Tariffs

[Analog Kid]

Then there's US pronunciation......
What's this silent L in solder ? 

Where else in the world is this replicated ?

I honestly don't know. I thought everyone pronounced it that way.
Apparently it's a French thing, so you can blame them.

[Bud]

Oh man, please not again 
This ( solder thing ) was already beaten to death in at least two threads on this forum. 

[TimFox]

At least we spell “liter” the way it is pronounced in English.

You might but it's wrong. 

Whattabout Mitre cuts or the Centre of something ?

"Miter" and "center" here.
As well as "theater", not thea-tree.
The correct way.

(I can go all day if you can.)

Yep, me too.
Thanks for the chuckle.

Then there's US pronunciation......
What's this silent L in solder ? 

Where else in the world is this replicated ?

Where is the “r” in colonel?
[Hint:  more misleading results from French language]

[Zero999]

I'm NOT sure what to write here, to introduce the following video?

But can say, it is relatively low on the politics, so don't panic.
It seems to give a balanced view (but not 100% perfect), about the current US administration.
It seems to include AI and its effects/future and uses.

There is mention of the tariffs, and how economists, DON'T support them, and think they are a bad idea.

Sorry, I watched the first 20 seconds and it just seems like a TDS rant.

Thomas Sowell has a much more objective criticism of tariffs, because he's ideologically more on Trump's side of the isle. Here's a short clip of him talking about tariffs. It's part of a longer interview, but I found a clip of the part about tariffs, to avoid the off-topic stuff.


I also agree with much of the other things the current US administration are doing. I just disagree with the execution, rhetoric and sheer belligerence.

Whilst I don't think the way the tariffs have been implemented is a good idea, economics aren't the reason behind them. They're about reducing the US's reliance on China. Again, there are better ways to achieve this than simply piling on tariffs.

[dietert1]

The US consumer and industry might try to avoid paying the new tariffs by ordering Chinese products through an international distributor, let's say in Canada. Then the US will become dependent on Canada and on China. Each time they add new tariffs, that's cutting cheap supplies.
By the way, the same happens when you send illegal workforce away. Who will work as cheap as illegals?
All this won't help with the deficit economy.

Regards, Dieter

[Zero999]

The US consumer and industry might try to avoid paying the new tariffs by ordering Chinese products through an international distributor, let's say in Canada. Then the US will become dependent on Canada and on China. Each time they add new tariffs, that's cutting cheap supplies.
By the way, the same happens when you send illegal workforce away. Who will work as cheap as illegals?
All this won't help with the deficit economy.

Those are different issues.

Evading tariffs by routing through a different country is not illegal, just like avoiding tax, by moving one's assets abroad.

Employing illegal immigrants is, breaking the law. It is invariably accompanied by tax evasion and exploiting people: not paying the minimum wage, poor working conditions and long hours. Companies doing this, deserve to be shut down and their directors jailed. Losing their workforce due to deportations should be the least of their worries. The fact this doesn't happen is evidence to the level of corruption.

[SiliconWizard]

Whilst I don't think the way the tariffs have been implemented is a good idea, economics aren't the reason behind them. They're about reducing the US's reliance on China. Again, there are better ways to achieve this than simply piling on tariffs.

Are there? The only thing people in general and companies in particular understand is money.

[Zero999]

Whilst I don't think the way the tariffs have been implemented is a good idea, economics aren't the reason behind them. They're about reducing the US's reliance on China. Again, there are better ways to achieve this than simply piling on tariffs.

Are there? The only thing people in general and companies in particular understand is money.

Which is why we're in the current position: dependant on a country who wants to compete with us and is ideologically opposed to us, for our key industries. Think about what China could do to the West, if they wanted to.

[nctnico]

I'm NOT sure what to write here, to introduce the following video?

But can say, it is relatively low on the politics, so don't panic.
It seems to give a balanced view (but not 100% perfect), about the current US administration.
It seems to include AI and its effects/future and uses.

There is mention of the tariffs, and how economists, DON'T support them, and think they are a bad idea.

Sorry, I watched the first 20 seconds and it just seems like a TDS rant.

