121–130 of 339 posts
The public needs to understand that tariffs aren't meant to punish other countries (which is what is being sold) - they are meant to change domestic behavior.
The purpose of a thing is what is does. If a tariff can be used to stop a war, then tariffs are meant as a strategic bargaining chips.
Those are exactly the groups that are meant to pay for the tariffs. A factor in this that is not mentioned is that companies selling goods to the US may have made an effort to lower prices, altering production to lessen tariffs or in other way tried to offset the extra amount US consumers have to pay. An estimate of that would be quite interesting.
> may have made an effort to lower prices, Isn't that the 10% in the article? That's the mechanism by which "China pays the tariffs".
So this 10% might also simply represent de facto theft from foreign business.
If tariffs are bad, why does every country tariff US-made products so heavily?
If tariffs are bad, why does every country tariff US-made products so heavily?
> If tariffs are bad, why does every country tariff US-made products so heavily? That's an easy question. The answer is "they don't." USMCA/NAFTA guaranteed free trade with Mexico and Canada. Pre-2025, there was no blanket tariff on US goods in Europe. They tariffed some agricultural goods at 11%. Industrial goods were in single digits. The tariff numbers that Trump purports (e.g. blanket 30% tariffs on Switzerland)…
I just want to point out that this "reciprocal" nonsense was in no way calculated or strategic. The chart/table they showed was literally LLM-generated and no one could explain how they got those numbers. It's a complete circus and we're sitting here refuting bullshit everyday.
I think blanket tariffs are dumb don't get me wrong. But tariffs have been used in the car industry for decades. If you got rid of them completely within 5 years the American car companies would be closing plants. The whole reason Japanese auto manufacturers build plants in the US was to avoid tariffs. Shipping costs are actually incredibly minimal for a vehicle. So in my opinion, we've seen where they can work. If y…
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Similarly, the people loudly protesting tariffs are traditionally for higher taxes.
I believe these loud people are mostly for taxes on wealth vs. direct taxes on consumption, as the latter affect lower classes more acutely.
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The different between taxes (you -must- pay (unless X loopholes applies to you)) whereas tariffs are voluntary and even more so then sales tax. You may chose not to buy any products or goods that requires you to pay tariffs. Which is the primarily goal to begin with. Influence consumer behaviour. I realize that for some products and goods there may not be a an alternative choice of products or goods that do have tari…
> Once tariffs are in place for a year or two it is possible that, domestic producers have expand capacity That's how tariffs would work if wielded for the right reasons. But now domestic producers have to pay tariffs on the very machines and inputs needed to expand capacity.
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I can’t help wondering if the biggest problem in the US right now is that a majority of people having a “fundamental misunderstanding” about many, many very important things. Maybe it’s because of propaganda, mis information, social media, education or because they’re too busy and tired trying to make ends meet so they don’t have time to research issues for themselves. It feels like it will be very difficult to cours…
Most people here in the US that I talk to understand that the additional tariffs imposed by the Trump administration are an attempt to get domestic US industries to produce the items that are now being imported subject to the tariff. In some cases that has been successful. In many cases not. Many industries are virtually impossible to de-globalize.
But, that's (corporate) socialism, and that group of people (mostly) claim to hate socialism.
There's a time and place for tariffs. Protecting "all" domestic industries via global trade war is (IMO) not it. Nor is wielding tariffs as a punishment simply because a foreign leader wasn't docile and subservient enough for Trump.
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Similarly, the people loudly protesting tariffs are traditionally for higher taxes.
> higher taxes ...for the wealthy. Tariffs are use taxes and overwhelmingly affect the 99%.