'Murica! (95 Viewers)

s4tch

Senior Member
Mar 23, 2015
34,444
Credit of this goes to a certain Mr. Tim Bratton, whose comment under a Facebook post exactly reflects my sentiment:
The market simply doesn't believe Bessent, Lutnick, and Miran when they are saying three different things. You can't simultaneously use tariffs to reindustrialize the US, negotiate better trade deals, and pay for the tax cuts.

The current administration's tariff rhetoric is tautologically unsustainable. It frames tariffs as simultaneously permanent (to support reindustrialization), temporary (as a negotiating lever), and revenue-generating (to offset tax cuts). But each of these objectives implies a different and often contradictory tariff structure. A policy cannot be both enduring and contingent, nor can it generate stable revenue if its very purpose is to be bargained away. The internal logic collapses under scrutiny: the more you try to satisfy one justification, the more you undermine the others. The framework becomes not just politically unstable, but economically incoherent.
that's indeed a very good point he's making

i'd add one thing. history shows us that tariff wars ended for a reason: they aren't effective at all. you can target specific products with tariffs to protect your domestic products, and it makes sense in some cases.

but general tariffs across all products will simply drive inflation for no reason. wanna drink some coffee? you can't grow it locally, you have to import it. you want to import lithium? talk to one of these countries "to make a deal" or hit them with tariffs to shoot yourself in the foot:

1000006047.png


anyway... there's not a single angle from where general tariffs for all trading partners, ranging from 10 to 99% is a remotely good idea

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okay, that's a fucking idiot right here, no other way to put it

why did the japanese manage to outsell murican shit on the domestic market when it comes to cheap cars? perhaps because they were better and even cheaper at the same time? why is bmw more attractive than cadillac to most of the world? maybe because it offers better quality with better driving experience and better economy?

making better cars is an option, dumbo

 

Buy on AliExpress.com
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Wings

Banter era connoiseur
Contributor
Jul 15, 2002
21,751
Am just waiting for that guy in a 3rd world country to upgrade their iphone every year & maybe buy a Tesla while they are at it. Also they now have to drink orange juice from California every morning. That shit probably costs a whole months salary. Have to reduce that trade deficit.
After Trump is done with the US, Mexico will be importing cheap labour from the US. Start learning Spanish my Murican friends. This is like the mushroom trip you were promised but not only did it go wrong it's real.
 

Bjerknes

"Top Economist"
Mar 16, 2004
116,646
Even the banksters are changing their tune when it comes to tariffs now. Not that I really care what he says, but he's a double dipper when it comes to the rent seeking.

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon says Trump tariffs will boost inflation, slow an already weakening U.S. economy

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/04/07/jamie-dimon-trump-tariffs-inflation-economy.html

All of the banks should have been allowed to fail back in 2008. That was one of our biggest mistakes as a country, just after electing a group of Christian Nationalist Nazis.
 

JuveJay

Senior Signor
Moderator
Mar 6, 2007
75,261
that's indeed a very good point he's making

i'd add one thing. history shows us that tariff wars ended for a reason: they aren't effective at all. you can target specific products with tariffs to protect your domestic products, and it makes sense in some cases.

but general tariffs across all products will simply drive inflation for no reason. wanna drink some coffee? you can't grow it locally, you have to import it. you want to import lithium? talk to one of these countries "to make a deal" or hit them with tariffs to shoot yourself in the foot:

1000006047.png


anyway... there's not a single angle from where general tariffs for all trading partners, ranging from 10 to 99% is a remotely good idea

- - - Updated - - -

okay, that's a fucking idiot right here, no other way to put it

why did the japanese manage to outsell murican shit on the domestic market when it comes to cheap cars? perhaps because they were better and even cheaper at the same time? why is bmw more attractive than cadillac to most of the world? maybe because it offers better quality with better driving experience and better economy?

making better cars is an option, dumbo

US farming practices don't meet EU regulations because of the less structured processes involved, and tbh, general poorer practices than what the EU has, which is kind of enforced on us by the smaller agricultural land available. It's more bureaucratic or at least more stringent than US practices. EU doesn't allow chlorine washing of chickens at the end of processing, for example. The US uses a lot more antibiotics on livestock. Europeans have also had to adopt more sustainable farming methods but the US is slow to adopt this as traditionally they've had so much land and stuck in old traditions it's hindered them. They feed animals different ways, so meat tastes different. US consumers like more marbled and fattier beef, EU beef is largely grass-fed.

Trump doesn't care to understand things like this. He thinks every country just fires out the same Big Mac pattie he loves in their beef farming machines and EU should buy Murican because it's the best. It's Murican so why wouldn't it be? Just like he doesn't understand why we aren't driving around in big trucks or their cars that cost more than a better Japanese or Korean equivalent. Ford still sells a lot of low and mid level cars here as they are part of British motor culture over decades, but their competition is greater now, more so in the EU.
 

s4tch

Senior Member
Mar 23, 2015
34,444
US farming practices don't meet EU regulations because of the less structured processes involved, and tbh, general poorer practices than what the EU has, which is kind of enforced on us by the smaller agricultural land available. It's more bureaucratic or at least more stringent than US practices. EU doesn't allow chlorine washing of chickens at the end of processing, for example. The US uses a lot more antibiotics on livestock. Europeans have also had to adopt more sustainable farming methods but the US is slow to adopt this as traditionally they've had so much land and stuck in old traditions it's hindered them. They feed animals different ways, so meat tastes different. US consumers like more marbled and fattier beef, EU beef is largely grass-fed.