Thomas Sowell has a much more objective criticism of tariffs, because he's ideologically more on Trump's side of the isle. Here's a short clip of him talking about tariffs. It's part of a longer interview, but I found a clip of the part about tariffs, to avoid the off-topic stuff.

I also agree with much of the other things the current US administration are doing. I just disagree with the execution, rhetoric and sheer belligerence.

The execution by Trump et al is like somebody trying to adjust an analog spectrum analyser without reading the service manual and without understanding what a spectrum analyser does.

I don't think the comparison with the depression of the 1930s is apt though as world trade spans many more countries nowadays so the effect of one country is not so significant. Especially when you consider the enourmous amount of money the US has been borrowing from the rest of the world. Basically the US has borrowed money from other countries to buy stuff from other countries.

[krish2487]

I don't think the comparison with the depression of the 1930s is apt though as world trade spans many more countries nowadays so the effect of one country is not so significant. Especially when you consider the enourmous amount of money the US has been borrowing from the rest of the world. Basically the US has borrowed money from other countries to buy stuff from other countries.

Flip your words around and you have proof of opposite of your statement . :-)
You would think that the depression should have taught fiscal responsibility to the US but it looks like, as you mentioned, borrowed money from the rest of the world to fund their lifestyle leading us to where we find outselves today.

Again the fact that US is one country and has pretty much picked a fight with every other country in the world is significant enough to prove that while global trade is a more complex and nuanced topic, you can and do have spanners in the works like this which cause chaos.

I m not for or against your statement.. but I found it funny that looking at the events from another perspective pretty much disagree with the statement you have made.

[tom66]

Chinese airlines are no longer permitted to buy Boeing aircraft, in retaliation against US tariffs.  The cancellation will impact at least 10 new 737 Max aircraft and existing lease deals may not be renewed.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/apr/15/china-orders-airlines-to-halt-boeing-jet-deliveries-us-tariffs

[MK14]

Sorry, I watched the first 20 seconds and it just seems like a TDS rant.

Thomas Sowell has a much more objective criticism of tariffs, because he's ideologically more on Trump's side of the isle. Here's a short clip of him talking about tariffs. It's part of a longer interview, but I found a clip of the part about tariffs, to avoid the off-topic stuff.


I also agree with much of the other things the current US administration are doing. I just disagree with the execution, rhetoric and sheer belligerence.

Whilst I don't think the way the tariffs have been implemented is a good idea, economics aren't the reason behind them. They're about reducing the US's reliance on China. Again, there are better ways to achieve this than simply piling on tariffs.

Sorry about that.  I think the first 20 seconds (of some videos), can act as an approximately twenty second advert for the rest of the much longer video.  To help counter viewers, who have extremely short attention spans, and if they think it is NOT going to be exciting enough, they will immediately jump onto something else, and forget/ignore the original/current video.

Thanks for that video, I enjoyed watching it, and appreciate their comments.

Reading your comment, in full.  I get the impression, you have similar feelings, about the current US administration, such as some of what they are trying to do (just as you said), is potentially a good idea.  But things are just very poorly managed and implemented, which can easily turn good ideas, into a mismanaged mini-disaster.

[tggzzz]

...Reading your comment, in full.  I get the impression, you have similar feelings, about the current US administration, such as some of what they are trying to do (just as you said), is potentially a good idea.  But things are just very poorly managed and implemented, which can easily turn good ideas, into a mismanaged mini-disaster.

Read the public statements of people he chose to work with him in his previous administration. A horrifying proportion make very damning comments on his ability and suitability to be president.

Don't forget that Trump has declared bankruptcy 6 (six) times. That's not the hallmark of a good businessman. Once might be unfortunate, two careless, but six are...

I've seen (but not personally checked) credible calculations to the effect that if Trump had merely invested his enormous inheritance in the stock market, then he would be richer than he is today. That implies his business empire has generated negative personal wealth! Now he is doing that in a wider context.

The road to hell is paved with good intentions.  He has, apparently, had a bee in his bonnet about tariffs for decades, and has now enacted his dreams. Note previous paragraph.

Prediction: tariffs will cause inflation inside the US, and Trump will blame the Fed for not lowering interest rates.

