- Posts
- 795
- Likes
- 2,124
fiberguy
·That being the case, why does it not make sense to continue to export what we are exceptional at and import the things that we cannot make that cheaply?
Originally about tariffs and watches ... now just political rambling
Locked
- Posts
- 2,779
- Likes
- 14,819
The Father
·Then, I think you would probably agree that is really hard to combat and still pay American workers a fair living wage. And I think we both agree, generally, that people in America deserve to live within reasonable means.
That being the case, why does it not make sense to continue to export what we are exceptional at and import the things that we cannot make that cheaply?
Damn, if I said that some OF'ers would be howling xenophobia since it implies the Chinese(or India, Pakistan, Viet Nam etc. etc.) do not deserve to live within reasonable means.
Erich, sorry to say, but you will get some nasty PM's from some of these guys.
- Posts
- 3,666
- Likes
- 7,787
ErichPryde
··Seamasters ForeverAmerica deserves to live within reasonable means?
Damn, if I said that some OF'ers would be howling xenophobia since it implies the Chinese(or India, Pakistan, Viet Nam etc. etc.) do not deserve to live within reasonable means.
Erich, sorry to say, but you will get some nasty PM's from some of these guys.
I won't, and I haven't/ don't expect I will. Even when I have deeply disagreed with members openly, I have never received a nasty pm from anyone on this forum. Not once.
the statement wasn't exclusive, even if the subject group was inclusive. There was no implication, however- I did mention earlier how important it is to be aware that our choices have consequences elsewhere in the world.
Edited:
- Posts
- 12,967
- Likes
- 22,493
Davidt
·[/QUOTE]
Come on now, there’s no need to bring reasoned arguments into this.
That being the case, why does it not make sense to continue to export what we are exceptional at and import the things that we cannot make that cheaply?
Come on now, there’s no need to bring reasoned arguments into this.
- Posts
- 901
- Likes
- 4,169
lindo
·Come on now, there’s no need to bring reasoned arguments into this.
[/QUOTE]
In today's world, aren't reasoned arguments now fake news?
- Posts
- 822
- Likes
- 1,399
8100_RPM
·I fully agree that these tariffs are driving trade deals - the question is how many of those trade deals will involve the US. There's a risk premium in US assets that wasn't there previously...where will that premium end up and what impact will it have with the ability of the US to make deals. The US has already broken trade deals, so why would we think any new deals will hold?
As an American, it is sad to see us lose our credibility.
- Posts
- 16,856
- Likes
- 47,862
STANDY
··schizophrenic pizza orderer and watch collectorThis is BY FAR, the least interesting thread I’ve ever seen on OF.
It’s disappointing, I thought this was a watch forum, not a Fox News/MSNBC comment section….
Is there a way to block this thread from showing in my feed?
- Posts
- 468
- Likes
- 1,174
Wlcutter
·This is BY FAR, the least interesting thread I’ve ever seen on OF.
It’s disappointing, I thought this was a watch forum, not a Fox News/MSNBC comment section….
Is there a way to block this thread from showing in my feed?
Personally, it's forced me to think a fair amount less about trade policy and more generally about industrial policy, and I've ended up thinking of it through the lens of watches because of this thread. Take Switzerland. They have done a phenomenal job of protecting watches as an industry, establishing rules which allow Swiss companies to be successful (the Rube-Goldberg-esque requirements of "swiss made" being a great example, or the fact that movement makers [Sellita, in my experience] will only sell COSC-certified movements to Swiss companies). Extrapolating from there, we can say: sure, Switzerland values its capacity as a global center for watches, and has done an excellent job prioritizing that.
Regardless of what/how anyone thinks about the current admin and the tariffs the president has enacted/paused/etc, as an American, what has been made clear is how little consensus there seems to be about what America is in terms of its manufacturing. The tariffs strike me as fairly arbitrary, and reliant on questionable math, but more than that, they're universal (in bad ways) and almost clumsy. ALL American products are protected. Which: fine, people can have whatever opinions they want. But it is striking, and that central q—what America is, what we're known for making, what we want to be known for making—is (at least for me) really fascinating and worth considering more deeply. If folks want tariffs, great. But wouldn't tariffs be more successful if implemented in ways that protect prioritized American industries? If so, what are those industries/exports?
