Table of ContentsTable of ContentsAlien Autotopsy part 3The Dam levelTutorialTurbo TunnelThe KidMile-High ClubBlighttownSometimes an entire video game can be hard, othertimes there are hard bosses, but then there are games where theres just one level that cranks up the challenge to unrealistic levels. It is natural for a game to get more difficult as you get further along, but sometimes that curve isnt as smooth as it should be. Or, in some cases, the game decides to change up the gameplay for a level. Whatever the reason, some levels have stood the test of time as being way too difficult for their own good. Even in the cases where the levels are technically fair, they still demand a level of perfection from the player to be considered fun. Here are the hardest levels in video game history we hope to never play again.Radical EntertainmentIt pains us to put a level from a game as great as The Simpsons Hit & Run on this list, but the final level just has every ingredient you need for a terrible level. The goal of this stage is to collect barrels of nuclear waste and deliver them to the UFO to blow it up. Youre in a fast but not very responsive car, which is made worse by the fact that if you collide with almost anything while carrying a barrel, it explodes and you have to start over. Oh, and how about putting the mission on a timer? Yeah, you have a time limit on everything in this level, adding stress that only makes crashing more likely. If you dont know the ideal routes to take and get very lucky with traffic and controlling your car, it is next to impossible. This final level is the main reason most players have never beaten this otherwise amazing game.Recommended VideosDigital eclipseEven if youve never played it yourself, odds are you know about The Dam level from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesgame for NES. We wont pretend the other levels are easy, but theyre 2D beat-em-up style stages that at least control well and are straightforward. The Dam is none of those things. You are forced to learn the new swimming controls in tight corridors where you cant touch the sides, have to dodge electric traps, and have no map to find your way. And, you guessed it, this level is on a timer. Even just one of those things would make this level too hard, but forcing you to deal with all of them at once is just cruel.RelatedReflections InteractiveDoes a tutorial technically count as a level? In the case of Driverit does because this is the only part of the game a ton of players ever saw. A tutorial is meant to be the part of the game where you learn the controls and basic mechanics. Driver treats it like a final exam. Youre thrown into a parking garage with 60 seconds to pull off a set of driving maneuvers. You get no time to think, no explanation of the controls, much less how to do the things youre being asked, and no way to skip it. If you cant figure out how to do every objective before the time runs out, sorry, game over.RareRight up there with the Dam level, Battletoads Turbo Tunnel might be the most infamous challenging level in video game history. That reputation is 100% earned as well. For those unaware, the first stages of Battletoads are brawlers where you fight enemies and do some basic platforming. That all changes when you hit the third level and are suddenly in an auto-scrolling hoverbike section. You need to move up and down or jump to avoid incoming walls, but the slippery controls and speed youre moving at require almost clairvoyant levels of responses to succeed. The time between the warning of an upcoming wall and you smashing your face into it is mere seconds. Playing with a partner only makes it worse, too, since only one of you needs to die for the game to reset.Team MeatEven the easy stages of Super Meat Boy arent a walk in the park. The fact that the game hides its most challenging stages as secret levels is at least a small mercy for those who just want to beat the main game. The Kid is technically three levels, but you can take your pick on which is the most difficult. Each one boils down to navigating a maze of spikes with precisely one spot you can touch between them at key points. If you hold your jump too long, not long enough, or use your double jump at the wrong moment, its over. The first requires you to fall and climb through a spiked maze, the second ride elevators while dodging spikes, and the last sends waves of spikes at you as you try to rush through tunnels. These levels demand almost pixel-perfect execution, and many have poured hundreds of attempts into them without coming close to the end.ActivisionThis is technically an extra level to the original Modern Warfare 4,and is only notorious for how difficult it is on the Veteran difficulty level, but it still earns a spot on the list. This is, surprise, another timed mission where you need to raid an airplane full of enemies to try and rescue the VIP in time. The narrow aisles make avoiding damage impossible even if the timer werent so strict as to make pausing even for a few seconds an automatic loss. The only way to pass, especially on Veteran, is to know exactly where each enemy is, where to throw your flashbangs, and get very lucky on top of it all. Then, once you make it to the end, you have to nail that last shot to save the VIP or else start it all again.FromSoftwareLegends of Blighttown will be told for years. This isnt just a poison swamp area but one of the cruelest levels in Souls history. Yes, there is poison all over, but you are navigating this level vertically on thin, spindly planks that wrap around and dead-end in a confusing layout. Theres only one bonfire around halfway down, but only if you happen to see it and are able to get to it before the mosquitoes or lizard people knock you off a ledge. Oh, and did we forget to mention the blowdart enemies that inflict Toxic the most lethal status effect in the game?Editors Recommendations