[nctnico]

According to the latest news Trump is already blaming the Fed and looking to replace the head of the FED with a sock puppet.

[tggzzz]

According to the latest news Trump is already blaming the Fed and looking to replace the head of the FED with a sock puppet.

I'd heard he was after the Fed head's head.

I wasn't aware that he had already blamed the Fed for the future inflation and probable recession. Obviously I'm not surprised.

[Njk]

Thus spake someone with little, if any, experience of living outside Russia (presuming you aren't operating under a "false flag").

In some cases we have "soft metric" and "hard metric", e.g. 6"/154mm ceramic tiles vs 150mm tiles. Bloody annoying.

The everyday Imperial units are usually aligned with sizes convenient for everyday purposes. Even the Germans have a "pfund", i.e. 500g which is close to the Imperial pound 454g.

You're almost right about me. I'd spent about a decade working in Schaumburg, IL and visited many European countries at the shareholders' expense but I've zero experience in the UK. Never been there. Dublin does not count as it's not in UK. But each my colleague who were there and even my daughter who's working there are all agree that it's a very special country. One Indian guy has more strong opinion but it's up to him. Anyway, the world is big but I grew up in the metric part, from where the disadvantages of the outdated systems are clearly seen. My condolence.

[Monkeh]

Thus spake someone with little, if any, experience of living outside Russia (presuming you aren't operating under a "false flag").

In some cases we have "soft metric" and "hard metric", e.g. 6"/154mm ceramic tiles vs 150mm tiles. Bloody annoying.

The everyday Imperial units are usually aligned with sizes convenient for everyday purposes. Even the Germans have a "pfund", i.e. 500g which is close to the Imperial pound 454g.

You're almost right about me. I'd spent about a decade working in Schaumburg, IL and visited many European countries at the shareholders' expense but I've zero experience in the UK. Never been there. Dublin does not count as it's not in UK. But each my colleague who were there and even my daughter who's working there are all agree that it's a very special country. One Indian guy has more strong opinion but it's up to him. Anyway, the world is big but I grew up in the metric part, from where the disadvantages of the outdated systems are clearly seen. My condolence.

I suggest you try out the disadvantages of overnight converting the speed limits and signage on an entire road network from one system to another. That has nothing to do with national identity. As for pints - please, explain the disadvantage of them and the benefit in changing them..

[Analog Kid]

I suggest you try out the disadvantages of overnight converting the speed limits and signage on an entire road network from one system to another. That has nothing to do with national identity.

I think I already might have posted this li'l story here, but it's germane, so here 'tis:

I used to live in Tucson, in southern Arizona, which is pretty close to Nogales, situated on the Mexican border.
Back in the 19-ought-70s, when there were murmurs that the US was going to "go metric", some genius thought it would be a grand idea to change the speed signs on I-19, the road from Tucson to Nogales, to both metric and miles.

You can imagine the resulting confusion from this experiment, which was not helped by the fact that many who went down to Mexico from Tucson tended to come back slightly inebriated. It was quickly abandoned.

[Zero999]

...Reading your comment, in full.  I get the impression, you have similar feelings, about the current US administration, such as some of what they are trying to do (just as you said), is potentially a good idea.  But things are just very poorly managed and implemented, which can easily turn good ideas, into a mismanaged mini-disaster.

Read the public statements of people he chose to work with him in his previous administration. A horrifying proportion make very damning comments on his ability and suitability to be president.

Don't forget that Trump has declared bankruptcy 6 (six) times. That's not the hallmark of a good businessman. Once might be unfortunate, two careless, but six are...

I've seen (but not personally checked) credible calculations to the effect that if Trump had merely invested his enormous inheritance in the stock market, then he would be richer than he is today. That implies his business empire has generated negative personal wealth! Now he is doing that in a wider context.

The road to hell is paved with good intentions.  He has, apparently, had a bee in his bonnet about tariffs for decades, and has now enacted his dreams. Note previous paragraph.

Prediction: tariffs will cause inflation inside the US, and Trump will blame the Fed for not lowering interest rates.

