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‘Tariffs at their essence are an income transfer’

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By Justin Klawans

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‘Tariffs at their essence are an income transfer’

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Coffee beans are seen at a roastery in Indonesia

(Image credit: Chaideer Mahyuddin / AFP / Getty Images)

Justin Klawans, The Week US

16 September 2025

‘A tariff lesson for coffee drinkers’
The Wall Street Journal editorial board

Trump’s “tariffs are coursing through the American (and world) economy,” says The Wall Street Journal editorial board. Every “American coffee drinker either is paying more or soon will as a result.” The “U.S. has only a few regions suitable for growing coffee, and the amount they produce isn’t grande.” In the “case of coffee, tariffs don’t even protect a domestic constituency. They are a tax on American consumption pure and simple — a tax on MAGA’s forgotten man.”

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‘Indonesia’s climate ambitions can’t shine in the dark’
Sisilia Nurmala Dewi at Al Jazeera

There’s “no sugarcoating what many Indonesians feel about the recent violence: anger but also dread and fear,” says Sisilia Nurmala Dewi. The “climate movement, too, is drawing the line.” Both “reducing emissions and protecting natural resources are crucial to keeping the planet cool and protecting the people from even more devastating climate impacts.” But “instead of using these resources wisely for wealth redistribution and sustainable national development, our leaders have repeatedly been accessories to corruption and environmental plunder.”

‘As a young mom, I gave up alcohol. Why more Americans are joining me.’
Ericka Andersen at USA Today
Eliminating “alcohol fits in perfectly with a wave of public research on and interest in reducing toxins in food, products and technology,” says Ericka Andersen. If “you’re worried about toxins in the body, it’s almost laughable not to start with alcohol.” If “alcohol remains absent, we could see a generation with fewer cancers, drunken driving tragedies and less long-term organ damage — a glimpse of a healthier future.” People are “taking back control of their health.”

‘American students’ reading skills are in crisis’
The Dallas Morning News editorial board
The “reality is that students are doing worse in reading, if they are reading at all,” says The Dallas Morning News editorial board. These “losses could be attributed to any variety of factors: endless scrolling on social media, increases in screen time or the pandemic’s impact on learning. But whatever the causes, the consequences are clear.” Students are “graduating with dangerously weak reading skills, at a moment when communication and critical thinking have never been more essential.”

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Justin Klawans, The Week US

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Justin Klawans has worked as a staff writer at The Week since 2022. He began his career covering local news before joining Newsweek as a breaking news reporter, where he wrote about politics, national and global affairs, business, crime, sports, film, television and other news. Justin has also freelanced for outlets including Collider and United Press International.

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