Douglas Is Cancelled Review: Hugh Bonnevilles Cyber SatireThe actor stars in Steven Moffats four-part series on BritBox as a TV host who becomes the subject of scandal when a social-media post alleges he told a sexist joke at a wedding. By John AndersonHugh Bonneville Photo: BBC Studios/HartswoodDouglas Bellowes, the affable chap played by Hugh Bonneville in Douglas Is Cancelled, is a national treasure, a TV host who has spent a career comforting his U.K. audience through times of bad news, smiling with viewers in times of good news. And yet, somehow, after 30-odd years, its all still news to Doug. Woke? Hes barely conscious.His wake-up call arrives by way of social mediaa post alleging that Douglas told a sexist joke at a recent wedding. A wholly inappropriate gag, apparently, though it is not explained. Doug seems, very sincerely, to not know what its all about. But all those around him begin losing their minds.Copyright 2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8VideosMost Popular NewsMost PopularOPINIONFurther ReadingAdvertisement

Deli Boys Review: Phillys Accidental Kingpins on HuluCreator Abdullah Saeeds comedy follows two Pakistani-American brothers in Philadelphia who, upon their fathers death, inherit a cocaine empire they never knew existed. By John AndersonSaagar Shaikh and Asif Ali Photo: DisneyBefore taking a fatal golf ball to the head, Baba Dar (Iqbal Theba) personified the American dream: An immigrant from Pakistan, he worked 15-hour days in a Philadelphia deli, bought the deli, invented the Mega Glug (124 ounces of coffee and still fits in the beverage holder!), expanded the delis and was about to move into golf courses at the time of his premature demise. As his two sons discover, post-mortem, their dad was inspirational, as evidenced by a training video he left behind for novice employees: Time to learn how youll make real money, Baba announces. With cocaine!Deli Boys, created by Abdullah Saeed, relies on several sitcom conventionsold-world values vs. new; intergenerational conflictsbut is otherwise utterly irreverent, disrespectful of just about everything, and mocking of social conventions brown and otherwise. It helps to know the meaning of Achar, the most pungent substance on earth and the means by which Babas organization has been hiding and distributing bricks of coke. The FBI, Baba assumed, would not be sniffing around in jars of mango pickle.Copyright 2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8VideosMost Popular NewsMost PopularOPINIONRecommended VideosAdvertisement

Anti-vaccine talking points Cod liver oil embraced amid Texas measles outbreak; doctors fight misinfo Overdoses of vitamin A have serious risksand it doesnt prevent measles. Beth Mole Mar 4, 2025 5:38 pm | 0 Cod liver oil capsules in Holland & Barrett, UK. (Photo by: Alex Segre/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) Credit: Getty | UCG Cod liver oil capsules in Holland & Barrett, UK. (Photo by: Alex Segre/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) Credit: Getty | UCG Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreUS Health Secretary and long-standing anti-vaccine advocate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is facing criticism for his equivocal response to the raging measles outbreak in West Texas, which as of Tuesday has grown to 159 cases, with 22 hospitalizations and one child death.While public health officials would like to see a resounding endorsement of the Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) vaccine as the best way to protect children and vulnerable community members from further spread of the extremely infectious virus, Kennedy instead penned an Op-Ed for Fox News sprinkled with anti-vaccine talking points. Before noting that vaccines "protect individual children" and "contribute to community immunity," he stressed parental choice. The decision to vaccinate is "a personal one," he wrote, and merely advised parents to "consult with their healthcare providers to understand their options to get the MMR vaccine."Further, Kennedy seemed more eager to embrace nutrition and supplements as a way to combat the potentially deadly infection. He declared that the "best defense" against infectious diseases, like the measles, is "good nutrition"not lifesaving, highly effective vaccines."Vitamins A, C, and D, and foods rich in vitamins B12, C, and E should be part of a balanced diet," according to Kennedy, who has no medical or health background. In particular, he highlighted that vitamin A can be used as a treatment for severe measles casesonly when it is administered carefully by a doctor.Vitamins over vaccinesBut, Kennedy's emphasis has spurred a general embrace of vitamin A and cod liver oil (which is rich in vitamin A, among other nutrients) by vaccine-hesitant parents in West Texas, according to The Washington