this post was submitted on 17 Jan 2026
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[–] shawn1122@sh.itjust.works 42 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (2 children)
  1. Dogmatically sticking to fossil fuels.
  2. "Protecting" domestic manufacturering jobs by refusing to engage with your neighbours.
  3. Using tariffs to keep out affordable Chinese EVs that use tech everyone will probably be using in 15 to 20 years.

Sounds like a recipe for disaster. You can only artificially prop up your domestic market for so long. You'll inevitably fall behind even further on innovation with this approach.

Might be the first to make a CoPilot or ChatGPT powered car though.

[–] boonhet@sopuli.xyz 11 points 2 days ago (5 children)

Look, the Chinese EVs are a literal trade weapon. The other points I agree on. But China has subsidies on EVs even when sold to other countries because they aim to put competitors out of business globally. Otherwise they'd just be subsidizing EVs for domestic use.

So I can't blame them for tariffing those. But the solution is to invest heavily in domestic EVs, not to keep running with internal combustion...

[–] worhui@lemmy.world 4 points 2 days ago

From what I've seen it wasn't specifically a global trade weapon. It was more a side effect of central government planning.

There was just a government program to encourage electric car manufacture to boost local manufacturing. They over saturated the domestic market and are now dumping the cars internationally.

[–] hark@lemmy.world 6 points 2 days ago (1 children)

The US heavily subsidizes its auto industry. Why is this being raised as a point against China? It's not China's fault that American auto companies use their subsidies to line their pockets instead of creating cheaper and better vehicles.

[–] boonhet@sopuli.xyz 5 points 2 days ago

And countries that have auto industries put tariffs on US cars too. They also don't get nowhere near as much in subsidies per car sold abroad. And for the EV subsidies, foreign EVs were also eligible.

China also tariffs foreign cars heavily and always has.

[–] shawn1122@sh.itjust.works 4 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

Sure China is not some moral or benevolent actor in all this. At the very least they were forward thinking enough to subsidize the future of automobile transport. Some degree of protectionism may be warranted but the goal should be to catch up with China in the meantime, not double down on fossil fuels.

They're doing what we should be doing. Subsidizing a sustainable alternative.

Canada and Europe have already let Chinese vehicles in. Wonder how long the US will hold out.

[–] SirActionSack@aussie.zone 4 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Have you been to China recently? Seems like all the new cars sold there are EVs. They're not just dumping them on the export market.

The scooters there are all electric. It makes it scary to walk on the sidewalks because they'll ride up on them and they are so quiet you suddenly realize someone is about to run into you. lol

[–] boonhet@sopuli.xyz 3 points 2 days ago

If they were just looking to replace ICEs with EVs domestically, they'd have subsidies for domestically bought EVs. They instead subsidize production, regardless of where it'll be sold. Chinese manufacturers can afford to produce at a huge loss right now and still make a profit.

[–] Bubbaonthebeach@lemmy.ca -1 points 2 days ago (1 children)

So what that Chinese subsidize their EVs. The US subsidizes most of their industry.
It's really tiring for people to say what about China doing X, which the US already does in spades.

[–] boonhet@sopuli.xyz 1 points 2 days ago

And most US goods are similarly tariffed elsewhere. What's your point?

[–] innermachine@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

We have been propping u domestic car manufacturers since they started making cars domestically. Pretty rich for a "capitalist free market" if you ask me. I forget we don't get to be part of socialist America if we aren't billionaires...