In 1958, Leonard Learn, in an try to jot down a model of Hayek’s “The Use of Information in Society” for a wider viewers, wrote “I, Pencil.” (It doesn’t cowl all of Hayek’s factors nevertheless it’s fairly good given its brief size.)
Many economists use Learn’s brief article of their lessons to nice impact. It grew to become a lot wider recognized when Milton Friedman used it in his PBS TV sequence, “Free to Select.”
One attention-grabbing factor I simply considered is that in laying out the varied parts of a pencil that come from different nations, Learn doesn’t speak about tariff charges. It wasn’t as a result of there was free commerce. In reality, tariff charges all over the world have been fairly excessive when Learn wrote. Certainly, as I wrote 2 months in the past, Trump is single-handedly undoing a lot of the progress that the world has made on commerce for the reason that Forties. So tariff charges have been fairly excessive when Leonard Learn was writing.
Nonetheless, I believe it’s attention-grabbing to take the 4 nations from which among the inputs come and be aware the tariff charges that may now be assigned below Trump’s new excessive (although not reciprocal) tariff regime.
So listed here are the 4 passages, with the tariff fee after every. Do not forget that the ✏️ is speaking. Hokey? Positive, nevertheless it works. A number of my 30-something army officer college students liked it.
“My ‘lead’ itself—it accommodates no lead in any respect—is complicated. The graphite is mined in Ceylon [Sri Lanka].” Tariff fee: 44%.
“To extend their power and smoothness the leads are then handled with a scorching combination which incorporates candelilla wax from Mexico, paraffin wax, and hydrogenated pure fat.” Tariff fee: 25%.
“An ingredient known as ‘factice’ is what does the erasing. It’s a rubber-like product made by reacting rapeseed oil from the Dutch East Indies [Indonesia] with sulfur chloride.” Tariff fee: 32%.
“The pumice comes from Italy; and the pigment which supplies “the plug” its coloration is cadmium sulfide.” Tariff fee: 20%. Italy is a part of the EU and due to this fact will get the EU tariff fee.
Postscript:
Due to commenter Andrew_FL for mentioning the tariff fee for Italy.
