I guess I’m naïve, even after being here for a couple years. I knew of course, about pirated videos that have anywhere from 9 to 24 full length movies on a single disk for around 2 bucks or less. If the low resolution and multiple titles don’t clue you, the sometimes unrelated subtitles should and if nothing else the one’s that are obviously filmed in a theater complete with muffled sound and the hats of the people in front of the camera are a dead giveaway. I even knew that Brunswick pool tables have pretty decent knock-offs (made in Taiwan) for about 20% the cost of the real deal. For a few bucks more you can even get the stickers of the Brunswick logo to complete the illusion.

However, this week I was taken by surprise. My favorite brand of billiard chalk is Master Chalk made by a company (Tweeten) based in Chicago. I like the consistency and the way it adheres to my cue’s tip. The product I have been buying here has absolutely identical labeling including the box packaging for a gross (144 pieces). You guessed it: fake. Not only is it fake but it’s made by any of numerous home businesses who are more or less skilled in it’s manufacture. The chalk that’s made locally is generally known to be inferior to the chalk made in Manila. That would be the pricey imported stuff, lol. I guess I never considered that anyone would go to the trouble to manufacture such an innocuous and relatively low cost item. I assume that the Tweeten factory is highly mechanized to produce the identical small squares of chalk with labels. I imagine that the local version is produced by hand right down to the mixing of the ingredients including the typical blue coloring added, with the labels individually glued in place.

The way things are identified (in conversation with friends, not on the labels) is by putting “local” in front of a well known brand name. Hence, “local Master Chalk,” and “local Simonis” (a high quality billiard table cloth). I bought his and hers, high-end brand name watches (Rado) for about $10… for both, lol. I didn’t care, I liked the look. My first one lasted about a month. It was explained by the watch repair guy that the “made in China” works were to blame so he replaced the interior stuff with a Japanese “machine” for about $1.50. Ultimately, the stylized band got frozen with rust and broke (a real Rado has a ceramic band). However, it lasted about a year as the band slowly deteriorated. I got a new one and when it broke after a month I used the Japanese works out of the first to get it going again. I now know to keep it in my pocket when it rains.

The old saying “if something seems too good to be true, it probably is” got to be an “old saying” because of it’s truth. Things are inexpensive here but sometimes a thing is so inexpensive that it should be suspect. A watch that retails for $2000 being sold for $5 is an obvious and relatively benign example. There are some more serious examples. The street vendors, when they can’t interest you in a Rolex, Oakley sunglasses or some pearls will likely resort to Viagra or Cialis. A bunch of older guys trying to make time with young gals makes this a marketable item. The packaging looks legitimate right down to the blister packs but I’ve heard of people dying from these very questionable medications. The labeling reflects the pharmaceutical company that makes the legit stuff, just as the “Master Chalk” says it’s manufactured by Tweeten in Chicago. I would be surprised if an unregulated, untraceable black-market manufacturer goes to much trouble or expense to produce a reasonable “generic equivalent.” Think “milk” from China tainted with melamine… and those producers could be traced through the labeling. In any case, stick to the Chinese watches and sunglasses… you may get irritated when they break but at least you’ll survive to tell the tale.