Laying in bed thinking about stuff

I couldn't go to sleep fast enough last night and when that happens, my mind thinks too much. I'm going to write it all down and hopefully remember everything I thought about. I started thinking about US companies moving production lines to other countries and how many products we buy that are made in foreign countries. What drives companies to shut down US operations and move? At face value, it looks like lower wages in other countries. They are so much lower that supposedly products can be made there and shipped back to us cheaper, thus making the company more money. What's odd about that thinking is that many foreign car manufacturers are doing the opposite. They are making their cars in the US. One would think that building a Honda in Japan and shipping it here would be cheaper and would make the price lower but that's not the case. Many times, Hondas were more expensive, as were other foreign makes. Now, they are made in the US, with no affect on the price. Why is that? Unfortunately, the current recession tends to make us look for the best deal, regardless of where it was made. Our stores don't help much either. Most times, there aren't US made alternatives to Chinese products. Look at Walmart. They used to promote the whole "made in USA" thing but good luck trying to find something there that is made in the USA now. You would think the Chinese own Walmart! If only we could get to a position where stuff was made and sold in the US like it used to be. Unemployment would drop and our huge trade imbalance would lessen. It would keep more money in the US where it belongs. Putting people to work would settle the housing market, too. Where did our pride in US manufacturing go? I guess US manufacturers have to move jobs overseas to compete with importers. Why can't we impose more tariffs to level the playing field? Congress isn't much help. They are all so deep in foreign pockets that we can't get any legitimate legislation to settle the trade issues. I wish I could find out what kind of margins the US companies are dealing with. Somebody is making the big bucks and it ain't the peanut farmers.