I’m skeptical of the idea that student protesters typically identify the optimal solution to the problems they identify.
They may be correct in identifying and calling attention to issues, but many of the solutions I’ve seen proposed by protesters at colleges seem at best tangential to addressing the issues.
Tarrifs are only a positive in cases where they are conditioned on labor, environmental, and other externalities being priced in and regional subsidies being countered. That seems like the case here.
But I suspect that the threat is being used as a negotiation tactic and China will call the bluff.
You’re defining “work” as Chinese manufactured EVs having less market share. But if that means everyone that buys pays more for an EV and fewer EVs are sold, did it result in the most benefit for American citizens? What about the rest of the world’s population, in which situation is the net benefit greater?
You seem to have presented a non sequitur based argument.
I wasn’t making any positive claims. I was clarifying the terms of what one might consider “working”. And how we may want to consider how we value people without regard to geopolitical boarders.
If the only goal is to reduce emissions, your concerns of the production and use of more EVs should absolutely be taken into account. However, I don’t think that should be the only concern when thinking about the ethics of the proposed policy.
FYI - Cooking indoors on electric power sources also screws indoor air quality anytime any fats or organic matter reaches its smoke point or burns. In fact, relative to the food, the methane heat source isn’t as big a factor.
I’m not trying to downplay the pollutants from incomplete burning of methane (or other gas) combustion. I’m trying to highlight that it isn’t the only consideration when discussion policy or making personal decisions.
Cooking with an electric heat source will produce an equal amount of pollutants from burning oils and organic matter compared to a gas heat source. But a methane or other gas heat source will produce additional (and different) pollutants. Ventilation is important in both scenarios.
What People Forget about Student Protesters? They’re Usually Right (thewalrus.ca)
From apartheid to Gaza, university campuses remain crucial arenas for political change...
History says tariffs rarely work, but U.S. President Biden’s 100% tariffs on Chinese EVs could defy the trend, researcher says (theconversation.com)
By Tinglong Dai, Bernard T. Ferrari Professor of Business, Johns Hopkins University...
Can electric woks produce great stir-fry? (grist.org)