Trego's Mountain Ear

In general, I have a theoretical preference for free trade – yet I recall Moto’s explanation of Japan’s tariffs on rice.  By keeping the price of rice up, small farmers in Japan kept producing rice and kept the country able to feed itself. 

My thoughts go back to my most recent purchase from China.  It’s a harmonica, and cost about $26 delivered.  Under the new 125% tariff, the cost would be somewhere around $59.  My new Kongsheng harp is a little better than my old Frontier tremolo harp – but at $59, I would have never tried it out.  Even had I known it was a little better, I would have stayed with the harmonicas in the drawer.

Still, even with the tariff, it would be cheaper than a Hohner Echo harp at $90 – though I already have an Echo Harp.  I just usually pack the old Frontier around because it would cost less to replace.   I’m not really sure where Huang harmonicas are made – the Huang brothers once worked for Hohner, and advertise from Old Bethpage, New York. 

I don’t know about my baler twine – it has a shamrock on it, but the label says nothing about country of origin.  May or may not go up 125% – but the bailer has no value without twine. Parts for the Jin Ma tractor will definitely be included in the 125% tariff – but I’ve always found that, without replacement parts when you need them, a tractor can quickly become a heavy piece of yard art.  I’ll probably buy twine this week, and hope to get in while the tariffs are low.

This week, I purchased a couple of boxes of replacement fittings for my gas cans – about 9 dollars delivered.  All my plastic spouts had started cracking.  I’m not sure that these replacements will last any longer – and the boxes are labeled ‘made in china.’ 

I guess, from my perspective, a tariff is a sales tax that I can possibly avoid.