by elmerfud | 2025-04-03 17:33:31+00:00
So I read up until I got to the first imaginary conversation that is making a strawman argument that is completely incorrect about what tariffs are and what reciprocal tariffs are. At that point it became obvious that this article is not a genuine article done in good faith to discuss the pros and cons and issues around it. It's just more media looking for clicks and views to hate on Trump without citing real valid reasons to dislike certain Trump policies.

I find it kind of funny that not very many months ago there was lots of extremely strange things coming out of the Biden administration but those things couldn't be monetized into clicks and views for the media so it went largely unreported on. I'm not saying the media is for or against a certain political party but they are definitely for stirring up the pot to line their own pockets. Because an actual honest discussion wouldn't be nearly as interesting to people even though there are many valid criticisms. Valid criticisms are very boring and make people turn back to TikTok.

So let's put forth an actual description of tariffs and reciprocal tariffs that a fifth grader could understand and would actually agree with them being in place.

"Imagine you live on a big busy street and you decide you're going to sell cookies on the street. Your cookies are very popular but you're only selling to people on your side of the street all of the eastbound traffic wants to stop and buy a cookie from you. You see your friend Billy on the opposite side of the street and he's selling lemonade. He's doing great in his lemonade stand everyone heading westbound his stopping and buying his lemonade.

So you talk to your friend Billy and you say hey Billy how about I put some cookies over on your lemonade stand and when people buy the lemonade they can also buy a cookie. Billy says that's a great idea and I'll give you some lemonade you can put it on your cookie stand when they stop to buy cookies they can buy some lemonade too.

This works out well now both of you are doubling your profits because now you're selling to both east and westbound traffic but one day Billy realizes that people are only buying one cup of lemonade but they've started to buy two cookies. Billy is a little upset because now you're making more profit off of your cookies than he is on his lemonade. So he goes and says to you one day well you want to keep selling your cookies at my lemonade stand I'm going to need 20% of the cost to go to me. Then you turn around and tell Billy well then I'm also going to need 20% of the cost of your lemonade that is sold at my cookie stand to go to me.

Billy begins to scream that that's unfair because you're selling twice as many cookies and how dare you charge him a tariff to sell his lemonade."

This describes reciprocal tariffs in a way of fifth grader could understand and a fifth grader would look at that and be like what the hell. If he's going to charge me to sell my cookies at his place I'm going to charge him the same to sell his lemonade because that's fair.

Now you can criticize the policy obviously this is an oversimplified version and doesn't reflect true global trade but it's described in a way of fifth grader would understand and call bullshit on.