in 1998, Romney praised the Chinese work ethic. "They wouldn't even look up as we walked by."

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/news/international/Insight_-_When_Romney_wasnt_so_tough_on_China.html?cid=32891520

Jun 13, 2012 - 05:05 Insight - When Romney wasn't so tough on China

By Rachelle Younglai

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Mitt Romney may be down on China and threatening to declare Beijing a currency manipulator from day one if he is elected U.S. president, but his past dealings with the country show he was not always so hostile.

From his early days at private equity firm Bain Capital to his time as Massachusetts governor, Romney welcomed investments from China, and bought and expanded companies that benefited from its low labour costs and controlled currency. As chairman of the 2002 Winter Olympics, he also said Beijing should not be punished for human rights abuses.

All this is in sharp contrast to the Republican presidential candidate's current line of attack on the world's second-largest economy, which is now the United States' most important trading partner and largest foreign creditor. And that makes political strategists, China experts and business leaders wonder whether Romney will really follow through on his campaign promises if he is elected.

So far in his campaign, Romney has accused China of cheating Americans out of jobs and said a country that represses its own people cannot be a trusted partner. snip

Recalling a visit to a factory there in 1998, Romney praised the Chinese work ethic. "They cared about their jobs," he told a forum on the future of U.S. cities that year. "They wouldn't even look up as we walked by."

[Enrique]

1. and they have these fabulous suicide nets

and the miners are so dedicated to their work that thousands of them give their lives every year. If only American workers could be like that.

[Brigid]

14. Back in the bad old days,

Before unions, that is, American miners did just that.

[HiPointDem]

2. diligent little slaves, those chinese. yes, totalitarian workplaces will induce that behavior.

[KansDem]

3. I don't know, Mitt. Maybe if you had worn your Michigan state trooper's uniform...

...they might have taken a gander?

[LuvNewcastle]

4. Republicans usually accuse the Democrats of

being wishy-washy, but I don't think I've ever seen a candidate contradict himself more than Romney.

[whathehell]

5. "They wouldn't even look up as we walked by."

Properly servile...Yes, that's what he'd like to see in America:

People who "know their place".

[renate]

19. he is so unbelievably gross

He doesn't even hear how horrible he sounds when he talks like that. It's like he thinks of himself as an Alpha and of workers as Epsilons... and he doesn't even realize that that kind of thinking is objectionable, let alone anything you'd say out loud.

[whathehell]

21. Yes.. Many people find him "funny" in his being odd but

I find him a bit frightening, especially when I hear stuff like

this and the business about him dressing up like a cop

to go out and stop people...Feels "bully" like, in some way.

[Ganja Ninja]

6. "They wouldn't even look up as we walked by."

And they couldn't leave work if they wanted to. If they tried and managed to get past the locked doors and the guards, the police would arrest them.

And they probably have to bribe their supervisors to get a piss break.

[TheCowsCameHome]

7. They didn't want to get docked for raising their eyes in his direction.

It's a form of slavery, Mitt.

ed: grammar

[kemah]

8. Here in America we have the "plantation mentality.

If you notice most of the cashiers have to stand to do their job. But in Europe cashiers have rotating bar stools. Why can we not have the bar stools here. Because management, which by the way sit most of time do not care if your legs, ankles hurt after standing for up to six hours per day.

[TalkingDog]

16. According to the most recent studies the standing people will probably end up being healthier for it

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2121002/Stand-keel--Sitting-increases-risk-dying-years-40.html
Sitting increases risk of dying in three years by 40%

If you (or someone) have trouble standing 6 hours a day, there may be something wrong with you (or them). My mother walked constantly on her job 8 hour shifts on a concrete floor in a mill. She retired at 70. Cancer killed her 2 years later, but otherwise she was in great shape.

Better shoes, support hose and pads to stand on usually take care of a lot of leg strain.

[laundry_queen]

17. Walking is different than standing

I went from a walking job to a standing job and muscles that I didn't know I had were aching at the end of every day - and I was a very in shape teenager at the time! I can't imagine being the age I am now and having the same type of job. Standing is far harder on the back and feet than a physical job where you are moving around. BTW, you have to be able to afford those 'better' shoes. AND it's hard to be cheerful when you're almost in tears from pain. Just sayin'.

[xmas74]

23. I've worked in places where the "better shoes" were not an option.

You could only wear one brand of shoes and they weren't the best for standing. Why? Because if you were hurt from a slip in their brand they supposedly paid for the medical bills. And it didn't matter if you found a brand that was both good for shift work and comfortable-they weren't allowed if not this brand.

https://www.shoesforcrews.com/sfc3/index.cfm?changeWebsite=US_en&route=inserts.aboutus/shoe_programs

Least comfortable shoes I've ever worn.

[whathehell]

20. Not true.....Most cashiers I've seen here also use stools...That, or

they take a lot of breaks, and they do "walk".

[woo me with science]

9. What a perfect glimpse of how he and the one percent

see us, their farm of wage slaves. What a perfect glimpse into their goal for how we should behave and be treated.

This one deserves repeating everywhere.

[DBoon]

10. "You'll work harder with a gun in your back ...

...for a bowl of rice a day"

[2ndAmForComputers]

11. "And the number of grains in the bowl today is 17, because I'm feeling generous today."

[jpbollma]

12. this needs to be an ad

[DBoon]

22. It's already a song

[Marr]

13. Seriously-- how is this *not* considered a huge political gaffe?

He's saying two things:

1. American workers don't work hard.

2. He likes to see workers so afraid of losing their jobs that they won't dare to even look their "betters" in the eye.

[Zalatix]

15. The Tea Party would demand those kind of working conditions for everyone.

[laundry_queen]

18. It IS

But spineless democrats would have to USE it. They probably think it's not a 'fair game' gaffe or something.