Post.A Post reporter spent time in Gaines County, the undervaccinated epicenter of the outbreak, which has a large Mennonite community. At a Mennonite-owned pizzeria in Seminole, the county seat of Gaines, a waitress advised diners that vitamin A was a great way to help children with measles, according to the Post.A Mennonite-owned health food and supplement store a mile away has been running low on vitamin A products as demand increased amid the outbreak. "Theyll do cod liver oil because its high in vitamin A and D naturally, food-based," said Nancy Ginter, the stores owner, told the Post. "Some people come in before they break out because theyre trying to just get their kids' immune system to go up so they dont get a secondary infection."Some data suggests that large doses of vitamin A may help reduce measles complications and the risk of death from measles in severely ill children under the age of 2. It's known that vitamin A deficiencies put children at risk of having a measles infection turn severe, and a measles infection can in turn reduce blood levels of vitamin A in children who don't have a deficiency to begin with. The World Health Organization and US pediatric infectious disease experts recommend that children with measles, particularly those who are hospitalized, get two doses of vitamin A one day apart to prevent measles complications, including eye-damage and blindness from vitamin A deficiency.Still, vitamin A is not considered a frontline treatment for measles and many of the studies on vitamin A in measles cases were done in countries where malnutrition is common.Dangerous dosesMost importantly, vitamin A does not prevent measles, and taking large or prolonged supplements without oversight from a doctor can be dangerous. Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin, meaning excess amounts stay in the body and are not quickly flushed out in urine. With excessive consumption, vitamin A becomes toxic. Symptoms of vitamin A overdose included vomiting, headache, and fatigue, joint and bone pain, blurry vision, and skin and hair problems. It can also lead to dangerously high pressure inside the skull that pushes on the brain, as well as liver damage, confusion, coma, and other problems, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).The AAP has been quick to try to get ahead of misinformation about vitamin A use amid the measles outbreak and Kennedy's response."Vitamin A, at any dose, does not protect you from measles," James Campbell, vice chair of AAP's Committee on Infectious Diseases, said in a statement. "No one should take, and no parent should give to their child, vitamin A in hopes of preventing measles. It will not do that.Campbell instead stressed that vitamin A is a micronutrient, meaning only small amounts are needed to stay healthy. Those small amounts are what is found in a healthy diet and in recommended doses of over-the-counter multivitamin supplements," Campbell said. "Larger doses, especially larger doses given over prolonged periods, are very dangerous.""In summary, MMR vaccine prevents measles. Vitamin A does not," he said.Beth MoleSenior Health ReporterBeth MoleSenior Health Reporter Beth is Ars Technicas Senior Health Reporter. Beth has a Ph.D. in microbiology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and attended the Science Communication program at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She specializes in covering infectious diseases, public health, and microbes. 0 Comments

So... 1985? George Orwells 1984 as a 90s PC game has to be seen to be believed A "zero gravity training sphere" makes an appearance, obviously. Kyle Orland Mar 4, 2025 5:14 pm | 2 Really make you think... Credit: ShedTroll Really make you think... Credit: ShedTroll Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreMost readers come away from George Orwell's classic dystopian novel 1984 with the same singular desire: to inhabit the world of the book by playing a late '90s first-person puzzle-adventure PC game that includes a "zero-g training sphere" for some reason. In 1998, publisher MediaX set out to satisfy that widespread literary desire with Big Brother, an officially licensed "sequel" game set in the 1984 universe.After appearing as a demo at E3 1998 and receiving some scattered press coverage, the Big Brother project fell apart before the game could see a full release. Now, though, you can experience a small taste of this ill-fated literary sequel thanks to a newly unearthed demo that was recovered and posted to the Internet Archive over the weekend.War is PeaceThe Lost Media Wiki has a bit more info on the history of Big Brother, which was announced in May 1998 as the first game ever from multimedia CD-ROM maker MediaX. In that announcement, the company said the game would move focus away from 1984's Winston Smith and to new character Eric Blair, who's on a search for his missing fiance Emma (sure, why not) in "a completely changed world dominated by the Thought Police." The last preview of Big Brother to appear in print, from the December 1998 issue of Next Generation magazine. Credit: Next Generation / Internet Archive The last preview of Big Brother to appear in print, from the December 1998 issue of Next Generation magazine. Credit: Next Generation / Internet Archive The pre-rendered introduction for the demo ignores the missing fiance plotline entirely and