Upcoming Tariffs

Well… assembled here. We have almost nothing made in America and all of those parts coming in will have tariffs. Some auto manufacturers for “American” cars pass over the Mexican and Canadian border 8 times or more during manufacturing: that is a tariff for every single crossing!

 

It's no coincidence that Ram was supposedly planning on shifting their Saltillo, Mexico plant that produces their Ram HD and some Half Tons back to the US but after 2020 abandoned the plan, and Toyota had no problem shipping all of their Taco production to Mexico around the 22 model year.

If people can't see the pattern then so be it, keeping paying the asking price while the assembly workers get paid low single digits of dollars per hour to produce their 60-100k vehicles.

 

You can’t blame consumers for this systemic problem. When Reagan started the push to outsource everything Americans enjoyed really low prices for a long time. Unfortunately now everything is imported and needs still exist. The only way to avoid these tariffs is to buy used, but you already know the used car market is about to go sky high again as well to make that $$$. There is no avoiding this pain and until geopolitical trade changes or there is a massive investment in American manufacturing there is nothing anyone can do to stop this. Sales have been down for years but the manufacturers already changed to sell less and charge more model.
On a macro economic level a surge in inflation leading to a depression is inevitable and is already heading in that direction. It’s called many things but some call it “the great melt up” no president can stop it but Trumps policies will expedite it. So hold on to your 4Runner, invest as much as possible and pray.

 

LOL I like how your timeline went from Reagan directly to Trump, as if Bush, Clinton, Bush, Obama and Biden didn't happen. It's not like NAFTA or giving China the Preferred Trade Partner and WTO membership would have any impact on offshoring, right?

 

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I truly believe some people, not all, but some have an uncontrollable switch in their brain that once exposed to opiates receives such satisfaction from drugs common sense cannot override it.
I also believe if we can reduce drug addiction our homelessness problem will be reduced as well.
BTW, I’m a stanch conservative but after seeing an addiction progress first hand with my friend, ignoring the problem will only make it worse.

 

I can’t respond with out getting political, but the alternative wasn’t any better.

 

My wife was hospitalized, and for 11 days was on a ventilator. She was unable to move or communicate, though she was awake. They kept giving her fentanyl. She didn’t want it but couldn’t tell anyone. When the vent came out, she was finally able to tell them to stop. We also had to tell them later to stop the antidepressants and anxiety meds. She was in a constant fog. So I can see how addictions can happen in the hospital. Thankfully she didn’t become addicted.

 

After my surgery, they sent me home with opioids and other medications. As soon as I got home, I left everything in the bag. I went through the entire recovery without even taking an ibuprofen, just using an ice pack. At my first follow-up appointment, I took the meds back to the pharmacy and disposed all of them properly. Whenever they tried to prescribe something for my sleep apnea, I refused it, even melatonin. I often wonder: how did people handle pain 200 years ago? Whiskey or vodka? Luckily I have both. Clint Eastwood said that people are weak nowadays. "Everyone's become used to saying, 'Well, how do we handle it psychologically?' In those days, you punched the bully back and duked it out. People were tougher then. I was a shy kid. But a lot of my childhood was spent punching the bullies out,"

 

I retired from 38 years of nursing, 28 of it at trauma ICU bedside so I saw my fair share of opiate administration. Before we blame the providers please remember that somewhere in the 90s-00s "they" decided that patients weren't being appropriately treated for pain. It started being called the 5th vital sign and "had" to be treated "fully". We all had to take inservices that told us patients had "a right to be pain free". What a crock of crap. Pain control yes, pain free no way. Then compound that by having the patient who expects to be "pain free" rate the doctor after their care and the doc can actually get in trouble for inadequate treatment. This is how the ball got rolling.

I agree and believe (but can't prove) that some people have addictive personalities.

 

Tariffs have nothing to do with congress and aren't laws. Tariffs are determined by POTUS in his capacity to deal with foreign entities. He already covered this ground in his 1st term.

 

Tariffs can be applied subjectively as well, or at least certain companies can be given a variance if the POTUS wishes. It's a safe bet that the Chinese, Indian and other imported parts that make up a Tesla will get a variance because of Musk's political clout.

 

Stop paying for an overpriced car. And that will force prices down. As you all know, dealers do not like their lot full of cars. As long as people continue to pay, prices will continue to go up. Whether due to tariffs or otherwise.

 

I thought the Tariffs were for Mex, Cnd, China not a blanket tariffs???

 

It started with Reagan and current will be Trump. Both parties and geopolitical policies have effects on this. I’m not writing a detailed book, just a quick post. Regan had the largest effect and Trump will have the next largest effect those are facts, the rest is just filler. But no matter what policy is in place or who is in charge this cycle will repeat itself, the policies only slow down or speed up this cycle.

 

Glossing over NAFTA and giving China the preferred trade partner status as "filler" makes it clear where your partisan bias rests.