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Culture War Roundup for the week of March 3, 2025

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No, if your opponent shoots himself in the foot (and splatters blood on you, which is irritating and expensive), you respond by shooting him in the kidney and try to dodge the blood spray.

When the US put tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum, the Chinese put tariffs on American soy beans, which directly hurt the republican heart land and didn't really hurt their own farmers all that much - Brazil was still selling soy beans after all.

Effectivity, this is a step beyond the standard prisoners dilemma. You can choose where you defect, and the gain/loss can be very asymmetrical. It also can be more than monetary gain/loss, since the payoff might be in geopolitical position or voter opinion instead of trade balance.