Will Trump's Tariffs Fuel or Foil the Degrowth Movement?

Crazy Town

As Trump’s tariffs kick in, the Republican party is suddenly spouting anti-consumerist rhetoric that would make the Lorax smile. Should we cheer on this accidental experiment in economic shrinkage, or will this ham-fisted set of trade policies cause a backlash against the proponents of degrowth? As political confusion reigns, we offer eco-localism as the no-regrets way to build community resilience in the face of unprecedented ineptitude that probably won’t go away anytime soon. Originally recorded on 6/16/25.

Warning: This podcast occasionally uses spicy language.

Sources/Links/Notes:

Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson, Abundance, Avid Reader Press, March 2025.
UN Alliance For Sustainable Fashion addresses the damage of ‘fast fashion’
Kelsey Piper, "Trump’s bizarre new push to make us poorer," Vox, February 7, 2025.
Kenneth Pucker, "Lessons From Trump’s Degrowth Experiment," Business of Fashion, May 9, 2025.
Kenneth Bradsher, "China’s Chokehold on This Obscure Mineral Threatens the West’s Militaries," New York Times, June 9, 2025.
Adam Tooze, "Trump's futurism: Elon's rockets and fewer dolls for "baby girl," Chartbook, May 6, 2025.
"The End of Fast Fashion?," The Daily, May 15, 2025.
Kurt Cobb, "Trade war vise grip: China is squeezing rare earth supply and it’s hurting," Resilience, June 8, 2025.
"Derek Thompson: Trump's War on Dolls," The Bulwark, May 2, 2025.
Richard Heinberg, "How Eco-Localism Differs from Tariff Terrorism," Resilience, April 17, 2025.

Related episode(s) of Crazy Town:

Episode 86, "Escaping Growthism"
Episode 94, “Breaking News: Crazy Town joins the newly formed Department of Entropy”

Support the show

More description

Warning: This podcast occasionally uses spicy language.

Sources/Links/Notes:

Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson, Abundance, Avid Reader Press, March 2025.
UN Alliance For Sustainable Fashion addresses the damage of ‘fast fashion’
Kelsey Piper, "Trump’s bizarre new push to make us poorer," Vox, February 7, 2025.
Kenneth Pucker, "Lessons From Trump’s Degrowth Experiment," Business of Fashion, May 9, 2025.
Kenneth Bradsher, "China’s Chokehold on This Obscure Mineral Threatens the West’s Militaries," New York Times, June 9, 2025.
Adam Tooze, "Trump's futurism: Elon's rockets and fewer dolls for "baby girl," Chartbook, May 6, 2025.
"The End of Fast Fashion?," The Daily, May 15, 2025.
Kurt Cobb, "Trade war vise grip: China is squeezing rare earth supply and it’s hurting," Resilience, June 8, 2025.
"Derek Thompson: Trump's War on Dolls," The Bulwark, May 2, 2025.
Richard Heinberg, "How Eco-Localism Differs from Tariff Terrorism," Resilience, April 17, 2025.

Related episode(s) of Crazy Town:

Episode 86, "Escaping Growthism"
Episode 94, “Breaking News: Crazy Town joins the newly formed Department of Entropy”

Support the show

2025-07-02 47 min Transcript

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