Trade War--Right for Wrong Reason?

This photo illustrates something never mentioned in the discussions of Trump's Trade War: 1)The coffee carafe bought a couple years back has a broken spring in the small handle that allows the liquid out. 2)The bath poof, barely 6 months old, is pulling out of its center sewing. 3) The egg slicer barely a year old, has two broken wires. (I had one in my Denver kitchen for 15 years). The cute little carrot-marker I bought for the garden got a chip in it before it even got to the garden!

The people discussing the trade war are fond of citing cheap products as an advantage. Are they? Many are made of plastic and tons we are importing from China are filling up our landfills, fouling the ground water--which is now the drinking water in most Iowa cities because the surface water is tainted with nitrates.

It was stupid to buy these shabby products, but a trade war that slows them down inadvertently benefits us all!

Who Pays for Industrial Ag Damage?

    No surprise: YOU! One way or another. 

    Here’s how: the corner of Tyler Street by Cascade Elementary was seriously damaged last month. In the first picture you see Cascade Utility flags, and a metal pipe protruding (the blue spot in the 2nd photo.)

     There has suddenly been an increase of very large 18-wheeler-semi type vehicles on this street. Last week, an immense tractor with 4 huge wheels on back and four on front. Very likely one of them hit the curb. The volume of this traffic is going to mean that the city is going to have to replace the street far sooner. When I was on council we had to pay to install a more expensive concrete street with rebar in it by Wayne Feeds to deal with this traffic.

  Since City Administrator Deanna McCusker didn’t know anything about the repair, it is has to be the Utility.  That means in any case—citizens of the city, through their utility bills, or city taxes paid.  

    Cities may have to restrict these vehicles in order to control the damage they do.