Tariffs, Brazil and Copper

US President, Donald J Trump has slapped a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil. He's said that's due to the prosecution of the former President of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro. 

What I've noticed is that critics of Trump are rushing to the defense of Brazil. Hang on though, isn't it possible that Donald Trump is correct?

I'll explain: Brazil is not exactly a bastion of free and fair elections, and its judicial system is not highly regarded either. Political candidates are assassinated, elections are stolen, and the police are corrupt. So, it is possible for the election in which Bolsonaro was standing was rigged.

Then, Bolsonaro tried to launch a coup. Brazil has a long history of coups and military rule, so it's also believable that a coup would be a response to a rigged election.

It is also possible that Trump saw all this, and has reacted. The question then needs to be asked, are tariffs an appropriate response? Well, it's one response, I suppose.

Then Trump imposed a 50% tariff on Copper imports. Copper prices shot up after the news, and people are complaining. Well yes, but copper is not an ore that is hard to find and the US has many copper mines, and further mines either sitting there unused, dormant, or undergoing permitting. This is one area where a tariff can have the effect of boosting local production and creating jobs. It's not like the rare earth elements argument, resources which are commonplace but countries like the US lack the refining or processing capacity.

As the actress said to the bishop - it's complicated.

Predictions 2025

I'm going to stick my neck out and say that I think these predictions will be 100% incorrect: The claim is that China is about to collapse, followed by Brazil. Then, the developing world will collapse. 

How likely is that? Too calamitous, I've been hearing about the imminent collapse of China and Brazil for decades now, and it hasn't happened.

Brazil: Insurrection?

After all that has gone on these last few years, I'm not buying into what the mainstream media are reporting about the events taking place in Brazil. This scepticism is fueled by worldwide coverage (see link below) describing the events in extreme terms. The term 'far right' is also used often.

It all has the look of orchestration, possibly with genuine protesters mixed in. My guess is there were a lot of agent provocateurs in Brasilia, just as on January 6 2021 in Washington DC. There is a consistent theme whereby the MSM label any opposition to left-wing government as 'far right'. It doesn't matter one jot that many of these opponents and protesters are probably left-wing themselves.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jan/09/brazil-riot-palace-attack-bolsonaro-far-right-supporters-lula

Brazil Stops Reporting COVID19 Numbers

Brazil is no longer reporting COVID19 numbers according to news media. It makes sense, there is no need to whip up hysteria. While the virus is serious, it turns out to not be anywhere near as lethal as was first thought. Countries don't give daily press briefings about influenza and nor should they COVID19. If every death or serious illness led the news cycle, there would be panic.

And why the reporting of raw numbers of those infected and those that have died? As a proportion of world population the numbers are actually quite small. When looked at as a raw number the number of deaths look scary. But as a proportion of the world population, the numbers would look inconsequential.