Objectively speaking, Biden wasn't any more suitable to be president, but that didn't matter because others were pulling the strings. Unfortunately, Harries appeared to be equally ineffectual, going by her word salads, but again, she would have been controlled by others, maintaining the status quo.

The problem is, many of Trumps other policies are very popular are some are objectively more sane than the Democrats'. Hopefully the opposition will take note and come to the centre ground, in the next few years.

[Bud]

A few years ago Bojo declared UK is going back to Imperial. Had that ever happened?

[tggzzz]

A few years ago Bojo declared UK is going back to Imperial. Had that ever happened?

Yes repeat no.

The only difference I've seen is that a small number of greengrocers display prices per pound (lb, not GBP ).

On the few occasions I've been in to such stores, I've asked what the price is in shillings and pence. The shopkeepers scowl, I leave, and buy my fruit and veg in proper units in stores owned by immigrants.

The TL;DR is that it was just one of BoJo's trivial distractions.

[Njk]

I suggest you try out the disadvantages of overnight converting the speed limits and signage on an entire road network from one system to another. That has nothing to do with national identity. As for pints - please, explain the disadvantage of them and the benefit in changing them..

That's exactly about that. Enjoy your pint. All the fun starts when you have to do a calculations

[tggzzz]

...Reading your comment, in full.  I get the impression, you have similar feelings, about the current US administration, such as some of what they are trying to do (just as you said), is potentially a good idea.  But things are just very poorly managed and implemented, which can easily turn good ideas, into a mismanaged mini-disaster.

Read the public statements of people he chose to work with him in his previous administration. A horrifying proportion make very damning comments on his ability and suitability to be president.

Don't forget that Trump has declared bankruptcy 6 (six) times. That's not the hallmark of a good businessman. Once might be unfortunate, two careless, but six are...

I've seen (but not personally checked) credible calculations to the effect that if Trump had merely invested his enormous inheritance in the stock market, then he would be richer than he is today. That implies his business empire has generated negative personal wealth! Now he is doing that in a wider context.

The road to hell is paved with good intentions.  He has, apparently, had a bee in his bonnet about tariffs for decades, and has now enacted his dreams. Note previous paragraph.

Prediction: tariffs will cause inflation inside the US, and Trump will blame the Fed for not lowering interest rates.

Objectively speaking, Biden wasn't any more suitable to be president, but that didn't matter because others were pulling the strings. Unfortunately, Harries appeared to be equally ineffectual, going by her word salads, but again, she would have been controlled by others, maintaining the status quo.

The problem is, many of Trumps other policies are very popular are some are objectively more sane than the Democrats'. Hopefully the opposition will take note and come to the centre ground, in the next few years.

That's an irrelevant and unimportant straw man argument.

Trump's policies are, at the moment, still popular amongst people who haven't (yet) suffered much and are happy that people they hate are being hurt. Pastor Niemoller wrote a famous poem that is relevant https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_They_Came

[vad]

Evading tariffs by routing through a different country is not illegal, just like avoiding tax, by moving one's assets abroad.

If I understand tariffs correctly, they are applied based on the country of origin, not the country of shipment or transit. Importing Chinese-made goods from Canada without declaring them as originating from China is fraud punishable by law.

[tggzzz]

I suggest you try out the disadvantages of overnight converting the speed limits and signage on an entire road network from one system to another. That has nothing to do with national identity. As for pints - please, explain the disadvantage of them and the benefit in changing them..

That's exactly about that. Enjoy your pint. All the fun starts when you have to do a calculations

Usually you don't need to do calculations in Imperial units; they are just arbitrary numbers with convenient round numbers.

Otherwise, as I rapidly worked out as decimal currency was being introduced, base 10 is much easier than base3/6/8/12/24/240/etc.

As I've noted in The Other Place, I've recently laid my hands on an old mechanical calculator of the type we used at school. The manual provides an interesting insight into The Good Old Days [sic]. It is 95(!) pages long, of which basic +-*/ occupy about 10 pages, square root is only one page (there's a yooootoob vid of someone doing that; tedious in the extreme!), but the largest section is devoted to calculations in Imperial units and LSD.
https://teanonymous.com/f1/viewtopic.php?p=10267#p10267