The Dumbest Trade War Fallout Begins

Reaction to Tariffs and WSJ Editorial

• Commenters note the Wall Street Journal previously boosted Trump but is now criticizing tariffs as “dumb,” despite him clearly promising them.
• Several say investors and institutions assumed he was bluffing; prediction markets and banks had estimated low odds of tariffs actually being imposed.
• Some are surprised he followed through, since he often forgets or abandons other promises, though tariffs are seen as an easy power to exercise.

“Take Him Literally” vs 4D Chess

• One theme: people still interpret Trump “figuratively” or search for hidden codes (tie colors, symbolic gestures) instead of taking his explicit statements at face value.
• Others extend this to a general trend of “tea-leaf reading” and disinformation “firehose” tactics that drown out serious analysis.

Economic Impact and Voter Response

• Many expect higher prices for groceries, gas, and eggs, describing tariffs as a regressive tax on poor and middle-class consumers.
• Some hope rising prices will break the “MAGA trance”; others argue supporters will simply deny reality or blame Biden, Democrats, Canada, or abstract enemies.
• There is discussion of already rising egg prices (avian flu) and whether governments could moderate prices via targeted exemptions or supports.

Canada, Mexico, and Trade Relations

• Commenters highlight Canadian boycotts (e.g., American liquor) and a sharp drop in goodwill toward the US.
• People worry about the US reneging on USMCA/NAFTA, eroding trust and making the US a less reliable trade partner.
• One view sees tariffs on Canada as a way to prevent it serving as a backdoor to Mexico; others point out Mexico’s tariffs were delayed, suggesting a political rather than economic logic.

Deeper Motives: Incompetence vs Coordinated Strategy

• One camp sees Trump and his movement as economically illiterate, impulsively “pressing buttons” and burning bridges with no coherent plan.
• Another camp insists they are not dumb: tariffs and institutional attacks are interpreted as part of a broader, possibly plutocrat-driven strategy (often tied in comments to Project 2025, neoreactionary ideas, financial-system control, and “disaster capitalism”).
• Counterarguments question oligarch competence and predict that attempts to capture the system may instead trigger severe instability, possibly even violent backlash.

Fentanyl Justification and Annexation Talk

• Commenters note claims that only ~1% of US fentanyl comes via Canada, yet Canada is being hit as hard as Mexico and China.
• Many see the fentanyl rationale as pretext; some suspect personal animus toward Canada’s leadership or even alignment with Trump’s stated desire to “annex Canada,” though how literal this is meant to be remains disputed.

Meta: Politics, Flagging, and Hacker News

• Multiple users complain that Trump/Musk/DOGE threads are quickly flagged or buried, even when they have clear tech or economic relevance (e.g., Treasury payment systems, trade infrastructure).
• There’s tension between wanting HN to remain “about technology, not politics” and recognizing that trade policy and tech-influenced governance are directly relevant to the community.
• Some suspect organized or clique-based flagging; others see it as individual users avoiding polarizing content.