Sorry, Chinese solar panel salesmen, your days of racking up commissions from sales to the American military are over, because a new federal law forbids the Pentagon from buying non-American panels.

The New York Times spotted the restriction in a military authorization law signed last week, and says the move is meant to bite back at the Chinese government, which is believed to subsidize its solar panel industry to help it dominate in global market share and snuff out American competition. The new law could add a little hot sauce to next week’s visit from Chinese president Hu Jintao.

Do you make an effort to buy American products, or avoid buying stuff made in a particular country?

Pentagon Must ‘Buy American,’ Barring Chinese Solar Panels [The New York Times]

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