instead places Eric in the center of a resistance movement on the run from the Thought Police:"Eric, the Thought Police have been tracking down our brotherhood leaders in hopes of destroying our resistance movement. We have only a few hours left, we must do something to get the police off our trail. As a MiniPac soldier, you should be able to get into the ministry and create a diversion. The bigger the distraction you can create, the better."It's unclear how any diversion would be enough to sufficiently distract the all-encompassing monitoring and thought control network that Orwell describes in 1984, but we digress.Quick, to the training sphere!The Big Brother announcement promised the ability to "interact with everything" and "disable and destroy intrusive tele-screens and spy cameras watching the player's every move" across "10 square blocks of Orwell's retro-futuristic world." But footage from the demo falls well short of that promise, instead covering some extremely basic Riven-style puzzle gameplay (flips switches to turn on the power; use a screwdriver to open the grate, etc.) played from a first-person view. Sample gameplay from the newly unearthedBig Brother demo. It all builds up to a sequence where (according to a walk-through included on the demo disc) you have to put on a "zero-g suit" before planting a bomb inside a "zero gravity training sphere" guarded by robots. Sounds like inhabiting the world of the novel to us!Aside from the brief mentions of the Thought Police and MiniPac, the short demo does include a few other incidental nods to its licensed source material, including a "WAR IS PEACE" propaganda banner and an animated screen with the titular Big Brother seemingly looking down on you. Still, the entire gameplay scenario is so far removed from anything in the actual 1984 novel to make you wonder why they bothered with the license in the first place. Of course, MediaX answers that question in the game's announcement, predicting that "while the game stands on its own as an entirely new creation in itself and will attract the typical game audience, the 'Big Brother' game will undoubtedly also attract a large literary audience."We sadly never got the chance to see how that "large literary audience" would have reacted to a game that seemed poised to pervert both the name and themes of 1984 so radically. In any case, this demo can now sit alongside the release of 1984's Fahrenheit 451 and 1992's The Godfather: The Action Game on any list of the most questionable game adaptations of respected works of art.Kyle OrlandSenior Gaming EditorKyle OrlandSenior Gaming Editor Kyle Orland has been the Senior Gaming Editor at Ars Technica since 2012, writing primarily about the business, tech, and culture behind video games. He has journalism and computer science degrees from University of Maryland. He once wrote a whole book about Minesweeper. 2 Comments

PhysicsWe can describe the quantum realm using straightforward mathematics but once we try to translate these ideas into the real world, things get weird. Our quantum columnist Karmela Padavic-Callaghan explains why 4 March 2025 Why is the quantum realm so weird?jvphoto/AlamyThe following is an extract from our Lost in Space-Time newsletter. Each month, we hand over the keyboard to a physicist or mathematician to tell you about fascinating ideas from their corner of the universe. You cansign up for Lost in Space-Time here.Before I entered university, I learned quantum physics is the most mysterious type of physics, full of particles that exist in two places at once, waves that dont actually wave and objects whose behaviour can depend on things happening on the other side of our universe. I

After a monthlong delay, President Donald Trump announced new tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China. These countries are fighting back with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau calling these tariffs "very dumb."Read the original article on Business Insider

2025-03-04T22:23:14Z Read in app Drones and counter-drone systems were a highlighted area of interest for future investment. Andriy Andriyenko/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now.Have an account? A top lawmaker identified the five capabilities he believes the US military needs to innovate in.Those areas are missiles, missile defenses, drones, counter-drone systems, and secure comms, Rep. Smith said.Special operations forces lead the charge on experimenting with some of those, he added.There are five critical technologies needed to fight future wars, a top lawmaker on military and defense matters said recently.Those areas are missiles, missile defenses, drones, counter-drone systems, and secure communications, Rep. Adam Smith, a Washington Democrat and the ranking member of the US House Armed Services Committee, said at a recent symposium in Washington, DC. He said these are the areas where the US needs to innovate and develop game-changing capabilities.Having the best weapons within those areas, he said, is key to winning future wars. The war in Ukraine is showing just how crucial these capabilities are.Smith pointed out that the development of countermeasures demands a constant cycle of modifying these systems. That's been seen especially in the mass use of electronic warfare to jam drones; in response, both sides of the war have developed ways to evade frequency