Drop the US Dollar - the Economic Nuclear Option. Is It Time?

[Felis Leo]

Nonsense.

The US will still buy stuff from other countries...but it'll be under a level playing field.

So just at much higher prices due to tariffs, correct? I can still buy that new Subaru Ascent, I will just have to pay 25% more. Okay. So how exactly has this improved your life, my life or any everyday working American who is not a super wealthy rentier?

 

[OrphanSlug]

Unsure why everyone is seemingly in the dark on this, but foreign nation dependency on the US Dollar as reserve status and/or used in international trade has already started to decline and that started years ago. The only thing that current events is doing to this is accelerating plans.

Example, the only reason Iran is holding onto their US dollars in reserve is to deal with their own currency. But that said trade with Russia, India, and Turkey was dropped using US Dollars as the exchange currency several years ago.

Another example, there is already pressure by various OPEC nations to no longer respect the old 1974 "petrodollar deal," not necessarily renewed or concluded there is no evidence that Saudi Arabia is only trading oil in the US Dollar.

Last example, the BRICS group (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) then dragging in Malaysia as well all formed new trade agreements without the US Dollar being the vehicle.

Now that ole Donald has upset a good 2/3rds of the planet... do you guys think that rate of dropping the US Dollar will suddenly slow down? Something else from the brain dead MAGA camp, you cannot trade war with nations causing all sorts of disruption then expect those nations to hold true to exchange exclusively in the US Dollar with other nations he's also upset.

 

[Lutherf]

Lutherf:

In a sense I agree but Mr. Trump initiated the crazy. Now when dealing with crazy leaders do crazy, crazy policy is required.

Be well.
Evilroddy

So you think Trump is ****ing everyone over with tariffs. What about the other countries that charge the US tariffs? Are their tariffs good and it's only US tariffs that are bad?

 

[Evilroddy]

So you think Trump is ****ing everyone over with tariffs. What about the other countries that charge the US tariffs? Are their tariffs good and it's only US tariffs that are bad?

Lutherf:

Tariffs which are targeted are a legitimate economic tool to redress grievances in an economic dispute between two nations. Multilateral tariffs fired like a shotgun across all economic sectors and at all trading partners is an economy killer and is profoundly irresponsible. I don't think any other country has tried to charge blanket tariffs against all other economies in the world before. Mr. Trump is a pioneer in economic stupidity in this respect. Why is he doing this? Because he has this notion that he can tax-farm the world by charging blanket tariffs to all foreign nations. Well he can try but those foreign nations have no obligation to protect his country's economy if he chooses to enter into global economic warfare with the other 7.6 billion souls who live on this planet other than with Mr. Trump's America. If Mr. Trump wants to start a global economic war, then fine but the rest of the world will do their best to finish it and finish Mr. Trump and his administration too. , by fair and foul economic means. I call it global exceptionalism.

Mr. Trump is having you all on and you're falling for his BS. He will only talk about commodities trade surpluses but never about service trade deficits, capital in-flows and foreign investment in the US economy. The US economy is raking in huges amount of money by these other pathways which more than offset you commodities and manufactured goods trade deficits. As to jobs, if American or foreign firms are going to invest in building plants in America, assuming they will risk doing so, they will make sure such plants minimise the need for human labour and your workers will be screwed anyway. If you want more employment, then cooperate with your trading partners and do deals rather than holding economic guns to their heads. Build more homes? Buy more Canadian lumber at low prices as well as higher priced American lumber too and then start building millions of reasonably small and low priced starter homes each year all over the USA. What a construction boom that would spark. If you want more jobs, better cooperate with integrated supply chains and increase quality while reducing production costs for more cars, trucks, trains, etc. Low cost Canadian steel and aluminium in US ships and buildings would result in more ships and buildings being built and more employment.

Be well and be safe.
Evilroddy.

 

[Lutherf]

Lutherf:

Tariffs which are targeted are a legitimate economic tool to redress grievances in an economic dispute between two nations. Multilateral tariffs fired like a shotgun across all economic sectors and at all trading partners is an economy killer and is profoundly irresponsible. I don't think any other country has tried to charge blanket tariffs against all other economies in the world before. Mr. Trump is a pioneer in economic stupidity in this respect. Why is he doing this? Because he has this notion that he can tax-farm the world by charging blanket tariffs to all foreign nations. Well he can try but those foreign nations have no obligation to protect his country's economy if he chooses to enter into global economic warfare with the other 7.6 billion souls who live on this planet other than with Mr. Trump's America. If Mr. Trump wants to start a global economic war, then fine but the rest of the world will do their best to finish it and finish Mr. Trump and his administration too. , by fair and foul economic means. I call it global exceptionalism.

Mr. Trump is having you all on and you're falling for his BS. He will only talk about commodities trade surpluses but never about service trade deficits, capital in-flows and foreign investment in the US economy. The US economy is raking in huges amount of money by these other pathways which more than offset you commodities and manufactured goods trade deficits. As to jobs, if American or foreign firms are going to invest in building plants in America, assuming they will risk doing so, they will make sure such plants minimise the need for human labour and your workers will be screwed anyway. If you want more employment, then cooperate with your trading partners and do deals rather than holding economic guns to their heads. Build more homes? Buy more Canadian lumber at low prices as well as higher priced American lumber too and then start building millions of reasonably small and low priced starter homes each year all over the USA. What a construction boom that would spark. If you want more jobs, better cooperate with integrated supply chains and increase quality while reducing production costs for more cars, trucks, trains, etc. Low cost Canadian steel and aluminium in US ships and buildings would result in more ships and buildings being built and more employment.

Be well and be safe.
Evilroddy.

So, basically, when other countries impose tariffs on the US that's a good thing but when the US imposes tariffs that's a bad thing because Trump. I thing I understand your argument.

 

[Ishm]

That appears to be unfolding in the Vietnam case. Vietnam has offered to remove its tariffs, but the US says it may not be enough; that China may outflank the tariffs on it by routing through Vietnam.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/04/07/peter-navarro-says-vietnams-0percent-tariff-offer-is-not-enough-its-the-non-tariff-cheating-that-matters.html

That has been happening for a while already with Chinese companies manufacturing in Vietnam. Similar with Mexico I believe, which has been good for both Vietnam and Mexican economies, while causing job losses in China and hurting them. The stupid thing is that this is already damaging China, while helping friendly nations, so that is a big part of Trumps initial plan already achieved. The 2nd part seems to be that Trump now wants a lot of relatively low value manufacturing brought from Vietnam, Mexico etc to the US, and that to me is stunningly stupid. We don't have the unemployed people for that, so would need to staff the factories etc with new migrant labour, and even then we would just be raising prices for US consumers. Given the maga hate for migrants in general (non-white ones at least), do they want more new migrants and higher prices to achieve what??

 

[Mycroft]

Mycroft:

Hmm, "under a level playing field" not on it? Are you planning to bury the bodies there? Mr. Freud want's his slip back. He needs to lend it to J. Edgar Hoover!

Be well.
Evilroddy.

yawn...

Maybe I should have said "under the rules of a level playing field".

But hey...you can go ahead and play your words games. I'm not interested in playing with you.

Bye.

 

[Mycroft]

So just at much higher prices due to tariffs, correct? I can still buy that new Subaru Ascent, I will just have to pay 25% more. Okay. So how exactly has this improved your life, my life or any everyday working American who is not a super wealthy rentier?

You'll be able to buy that new Subaru at a reasonable price if Subaru makes the car in the US.

 

[joluoto]

Yes, it's time to dump the dollar. Why should we trade in dollars, we have a perfectly fine currency here.