"Greatest negotiator in history."
"Greatest businessman in the world."
Isn't that the grift?
But doesn't understand basic economic policies?
What's a Tarrif?
The nuts and bolts of it?
Let's say that you have a small mom and pop shop that makes.
I dunno.
Candied Nuts.
They get their nuts from a little farm in Mexico.
Their sugar from Hawaii.
Their pots and pans from China.
Their paper bags from Canada.
At least that's what it was like before the "great negotiator" showed up.
So these nuts people like?
They love em.
Everybody just loves a handful of nuts in their mouth when walking around the park.
The Nut people are making a living.
Doing decent enough they're able to open a secondary location.
Between the two they're able to hire more people, donate some of their profits to community organizations, and maintain self sufficiency within the market.
An "investor" sees this model, copies it, then finds the where this small business gets their supplies.
Tells the supplier they can buy 10 times the amount mom and pop are if the supplier cuts them a 20% discount.
From the suppliers point they're see this offer and say
"Yeah sure, that's a good deal."
Then the investor sets up their shop.
Seeing that mom and pop hire more people than they need to cover their daily operations the investor hires fewer people and "saves" more money.
This is where Tariffs come in.
The Tariffs are meant to be placed on the investor as they enter the market place.
To equalize their pricing with Mom and Pop.
Because remember.
Mom and Pop only need 3 people for shop coverage.
Mom and Pop hire 10 people and pays them $15/hr because that's' what they can afford.
Investor needs 3 people so, they hire 2 people at $20/hr.
"saving" $10 per labor hour.
The people being hired think they're getting a good wage.
Not realizing they're going to have to work twice as hard.
And when they're worn out.
They hire a "manager" at $20/hr, and two helpers at $10/hr.
Still "saving" $5/Lhr
So they take that $5/lhr "saved" and cut the price under Mom and Pop pulling income from them.
Eventually Mom and Pop can't afford to keep the operation open even with only 3 people.
So.
The investor says. "I can set you up. Here's more money than you'll make in the next 10 years"
Then the investor opens "Mom and Pops Nuts" in other markets.
Paying managers $15 and hour and workers as little as the law will allow.
Mom and Pop are being undercut on price and can't keep everyone on staff anymore.
The people that Mom and Pop can't afford to pay anymore, with experience and work ethic, are offered those management positions.
How would/should a Tarif be leveraged in this position?
Well.
On the investor.
To make their prices equivalent too or greater than Mom and Pop.
"That's not fair!" Yells the investor.
"Fuck you Bezos" I say.
Because under the current system:
Not only is the investor able to do these kinds of things; with deeper pockets they turn to the government and say "We have so many poor people working for us, we need subsidies to support them because we can 't possibly pay them a living wage. Look at how thin our profit margins are!"
"Fuck you Sam" I say.
So not only does the investor come into a market and disrupt it, able to absorb massive losses long enough to force Mom and Pops out of the market, once Mom and Pop are gone there's no balance in the market to keep the investor from doing this to other businesses.
The investor starts removing resources from the market so that they can subsidize the same plan in other markets.
So not only are the people in the market being paid less, offered fewer benefits, working harder.
They're being told "It's your fault for not working hard enough" the community is watching everything they built and worked for slowly being eroded away from underneath them.
Then investor comes in and says "Oh no, look at how terrible this market is. I can help, I have people I can bring in and fix it."
And then gentrification of the market begins.
Let's rewind.
the investor enters the market.
The investor is Tariffed to a level that equalizes them against Mom and Pop.
Mom and Pop continue operating as they were.
The investor is forced to compete on wages, service, and quality.
Then it's up to Mom and Pop to show the market, the people, why theirs is better.
People with bad wigs think Tariffs are an income source.
Tariffs are supposed to be put back into the market place.
Through infrastructure support.
For instance.
By putting those tariffs into, I dunno, the Post office.
Then shipping costs for the Mom and Pop equalize to the bulk pricing the investor is able to leverage.
Not just for Mom and Pop,
But also for
The small farm in Mexico so that they're less dependent on bulk buyers offering them less by the pound.
The Hawaiian Sugar can't be locked down to price out Mom and Pop.
The Pots and Pans from China keep a standard price whether they're stocked in a big box retailer or a tiny bodega on a hilltop in Colorado.
And paper bags from Canada that biodegrade into mulch can be scooped up by farmers in the area growing fresh fruits and veggies. Giving them, essentially, free coverage to protect their crops from weather snaps and other environmental hazards.
But hey.
What do I know?
I've only restructured the logistics of companies large and small.
From Non profit to billion dollar corporations.
I tell you.
Mom and Pops are usually like "That's so cool, we can hire more people now!"
Billion dollar companies say "But the investors won't get all the profits."
No shit.
The investors get paid back with a nice bag of nuts to munch on from time to time.
"See see seee!! Jack's a communist, a dirty socialist, he's anticapitalist, anti american!!"
Fuck Off.
I just can't stand an unbalanced equation.
I hyper focus on it until it balances out.
It's just...Math.
My philosophy on this:
For a nation to be successful you need three things to keep each other balanced.
A Communist Military
A Socialist Government
A Capitalist Market
"Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa, put the pitchforks down, here me out before you string me up."
When someone enlists they do so with the understanding that when their uniform returns home, full or empty, their loved ones will be taken care of because of their service.
That's communism.
The government is meant to maintain infrastructure and arbiter the rules of war and logistics.
That's socialism.
You need a playing field for those that need the thrill of the hunt to play in with others like them
That's Football.
That's capitalism.
Right now, in the game of capitalism?
There aren't salary caps.
The refs are watching and being bullied by the coaches instead of paying attention to the game.
And no one is checking the balls for tampering.
And a good chunk of the refs are on the field tripping players, moving the ball, and giving passes to players actively trying injure other players.
"If you're so good at this stuff where are your Billions Jack."
Oh.
Because I only take what I need and leave the rest to everyone else.
If I were someone that was playing the game instead of trying to ref it?
If you pulled together my entire portfolio and quantified it the way the ultra rich do?
Honey.
Not hyperbole.
I could buy and sell Bezos, Zuckerberg, and Musk 5 times over and still have enough left for a bagel and a coffee.
"Bull shit."
"I'll wait while you do your due diligence."
The reason people that know me listen and those that don't are afraid of me?
Because I don't do it to get rich or consolidate power.
I do it for the love of the game and to protect the little guy.
"With great power comes great responsibility."
e pluribus unum