Trump doesn't care to understand things like this. He thinks every country just fires out the same Big Mac pattie he loves in their beef farming machines and EU should buy Murican because it's the best. It's Murican so why wouldn't it be? Just like he doesn't understand why we aren't driving around in big trucks or their cars that cost more than a better Japanese or Korean equivalent. Ford still sells a lot of low and mid level cars here as they are part of British motor culture over decades, but their competition is greater now, more so in the EU.
probably many other prime ministers or presidents aren't aware of the exact regulations. but when lutnick says that europe doesn't want their chicken or beef because their beef is beautiful (lol), that's pure ignorance. and that guy is running the trade negotiations

~same with some cars. insane difference between regulations. for instance murican cars' indicators won't meet european regulations. if they want to sell anything here, they will need a local type approval, while in the us it's very different, as far as i know it's the manufacturer that certifies the car, not an independent body. different regulations are one of the reasons why the us rarely gets for instance a rally homologation car model, like lancia delta integrale in the past, or yaris gr recently. (they got the corolla gr instead lol.) pedestrian safety is different, so are the emission standards, let alone the market characteristics that you also mentioned (smaller cars, smaller roads in europe, everything but the penis size is bigger in murica)

but none of this matters at all. trump doesn't understand trade deficit, that's the core problem. he probably saw watters blabber about it a while ago so he thinks it's a loss for the country. pure incompetence, that's what it is. the us is a bigger economy than most, that explains the trade deficit with many countries. look at this for example:
https://oec.world/en/profile/bilateral-country/usa/partner/hun
1744035303284.png


they will never realistically have a trade surplus with hungary, and it's fine like that. and funnily enough, it benefits both parties - until a dumbass ruins it of course
 

s4tch

Senior Member
Mar 23, 2015
34,444
Now there is a rumor that they will pause the tariffs for 90 days. What a fucking shitshow! :rofl:
trump is an idiot. world economy is not a playground. all he achieved is that he further weakened his position as a reliable and serious person. and of course his supporters also lost a lot of money, so he decimated his base. at least he won a golf tournament during the weekend, good for him!

imagine the outrage if biden pulled something similar lol. maga would rightly call for his resignation. now they alternate between "losing money isn't bad after all, it builds character" and "art of the deal" based on whatever mood the dear leader has
 

Bjerknes

"Top Economist"
Mar 16, 2004
116,646
And now they say it was fake news and the markets are tanking again. :lol:

trump is an idiot. world economy is not a playground. all he achieved is that he further weakened his position as a reliable and serious person. and of course his supporters also lost a lot of money, so he decimated his base. at least he won a golf tournament during the weekend, good for him!

imagine the outrage if biden pulled something similar lol. maga would rightly call for his resignation. now they alternate between "losing money isn't bad after all, it builds character" and "art of the deal" based on whatever mood the dear leader has
At this point, he needs to be removed by any means possible. He is literally trying to kill our economy, especially tech.
 

s4tch

Senior Member
Mar 23, 2015
34,444
And now they say it was fake news and the markets are tanking again. :lol:



At this point, he needs to be removed by any means possible. He is literally trying to kill our economy, especially tech.
so we're back to the "losing money builds character" phase very quickly, right?
 

Bjerknes

"Top Economist"
Mar 16, 2004
116,646
so we're back to the "losing money builds character" phase very quickly, right?
I wonder if some of these MAGA influencers will even start to feel the attrition of being a mouthpiece for stupidity. At some point it must get rather annoying how often you have to change your mind on things. But maybe it doesn't matter if you're a paid Nazi whore.

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Trump Insider trading?
I wouldn't be surprised if they dropped the story just to prop up the markets, then immediately deny just to save face. Creates chaos and confusion, which is what they want anyway.
 
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kappa96

Senior Member
Jun 20, 2018
7,524
I wonder if some of these MAGA influencers will even start to feel the attrition of being a mouthpiece for stupidity. At some point it must get rather annoying how often you have to change your mind on things. But maybe it doesn't matter if you're a paid Nazi whore.

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I wouldn't be surprised if they dropped the story just to prop up the markets, then immediately deny just to save face. Creates chaos and confusion, which is what they want anyway.
The paid propaganda shills don't care as long as the rubbles come on time.
And why should they?
Tarriffs affect the poor and stupid the most , so they are safe since the shills are probably millionaires .

PS I heard someone say that if the iphone was , from tomorrow, being made in the USA , it would cost 30k per device?
Is there any truth in that ?
 
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