jamming.Beyond drones and counter-drone tech, the importance of missiles and missile defense are increasingly hot topics among military leaders as US rivals and adversaries, from Russia and China to Iran and North Korea, invest in missiles.The US has seen interceptor stocks strained by Iranian bombardments and lower-end threats like the Houthis in Yemen, who terrorized ships in and around the Red Sea. In a great-power conflict, such as a potential war with China in the Indo-Pacific region, air defenses could be more critical to shield naval bases, air bases, and other installations, as well as ships.The US military is also developing and fielding certain offensive missile capabilities, like the Typhon Mid-Range Capability, which is a land-based launch option for Tomahawk cruise missiles, and hypersonic missile systems. SOF is undergoing a pivot from focusing on counterterrorism to great power competition. U.S. Army Photo by Sgt. Patrik Orcutt Likewise, another key development area has been secure communications and assured navigation. Vulnerabilities in these spaces can be costly in a high-end fight.For the US military, special operations forces can be seen leading the way in innovative iteration. "They're going to iterating on a day-in and day-out basis, and we need to learn from that and expand it," Smith said at the National Defense Industrial Association US Special Operations Symposium.US special operators testing out uncrewed systems in different environments against different threats, for example, are at the front lines of figuring out what could be needed for a future fight.They are often among the first to get their hands on new technologies, and they work closely with the defense industry to develop new systems,As special operations leadership said at the recent symposium, operators are going to need cheaper, more expendable weapons, like drones, in a potential future fight.While this doesn't mean that other systems such as F-35 Joint Strike Fighters or Ford-class aircraft carriers aren't needed, it does raise questions about where the US Department of Defense's priorities are."We are spending a ton of money at DoD right now that isn't in those five things," Smith said. First-person view, or FPV, drones like the one above have dominated the battlefield in Ukraine. Photo by Pierre Crom/Getty Images The Pentagon is reshuffling the Defense Department's budget. It is still a bit murky, with submarines being among the few clearly articulated priorities, but it's moving roughly $50 billion from legacy programs to new priorities, which do appear to include missile defense and drone-related technologies.Big challenges for the department in fielding new capabilities can be contracting issues and slow acquisition processes.Military officials and industry partners at the NDIA special operations symposium spoke about the challenges facing the US military's acquisition process, including requirement and funding hurdles that have hindered the adoption of new weapons and capabilities.Some speakershow the Department of Defense can better implement new technologies, especially drones and other uncrewed systems. They said that having a process able to produce a variety of systems could be vital in a longer, protracted conflict.Others noted that a future, high-speed, highly digitized war could be even more demanding with the rise of artificial intelligence and autonomous systems. Questions were raised, too, about whether decision-making will occur at such a pace that humans can't keep up. The technological space is evolving fast.

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.Welcome to The Logoff. Donald Trump paused military aid to Ukraine on Monday night, a freeze that would fully undercut Ukraines position ahead of planned peace talks with Russia. Well keep tracking that conflict, but today Im focusing on the chaos surrounding Trumps on-again, off-again tariffs. To be clear, theyre still on for now. And if they stay on, they will have major impacts for the global order and for your finances.Whats the latest: Trump hit Canada, Mexico, and China with new tariffs Tuesday. Importers will now pay a 25 percent tax on Mexican and Canadian products (10 percent on Canadian energy). Trump also increased tariffs on goods from China from 10 percent to 20 percent.Canada already responded with 25 percent tariffs on certain US goods, China announced retaliation against US farm goods and tech companies, and Mexico is promising to respond in the coming days. Whats next? Dear reader, I wish I could tell you. At noon, Trump threatened to further increase tariffs on Canadian goods as a punishment for their retaliation. But later this afternoon, Trumps commerce secretary said that relief for Mexico and Canada could see their tariffs reduced though probably not eliminated as soon as tomorrow. (My colleague Andrew Prokop broke down two major questions about whats next for Trumps tariffs here.) How would a trade war affect me? If the tariffs persist, expect to pay more for a long, long list of goods everything from gas to food to new houses as importers pass on the taxes to consumers. And if the trade war escalates, expect prices to keep climbing along with it.What does this mean for the world? If the tariffs stay in place (or escalate), it threatens to unwind a global system of free trade, replacing it with a renewed push for protectionism. If Trump changes course tomorrow and dials back tariffs on Canada and Mexico, it may limit the economic damage, but it will have further strained ties with two of the countrys closest allies. Well keep you posted.And with that, its time to log off. Yes, you genuinely can log off of politics for the day. I know Trump is giving a big speech tonight, but well recap it tomorrow morning on Vox. With the time you save, might I suggest you watch the Oscar-winning live-action short film? Im Not a Robot is a 22-minute gem thats ultimately about what it means to be human. I wont say any more than that, but I hope you enjoy it. Ill see you back here tomorrow.See More:

