isn't autism, it reminded me of years ago when we found out that Natasha has learning disabilities.


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I think you mean DIFF-abilities.


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Of course, that's another thing I remember. I was focused on the negative aspects of her diagnosis until you asked me, point-blank, "Why are they called disabilities?" And proceeded to explain that everyone has different strengths and weaknesses.


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Exactly! Imagine the world if everyone excelled at math, but flunked English. Or, a world of lawyers, but no musicians. Some people are better at social skills, while others excel at handling technical data. Why not just say that people who have different skillsets and abilities have DIFF-abilities versus making them feel like they have shortcomings?
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Design by Sawyer Pennington, Underlying photo by Ye Jinghan on Unsplash

We’ve all wanted a “second chance” at some point in our lives. A “do-over” for a mistake we made, a bad decision, or something that didn’t work out well. An opportunity to show (to ourselves and to others) that we learned our lesson.

Now imagine that second chance being life-changing. For many people who’ve found themselves on the wrong side of the law, a second chance might be all they need to turn their lives around. Which is why April was designated Second Chance Month and why we’re rerunning what changed Red’s perspective on second chances …



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I had no idea that April was “Second Chance Month” until you sent me the official proclamation. I find it interesting that in the midst of juggling our usual million and one Red & Black things, your interest in criminal justice, which I know you consider a “passion project”, is as strong as ever, maybe even stronger.


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It is not intentional, sometimes “ passion projects” find you. And, when you least expect it.


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Or where you least expect it! Only you would take a “field trip” to a men’s prison.


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I will not get on my soapbox about how our education system contributes to the criminal justice problem. I will never forget a friend of mine who was formerly incarcerated telling me, “Rehabilitating people makes the assumption they were habilitated in the first place.”


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When you stop and think about that statement, it’s pretty powerful! But I have to smile as once upon a time you, and I, used words like “offenders” and “prisoners” until we learned how our choice of words could be dehumanizing .


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Says the woman who once believed in the idea of “lock ’em up and throw away the key”.
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Image by filipefrazao on iStock

When you think of cancer, do you think that’s something only older people need to worry about?

Well, you’d be wrong because it’s alarming how many people under 50 are getting cancer. (Think Catherine, Princess of Wales.) And while the exact causes remain under investigation, what we do know is that early detection through cancer screenings is crucial.

It should be a priority for all of us (men and women) – and not only during Cancer Prevention Month but year-round.



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I know that cancer isn’t the “death sentence” it used to be when we were growing up, but it’s still a very scary word. Especially if it’s heard “close to home”.


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When we were young, the word was rarely said. And if it was, it was whispered or referred to as the “ c-word.”


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Kind of like when I had my two miscarriages. No one wanted even to acknowledge, let alone talk about, them. Which made it all the more difficult to get through it, although intellectually, I knew it was not uncommon.


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Unfortunately, neither is cancer. It is the second-leading cause of death in the world, surpassed only by heart disease. But, at least, it is no longer a taboo subject.


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Please don’t make this about numbers. It’s about people. Which you should know. I’m sure you remember when Daddy was diagnosed with parotid gland cancer , which luckily was treatable. And I’ve had skin cancer, although I was very fortunate, it was caught early and easily treated.
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