US and Philippines Trade Agreement

Detractors of DJT continue to be baffled by his common-sense approaches to issues big and small, and high and low.  And in the process many are in a tizzy fit, their minds unable to grasp the "hidden" rationale.

Take the latest trade agreement between the US and the small country of the Philippines.  On the surface this is what is known.  It was agreed that US imports to the Philippines will have zero tariff, while Philippine imports to the US will instead be levied 19 percent, rather than the current 20 percent. 

Without thinking of the bigger picture or really, not knowing more, immediately the knives were unsheathed and outright condemnation ran rampant.

Here is my take, not necessarily from insider information but simply from making deductive reasoning culled from past statements and prior trade agreements with the rest of the world.

This is how the mind of Trump works, working on the premise that he had seen how the US had been taken advantage by its partners.  He thus wants to promote fair trade, with no country taking advantage of his country.  In his mind and with great confidence in American exceptionalism, he would rather that there be free and fair trade.  This one can deduce from past nuanced statements he has made about trade.  And if anything, Trump is so predictable when it comes to things he had articulated in the past.  He keeps his promises.

On a very positive note and maybe not known to many, the Philippines has been enjoying the positive end of a trade imbalance with the US, in 2024 alone that figure was $4.9 billion dollars.  Stated differently, the Philippines has been exporting and importing from the US but really exporting a lot more than importing to the tune of $4.9 billion.

Using tariff as effective negotiating tool, the US wants the Philippine to help mitigate this imbalance in the best and most fair way.  The Philippines will allow more US imports or encourage US exporters by easing regulations.  So the Philippines had responded generously by dropping altogether all tariff levies of US imports.  In response, the US has reduced the rate on its end by a mere 1 percent, which admittedly appears quite a pittance.  But that is not the end of the matter.

So what is to happen?

Once this trade imbalance is ameliorated, so that both countries will be importing and exporting almost the same, then further negotiations can be made to rectify the situation, and to make for a more reciprocal and fairer trade agreement.  One can be assured that neither country will interpose serious objections to the new agreement.

No country in the world could easily dismiss the biggest economy of the world, the US, as a destination of its exports. Almost 70 percent of US GDP is devoted to consumer expenditures.  Foreign investors with their abundant capital resources  continue to flock to the US which they consider very fertile and safe grounds.

Lastly, one has to consider other items discussed, like aid and assistance packages that may have been agreed upon as hinted in the interviews, given the very volatile situation in that part of the China Sea.  Add also the detail that tariff is not levied on all but rather on selective items.

Donald J. Trump

DONALD J. TRUMP

It almost humors one to realize that the world of punditry still has not figured out this rather unconventional leader, who prides himself as loaded with common sense.

He is supposedly pushing his country toward a brutal dictatorship, but he talks and behaves like a common populist would, as far as we can discern.

He is supposedly an inveterate warmonger and self-aggrandizing but has negotiated instead peace treaties which before were supposedly hard to untangle.

They said he is clearly one simple-minded oaf and narcissist, but look at what he has done to his country, in terms of successes in  governance and economics.  Things only imagined by his predecessors.

Etc.  And more.

What is not arguable is that the results of his actions continue to stultify his earnest detractors though publicly dismissive of them. 

And for others willful and dead-gone dishonest, he has sent to silent uncontrollable rage and jealousy.  TDS, they say.

We his believers do sometimes flash our rare smiles of approbation when we think these things.

Amused by the befuddled  reactions of our supposedly self-anointed betters who remain confused and agog.

For things so simple yet so hard? So common sense?

Uncharitable Talk

 No doubt modern man is not now only predisposed to making rash judgment against his neighbor, but this he does with relative ease and speed.

For this we need only take a peek at social media for confirmation.

Premise. This much we know.

We tend to believe everything we hear of our neighbor.  And then we make judgment, typically with prejudice, regardless how little we know of our targets.

In reality to judge others with prejudice is no easy task.  Only wise men or God could do that justly.

This difficulty is heightened by many factors we are saddled with. Our temperament.   Tastes.  Moods. Ambitions, and yes, even our own self-righteousness.

Thus best to leave judgments to others more capable and more invested.  

One may even know better than the one being criticized.  

But remember one can never discern the hidden motives of the doer.

The feeling of superiority when one harshly criticizes another is one very strong drive. And this feeling gets heightened even more when one willfully exaggerates the faults of others.

To Think About.

That our passion could work either for good or for something else.

The passion we exhibit for the people we love and hold dear is good. 

Limited in superlative expression only by our innate reservations.

But the passion we show for the people we abhor or dislike is something else.

Circumspection is the abiding rule, cognizant of that phrase in the Our Father that pleads for God's compassion, 

" forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us..."

He who loves much, cannot be said to also hate much. 

The Lesson In Life

 As we approach life's impending end,

A question left to be posed and answered.

What is Jesus Christ to me?

If at that point we still have not realized this.

That the only saving grace in love is to suffer.

Then we sorely missed our fated end.

That life is nothing more than a yearning to give.

And to toil and to endure trials and tribulations.

Then we misunderstood the lessons strewn our way.

That life is not one serene and cozy love fest. 

Where  peace and harmony reign supreme.

 That we still cling to wordily delights that fade

Life is one messy hodgepodge of petty stuff.

That will blind one from our eternal destiny.

Be careful then lest we lose our way.

 

The Air We Breathe

 Those who study and gaze at the stars and heavens tell us that the one constant we can find in our firmament is the air we breathe.  The basic molecules in the air are the same they were for a very long time. Thus they dreamily opine that the very air we breathe could be the same one as breathed in or exhaled by those who came before us.  

Like an Einstein?  Why not.  After all, we air-breathing mammals use air like it is literally going out of business.  How many times do we breathe in and out each day?  In my advanced stage, I can only hold without breathing for under 2 minutes. 

Not knowing enough of the current pandemic scourge, what is to say that it is not in the very air we are now breathing?  That maybe the situation is that some of us simply are susceptible, or some are infective, or others resistant?

The last global pandemic (the Spanish flu in 1918) killed millions around the globe.  Is the virus that caused it gone?  No scientist is claiming that.  And it holds true for the other viruses that have plagued man in all of recorded history.

So?

If so, no amount of preparation, however detailed, minute or grand, could guarantee that each of us could not get it.

 Let us just all be sensible.  As sensible as we each individually understand and could prevent it.  As they say, only God knows.

 Or said differently, not to agonize too much over future ills or problems, sufficient are the problems of the present.