Donald Trump just imposed a 25 percent tariff on virtually all goods produced by Americas two largest trading partners Canada and Mexico. He simultaneously established a 20 percent across-the-board tariff on Chinese goods. As a result, Americas average tariff level is now higher than at any time since the 1940s. Meanwhile, China and Canada immediately retaliated against Trumps duties, with the former imposing a 15 percent tariff on American agricultural products and the latter putting a 25 percent tariff on $30 billion of US goods. Mexico has vowed to mount retaliatory tariffs of its own. This trade war could have far-reaching consequences. Trumps tariffs have already triggered a stock market sell-off and cooling of manufacturing activity. And economists have estimated that the trade policy will cost the typical US household more than $1,200 a year, as the prices of myriad goods rise. All this raises the question: Why has the US president chosen to upend trade relations on the North American continent? The stakes of this question are high, since it could determine how long Trumps massive tariffs remain in effect. Unfortunately, the president himself does not seem to know the answer.In recent weeks, Trump has provided four different and contradictory justifications for his tariffs on Mexico and Canada, none of which make much sense:1) Trumps tariffs on Canada and Mexico are meant to secure Americas bordersOfficially, the North American tariffs are intended to fight a drug war, not a trade war. Trump claims that our neighbors to the north and south have been abetting the transfer of fentanyl and undocumented immigrants into the United States and that this constitutes a national emergency. By imposing steep tariffs on Canada and Mexico, Trump ostensibly aims to coerce the two nations into cutting off the flow of drugs and migrants. But this policy is irrational. Canada plays virtually no role in the trafficking of fentanyl. And the Mexican government has already ramped up enforcement against drug cartels while deterring migrants from entering the US (often through brutal means). These efforts appear to have slowed fentanyl imports significantly. They have not succeeded in shutting down the fentanyl trade entirely. But that is not a reasonable demand: If the U.S. cannot stop drugs from infiltrating its own prisons, how could the Mexican government monitor its entire nation so meticulously as to prevent an extremely lightweight narcotic from ever crossing its northern border?Nevertheless, if Trumps tariffs were intended solely as a diplomatic tool for influencing Mexican and Canadian border policy, then they might be lifted in short order. Canada and Mexico could present plans for cracking down on drugs and migrants, and Trump could declare victory, as he seemed to do last month when he initially delayed these tariffs in response to Mexican and Canadian concessions.But these tariffs are not solely about winning the drug war at least, according to the president.2) Unless, the tariffs are actually meant to force companies to relocate production to the United States, thereby closing the trade deficitOn Tuesday morning, the president posed on Truth Social, IF COMPANIES MOVE TO THE UNITED STATES, THERE ARE NO TARIFFS!!!Here, Trump suggests that his tariffs are not meant to be a temporary device for combatting fentanyl imports, so much as a durable means of coercing companies into moving factories into the US. After all, if the tariffs are only temporary, companies would have little reason to change their investment decisions in light of them.And Trumps remarks Tuesday were consistent with his previous commentary on this issue. Last month, Trump told his social media followers, We pay hundreds of Billions of Dollars to SUBSIDIZE Canada. Why? There is no reason. We dont need anything they have. We have unlimited Energy, should make our own Cars, and have more Lumber than we can ever use.He further lamented that The USA has major deficits with Canada, Mexico, and China (and almost all countries!), owes 36 Trillion Dollars, and were not going to be the Stupid Country any longer. MAKE YOUR PRODUCT IN THE USA AND THERE ARE NO TARIFFS!These remarks imply that America should maintain steep tariffs on Canada and Mexico in perpetuity, since it has little need for their products, and is currently subsidizing those countries by running a trade deficit with them. But this is a terrible justification for Trumps policy on several levels. For one thing, the presidents tariffs on Canada and Mexico apply to all goods including agricultural products that the United States cannot possibly produce at scale, such as papayas and other tropical fruits.Trumps duties also increase the cost of foreign-made