- Posts
- 1,776
- Likes
- 7,029
- Posts
- 650
- Likes
- 2,127
- Posts
- 3,666
- Likes
- 7,787
ErichPryde
··Seamasters ForeverIn the interest of getting this thread back on topic (lol), Trump has stated that tariffs on Chinese goods will come down substantially. My very serious questions are what deal or promises were secured from China that he made this statement; or, what jobs are we creating that backing off the tariffs now makes sense?
- Posts
- 3,666
- Likes
- 7,787
ErichPryde
··Seamasters ForeverA pointless post in a borderline off topic thread? haha. I didn't see your post as pointless at all. This thread absolutely does not fit the mold most of us are used to on OF so I think your mixed reaction was completely reasonable.
- Posts
- 696
- Likes
- 2,382
vintage hab
·In the interest of getting this thread back on topic (lol), Trump has stated that tariffs on Chinese goods will come down substantially. My very serious questions are what deal or promises were secured from China that he made this statement; or, what jobs are we creating that backing off the tariffs now makes sense?
- Posts
- 3,666
- Likes
- 7,787
ErichPryde
··Seamasters Foreverand reliant on questionable math,
I think it's fairly important that we universally recognize that the math itself is not questionable; it's the statement of what the math is all about that is outright false.
May seem like a distinction without merit? It's not.
- Posts
- 29,246
- Likes
- 75,644
Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerNothing was secured from China. China has stated that they will not negotiate under threat or duress. What's changed is the market is reacting negatively and there is real concern about a recession. For the same reason, the orange-man has said he will not fire Powell.
- Posts
- 2,588
- Likes
- 2,872
texasmade
·In the interest of getting this thread back on topic (lol), Trump has stated that tariffs on Chinese goods will come down substantially. My very serious questions are what deal or promises were secured from China that he made this statement; or, what jobs are we creating that backing off the tariffs now makes sense?
- Posts
- 3,666
- Likes
- 7,787
ErichPryde
··Seamasters ForeverTrump announced 500% tariffs or something like that. If he just says 40% tariffs instead of whatever previous amount he announced, he can say tariffs are reduced.
Nothing was secured from China. China has stated that they will not negotiate under threat or duress. What's changed is the market is reacting negatively and there is real concern about a recession. For the same reason, the orange-man has said he will not fire Powell.
Ignoring the bit about Powell for a second since he can't do that (and makes the fear surrounding that topic complicated)
Help me understand the strategy here. Trump said (quoted in context):
"I'm not going to say 'oh, I'm going to play hardball with China...' no, no. We're going to be very nice... but ultimately they have to make a deal..."
How does this help bring jobs back into America? How does this force China to "make a deal?"
I guess give it more time?
- Posts
- 13,131
- Likes
- 18,033
gatorcpa
··ΩF InvestiGatorHow does this help bring jobs back into America?
It took us 80 years to get here. It's not going to get fixed in four.
How does this force China to "make a deal?
What Trump didn't count on was the negative reactions by American companies to having their entire pricing models upended and China diversifying their currency holdings by selling US dollar denominated bonds. Why this wasn't anticipated is beyond my comprehension. I certainly do not need a Harvard MBA to see this coming.
A horrible miscalculation and further evidence of this administration's incompetence in macroeconomic matters.
gatorcpa
- Posts
- 29,246
- Likes
- 75,644
Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerIn high school, my friends and I used to debate: are we going to end up more like Brave New World or 1984? I'm currently thinking that the Handmaid's Tale is actually the winner.
Veterans Affairs asks employees to report 'anti-Christian bias' for investigation by new task force
Praise be....
- Posts
- 61
- Likes
- 27
Goseki
·At this point, is a deal with the US really worth the paper it is written on? We've already seen someone whine about NAFTA and then sign the "best agreement we've ever made" in USMCA. Then he declares "Who would ever sign a thing like this?" All it takes is a temper tantrum for someone to renege on a deal so why would anyone sign a trade deal with the US right now?
As an American, it is sad to see us lose our credibility.
This is the scariest thing imo. This is a luxury watch forum, most ppl here will be able to weather through tough times. Having America turn into a place where long term deals can't be trusted makes the future economic outlook pretty damn bleak. I can't imagine pouring any reasonable amount of money into a venture when there's such a a high risk that so many cost variables can change in the blink of an election. I don't see how this doesn't kill any startups for the foreseeable future.