The people that don't understand the problem usually are management, and I have to spend an exhausting time each day explaining to them why the problem exists and why it takes so long to fix it. I once was honestly telling them their meetings were a big part of the delays. Which then obviously led to more meetings on "how we can better communicate so we can have less meetings and more productive time". I wish I was joking.
Id2 is the actual successor. It's planned to be the first VW "affordable" EV with a starting price below 25000 euros when it releases in 2025.
At least they now try to target the budget market, but I'd never recommend a VW. They have done so much bad quality cars since the late 90s...
Everyone wants cheap cars, but that's not what this is about. This is about fair and competitive markets and products.
China heavily subsidizes their car industry. Actually everyone had been doing that, but currently China is doing it more.
Subsidies become a problem when they don't serve to make necessities affordable in-country, but are used to boost sales in foreign countries, while hurting their local industry.
Now you might conclude that "why don't we just subsidize or own manufacturers more as well so cars get as cheap as China's?"
Well, where do you think the money for subsidies comes from? Taxes. So in the end, it's just another scheme to make the general public pay for things that only part of the population needs, and it reduces pressure on manufacturers to innovate, leading to stale products. Which is a big reason why Western car companies are not competitive: the West has done exactly what China is doing now. We have subsidized the car industry massively in order to push or products into the global market. Those subsidies were considered worth it, because it created a trade surplus, effectively meaning wealth is transferred from the global market to mostly the car industry leaders, and a bit of it trickling down to workers as well.
After a while, the subsidies lead to corruption, inefficiency and lack of innovation, and the bubble bursts. That's how you get histories like Detroit. Equivalents exist in almost any Western country.
A means to protect against subsidized products ruining the local markets is to impose tarrifs. The US has many of those, not only against China, but also against EU companies, especially in the car market. See chicken tax. American car manufacturers were so far behind after decades of heavy subsidies they couldn't even compete with European cars ( and apparently still can't, given that the chicken tax and similar tariffs still exist).
In the end, tariffs run the same risk as subsidies: over time, a protected market means the industry can get lazy and keep selling the same, because competition is forced out of the market.
Tariffs and subsidies are never a viable long term solution.
Both can only serve strategic purposes: either providing actual essentials to ones population or nurture change ( eg subsidized regenerative energy build up) that only exist for a limited time.
Tarrifs can be used to protect strategically important industry: e.g. military or technological cutting edge tech where you don't mind paying extra for the privilege of maintaining in-country know how and manufacturing abilities.
You're correct. I got caught up in explaining the overall concept. 😅
My personal interpretation is that the Chinese companies are now feeling the competitive pressure after their golden years and are scrambling to get their products on larger markets, while said market ( better affordable EV) still promises some margins.
Maybe we should turn this idea around? I know tons of healthy rich old people that have nothing better to do than bicker and complain, how about we force them to do a free full year of community service? Why is their time and energy considered more valuable than the youths'?
And maybe it would humble those wealthy nepo pieces of shit, and likely resolve the social issues that people complain about.
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I was about to say... What does "suitable" mean? I grew up in the 90s, and "suitable games" ranged from SimCity or the settlers to age of empires, crusader Kings, quake, doom, unreal tournament or half life.
There is no need to over protect kids from the "simple" evils: when I was very young, I didn't want to play violent or scary games, even knowing they exist. Later I got curious and explored them. Depending on your choice a game such as the settlers, age of empires or crusader Kings could well be classified violent and "unsuitable". But violence is everywhere, and those were some of the games that I fondly remember for instilling a huge curiosity in history and cultures in me. And yes, we were marketing victims as well: everyone spent way too much on Magic, Pokemon or Yu-Gi-Oh cards and related toys. But it didn't infect every part of our lives.
Help your kids reflect on their choices and wants. Help them find out why they really want to pay too much money for that shiny Roblox skin. And offer alternatives with free, open content sharing so they realize they are being swindled. Media literacy is much tougher today because companies got much more insidious marketing vectors to infect kids.
Nowadays there are thousands of games being released per week, in addition to classics such as Minecraft, Terraria, Rimworld, Eco, which still have very strong modding and multiplayer communities.
The moment Europe gets its shit together and implemented a standardized charger, with governments then enforcing its use and maybe subsidizing existing gas stations to offer quick charge options so we have a somewhat dense charge network, I'll immediately switch. Electric bikes are superior in every way except range.
I don't have a car anymore, the bike is for fun, not for sensibility. But I drive fast and do weeks-long trips and wild-camping. Impossible to do with electric bikes. My real range of bikes advertising 150km is closer to 60-70km, and I don't use highways: but hard accelerating and braking on curvy country roads kills range.
Temperature doesn't come into this at all. With the right gear, neither summer heat but winter freeze is really a problem.
Having to go to a meeting really messes with your flow for the whole day, doesn't it?
Why Americans aren’t buying more EVs ( arstechnica.com )
Europe gives China a taste of its own trade medicine: Europe is using the threat of tariffs to press Chinese electric car makers to set up in the EU and share know-how. ( www.politico.eu )
The EU is having a radical rethink of how to cope with the trade threat from Beijing — and its response has a very Chinese flavor to it. ...
Germany may introduce conscription for all 18-year-olds ( www.telegraph.co.uk )
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„If companies were to do the right thing, they would lose the most valuable customers on earth, preteen kids” ( english.elpais.com )
Why gas bikes just can't compete with electric motorcycles in the summer ( electrek.co )
Summer is coming in hot, and the impending heat is set to once again break the prior year’s record-breaking temperatures....