parts to American manufacturers, thereby creating a disincentive to locate factories in the US. According to one estimate, Trumps tariffs on Canada and Mexico would increase the US auto industries annual costs by $60 billion. That will force US car companies to raise prices, thereby hurting their competitiveness in foreign markets. Meanwhile, auto companies located overseas will be able to purchase Mexican and Canadian parts at lower rates. This basic dynamic in which tariffs increase the production costs of US firms led Trumps past tariffs to backfire during his first term: According to a 2019 Federal Reserve analysis, Trumps tariffs reduced manufacturing employment in affected industries.Separately, the idea that running a trade deficit with a country is tantamount to subsidizing it reflects a gross misunderstanding of economics. You purchase more goods from your grocery store than it purchases from you. In that sense, you run a trade deficit with your grocer. But it does not follow that when you hand over your currency in exchange for a shopping cart full of food, you have just made a charitable donation to Stop & Shop. 3) Unless, Trumps tariffs are meant to force Canada and Mexico to modestly revise the terms of their trade with the USOn Tuesday morning, Trump suggested that his real grievance with Canada is that it has been committing unfair trade practices against the United States. Canada doesnt allow American Banks to do business in Canada, but their banks flood the American Market, Trump wrote on Truth Social. Oh, that seems fair to me, doesnt it? This is not a good justification for Trumps tariffs for a couple of reasons. North American trade is currently governed by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement a trade deal that Trump himself brokered. The US will have the opportunity to renegotiate that deal in 2026. Seeking to improve the terms of North American trade through an orderly legal process rather than a trade war that will make the people of all three nations poorer seems prudent.More fundamentally, though, Trumps claim that Canada prohibits American banks from doing business within its borders is simply false. In fact, US banks have been operating in Canada for more than a century.4) Unless, Trumps tariffs are meant to coerce Canada into becoming the 51st stateLast month, Trump posted on social media, Canada should become our Cherished 51st State. Much lower taxes, and far better military protection for the people of Canada AND NO TARIFFS!Trump has repeatedly referenced his desire to annex Canada when speaking about his 25 percent tariffs on the nation. And Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said that he believes Trump is quite serious about absorbing our country. Following a meeting with Trudeau, the leader of the Alberta Federation of Labor, Gil McGowan, said on X, I can confirm that Trudeau said his assessment is that what Trump really wants is not action on fentanyl or immigration or even the trade deficit, what he really wants is to either dominate Canada or take it outright.Immiserating a country so that you can conquer it is not a morally legitimate goal for trade policy. It also is unlikely to work. Canadians overwhelmingly oppose joining the United States. And they are unlikely to warm to that concept after seeing the American government deliberately inflict economic pain upon them. 5) Unless, Trumps tariffs are meant to raise revenueFinally, the Trump administration has repeatedly suggested that it sees high tariffs as a means of raising revenue, thereby enabling the US to cut income tax rates. A tariff is effectively a sales tax on foreign goods, paid by importing companies, which then typically pass on the costs to consumers. Trump has floated the idea of replacing the income tax entirely with tariffs and proposed the creation of an External Revenue Service to collect duties.You cannot offset permanent tax cuts with temporary tariffs. So if Trumps goal with his North American tariffs is to generate revenue, they may stay in place for some time. But this would not be a good idea. Replacing income taxes with tariffs is highly regressive, as working-class households dedicate a higher share of their incomes to imported goods than wealthy ones do. More fundamentally though, using tariffs as a revenue source is incompatible with all of Trumps other trade goals. If the president wants to use these duties as a tool for forcing Canada and Mexico to increase their border security or open up protected sectors of their economies then he needs to be willing to lift the tariffs once those nations comply with his wishes. In that case, the tariffs will generate no long-term revenue. If Trump actually wants to remake the American economy such that companies move all their factories to the US then tariffs will provide less and less revenue over time, as American consumers purchase fewer and fewer foreign goods.And if Trumps true aim is to force Canada into joining the United States, then all tariffs on Canadian goods would be lifted upon its entry into the union.All this makes it very difficult to say precisely why Trump has blown up trade relations with two of Americas closest allies. Whats clear is that the presidents reasoning is deeply confused. Simply put, Trump has decided to make the peoples of the United States, Canada, and Mexico poorer for no good reason.See More: