Whenever times get tough, we hear the idea that we should “buy American” to save jobs here. Even when times are good some people call for this as a form of patriotism. But is it a good idea? Does it even save jobs to buy things that are made here?No and no. It is easy to point at the specific jobs saved when we convince people to buy particular products that are manufactured in this country. Yes, if we all buy shirts made here, some textile jobs will be saved. However, this does not mean that there will be a net savings of jobs in the United States, nor is it necessarily good for the economy as a whole.First, we need to recognize that even though some jobs are saved, others are lost. Thee are people that would be working in the importation of shirts from other countries, for example. Workers at the docks will face lay-offs if less is imported. There will be fewer sales people working here for the foreign manufactures as well.Second, we have to understand why people buy foreign products to start with. Like most people, as long as the quality is good, I’ll buy what is cheaper – which is often from another country. Now, if I pay more for something just because it is made here, I suddenly have less to spend on other things. If enough of us throw away our money in this way, jobs have to be lost in all the other areas where we would have spent that money. In other words, if I buy expensive American goods just to make a point, I won’t be going to my favorite restaurant as often, meaning they’ll be hiring less.So there is not necessarily any preservation of jobs when we pay more to buy American, and it isn’t necessarily good for the economy. On top of that, I have a serious question that rarely gets asked: Why should I want to save a job just because the employee is in the same political boundaries, at the expense of a job that some foreigner has? Are people more important because they are American?