Those jobs should be lost to automation, like Jesus intended.

Sensitive electronics higher priority. Not so much the cameras but the main boards controlling processing. Same with batteries except they are likely more interdependent due to cooling safety. Less risk on components peripherals. Unfortunately at present China has the lead, scale, and government industrial support to make cheapest. Fuel efficient cars maybe make a comeback. Japanese Kei light low power help reduce consumption for those that do not need a big power pickup or SUV or Van.

that died with his trade war.

I mean... kind of.

I am not concerned about the random surveillance tech built in to my car. To me that is a red herring: it sounds plausible, but does it matter whether it is Chinese or American spyware in my car?

He is right that China subsidizes entire industries to become rapidly and wildly successful. China does this in ways that we cannot compete with: not by cutting a fat check to a single manufacturer, but by providing a favorable environment for the entire industry to succeed -no matter the human o

Americans aren't paid enough to be able to afford American-made products. Simultaneously, American workers cost so much that it is way more profitable to do the manufacturing in foreign countries.

This isn't going to be fixed by encouragement, nor by tariffs or import bans. This will just recreate the conditions of the late 1920s when warehouses were awash with consumer products that nobody could afford to buy. It was one of the factors that plunged us into a depression, and it absolutely can happen again.

We are going to need another decade-long depression to fix this.

I mean, maybe in theory it would be possible to fix this through the right balance of regulation that blocks cheap imports AND pulls wages up AND stimulates more factory construction in America so the products we need will be available in sufficient amounts, AND keeps the prices down through competition. It may be slightly more possible for simians to aviate from my posterior, however. The people who must sacrifice the most for that to happen are the very people who hold all the political power (since the USA functions as an oligarchy, and only appears to function as a democracy).

So, a good old-fashioned depression will hit the holdings of the super-rich hard enough that actual meaningful regulation can come out of it. Though it will be all the rest of us who suffer from it the most.

I would really like to be proven wrong about this. I only know what I have learned about economics from a few elective courses in college. Maybe someone who knows more about this than I do can provide a more realistic narrative and prediction.

> He's Not Wrong... Cheap Chinese cars would be devastating to the America auto industry and to Trump's re-homing of manufacturing goals.

Not true at all. Or, rather, it depends on some time scales and definitions.

The same way that there is no such thing as a "selfless" act - no one acts selflessly. They just value different goals in their assessment of selfishness. Selflessness is simply selfishness on a longer time scale or with a wider scope.

Chinese cars will be disruptive to the US auto industry, but devastating... that depends on what you mean. One could argue, and I would tend to agree, that the continuing artificial protections are

How about " CEO says the US can no longer compete with China on " ?

Obviously. They also messed up keeping current because just raking in money was more important. And now they try to blame somebody else for their screw-up.

If he can the keep the show on the road till then, he'll be fine...

In the game of Executive Musical Chairs, where C-suite residents change companies and industries as often as they change underwear, the goal is to just not be sitting in the corner office when the music stops and let the results of your shitty short-term decisions be someone else's problem. He doesn't actually care about the long-term, only that his employer doesn't crater until after he's cashed out and gone off to loot some other company.

The thing is, I like slave labor, when the slaves are machines. I want to work Bender 24 hours a day, and if he complains about it, I'll deny him his alcohol ration! Fuckin' clankers and skinjobs don't have any rights to infringe.

The catch to that , is that over here on my side of the ocean, I don't see and can't inspect Bender working way over in China, so I can't be sure the drudgery is experienced by the 6502 in Bender's head. How do I know he isn't just relaying commands to his servos and motors, which w

> But I don't think any of that applies to a CEO that makes millions.

And comparatively, their U.S. workers *are* slave labor and the rich and Republicans seem okay with that -- pushing for fewer/lower worker safety regulations, less affordable / available healthcare and more expensive insurance, cutting and/or further restricting social safety nets. etc... They're okay with poorer people simply working themselves to death. /cynical

> Among progressives there's a phrase. Do you want you can, when you can, for as long as you can.

Depends where they fall on the political spectrum. Go too far to the left and you get folks who hate EVs because in their mind everyone should just be living in a walkable city and riding a bicycle. *wink*

Being pragmatic involves realizing that socioeconomic issues are often complex, and if the "solution" fits in a tweet, it's probably not going to work out as you'd imagined it.

Ford doesn't get nearly what the CCP gives their manufacturers.

The CCP wants China to own/control certain industries. The auto industry is one of them. They MASSIVLEY subsidize to get this advantage. This is the result.

[1]https://www.reuters.com/invest... [reuters.com]

The consequence is a severely unlevel playing field that drives other car companies out of business.

[1] https://www.reuters.com/investigations/china-is-sending-its-world-beating-auto-industry-into-tailspin-2025-09-17/

The sad thing is that with stupid voters, this works for a while. Obviously all you get at the end is a far bigger problem than what you had before.

Rather, we should NOT compete ! In America automation ought to be lost to guild-level jobs. Automation is a cultural virus of 18-th Century optimism. That optimism of usefully reducing human drugery proved faulty. Instead of a better quality products culture we discover exponentially growing numbers of ego-minded service tasks ... like a slave culture . Put the craftsman back at his bench and the woman back on her loom or wheel. I advise killing the parasite -- automation

Right, not everyone wants a large vehicle. Not everyone is an automotive enthusiast. Seems that's what the big three don't understand. Some just want to get around town/to and from work. No passengers in my car. I don't care if it has a cheap plastic interior. It was inexpensive to purchase.It was cheap on gas; easy to park; easy to maintain. The 5-speed manual made it fun. I got 245K miles out of it. I have other priorities for my money. I don't need to prop-up my ego with an 8 year car loan.

You’re going to buy a car that measures mileage in telephone poles per gallon? This startup is going to be good test if the market really wants a barebones EV truck [1]https://www.slate.auto/ [slate.auto]

[1] https://www.slate.auto/

Sadly no they don't. BYD cars are just like Tesla and anything sold on the market today. Big screens, always-on connectivity.

The EV perveyors say the screens and always-on internet connection are important so you can make sure to get maximum efficiency and make sure you can find a charging station. Some EVs even require you to use GPS navigation in order to properly prepare the battery for a fast charge! Apparently tactile controls and small screens just don't work on cars these days.

I love the idea of E