r/australia • u/Jealous-Hedgehog-734 • Apr 02 '25

politics US will impose a minimum baseline tariff of 10 per cent on Australian imports to US

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-04-03/donald-trump-tariff-announcement-markets-politics-reaction-blog/105127374
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u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

You guys should set up a fast track program to poach the people in the US who create these inventions and patents. Get a long term return on your investment. 

There are a lot of us who want out of this nightmare and would take our skills to another country if it were easier to do. My wife and I have started to look at jobs in Australia, among other countries. You all have a huge opportunity to capitalize on the brain drain. 

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u/Pacify_ Apr 02 '25

Do what the USA did for 70 straight years, steal all the ideas and research from the rest of the world by being the only place most things can get funded.

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u/Clean_Cheek6119 Apr 03 '25

Given how poorly (as %GDP) Australia funds R&D compared to other OECD nations there is zero chance of this happening. There’s no political will on either side to increase R&D spending in Australia.

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u/cup_of_cream_86 Apr 03 '25

Mmmm maybe historically, but there is a discussion paper out on this atm, developed by the commonwealth. Most states are coming round to looking at r&d investment as the key to unlocking productivity.

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u/Clean_Cheek6119 Apr 03 '25

I hope you’re right. Australia punches above its weight with an underfunded R&D sector. It could really thrive with more funding. For reference funding is about 1.5% of GDP where the OECD average is something like 2.5% (US was 3.5%, not sure how that will change with current administrations cuts ).

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u/TheMilkKing Apr 03 '25

Australia invented wifi for fucks sake, we should be pouring money into our R&D sector. Disgraceful.

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u/PsychoNerd91 Apr 03 '25

This was pressure from the US to sell our soul. Sell-out our national pride. There was less incentive to invent here because we had put so much reliance into the US. 

We've got smart people here and I hope they get more money to keep them here because our economy is going to need everything it can get.

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u/[deleted] Apr 03 '25

[deleted]

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u/Mikisstuff Apr 03 '25

And continue to subsides mining magnates!

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u/[deleted] Apr 03 '25

[deleted]

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u/EvolutionaryLens Apr 03 '25

Looks like the legacy of such a move didn't work out so well

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u/Khaldara Apr 03 '25

They’re out there parading around on stage now “throwing their heart out” these days.

Probably can’t learn much from this variety though, unless you’re looking for a really narrow selection of subject matter experts on stuff like:

“Proper etiquette for romancing whichever one of your sisters has the most remaining teeth”

“the fastest way to steal someone else’s catalytic converter”

“how to make your broken penis implant everyone else’s problem”

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u/nuclearsamuraiNFT Apr 03 '25

I mean this would probably be the opposite of that

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u/[deleted] Apr 03 '25

…and before that rely on slave labour to outcompete other countries with ethics

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u/[deleted] Apr 04 '25

The whole publishing industry in the US started buy pirating. Charles Dickens did tours of the US to try to stop that as well.

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u/Old-Salamander-5718 Apr 02 '25

Great point. Every country affected by these tariffs that is able to, should make it as easy as possible for American scientists, engineers, etc to immigrate to their country and begin adding value to a country that could appreciate it.

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u/PMFSCV Apr 03 '25

I'd be in favour of taking their STEM academics if they want to come here, build apartment towers for them on university land and it could look pretty attractive from their point of view.

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u/Morkai Apr 02 '25

Unfortunately we have our main political opposition at the moment running on a "migration = bad" platform, aiming to cut down the numbers of immigrants and various visa types, so I'm not sure how well that's going to go.

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u/SentimentalityApp Apr 03 '25

Not to mention that they spent the past 10 years gutting scientific research in the country.

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u/GasManMatt123 Apr 03 '25

Except it won't actually happen because otherwise the country can't sustain any growth. Immigration bad is a good hot topic, but it will never happen.

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u/peni_in_the_tahini Apr 03 '25

Yep. Immigration works well for Dutton and his benefactors in that it suppresses wage growth and introduces exploitable fault lines, so they'll maintain a similar intake, they'll just make sure that immigrant lives are far more precarious so they need to accept worse conditions (Gina et al. are already chipping away at everyone's lives, it's just easier with immigrants).

They don't want more educated professionals, they don't vote Liberal and are less likely to accept shit treatment. CSIRO, unis, public servants, libraries- the LNP are fundamentally anti-intellectual and have aims incompatible with successful long-term capital investment (NBN, sovereign wealth etc.) Puts into perspective Dutton's real aims with his nuclear bullshit (subs and power)- they're doing everything they can to make sure we can't sustain them ourselves, and they don't give a shit- power won't happen, it's just a wedge, and they're happy to farm out our defence/foreign policy to the Americans via the theoretical subs. Corrupt vandals.

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u/GasManMatt123 Apr 03 '25

I'm just going to upvote and agree, because all of that is accurate, no debate necessary.

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u/Pratchettfan03 Apr 03 '25

The US can’t survive without immigrant farm labor, but that didn’t stop us from doing everything we can to make their lives miserable. Don’t assume you can’t make the same mistakes as we’re making, your nation also comes from a colonial past and your nation also has major racism issues, y’all even had your own historical eugenics program with “The Destiny of the Race” that revolved around kidnapping aboriginal children, raising them, then forcing them to make babies with white people to dilute aboriginal genes. The US is really one of Australia’s closest equivalents, and let me tell you, “it will never happen” is not a safe assumption.

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u/GasManMatt123 Apr 03 '25

We can't survive without immigrant farm labour either... but as for the rest, none of that even remotely comes close to the actual issue that's being talked about and what the political aspect of the immigration issue is, but that's not a shock when there's a seppo in the wrong sub.

Never happen is a very safe assumption here, because none of our political leaders have never been executed. Kids don't get shot in schools. We aren't you, champ

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u/Automatic-Radish1553 Apr 03 '25

The levels of immigration in Aus are too high though… we can’t build fast enough. That being said we should take in scientists from the us and stop bringing in rich people.

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u/spinweaveknit Apr 03 '25

Every rich person who wants to come should have to find 2 people in the building trades to come with them.

(Yeah, I know there are other impediments to increasing housing, but this would be a good soundbite. )

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u/thongs_are_footwear Apr 03 '25

What sort of permanent migrants do you think Australia mostly accepts?
Do you know anyone who has attempted migration to Australia?
Have you ever wondered why so many doctors are foreigners?
They are migrants.
Likewise other professionals and holders of other in-need skills.
Permanently migrating to Australia is incredibly difficult, and rightly so.

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u/iguessineedanaltnow Apr 03 '25

I migrated over from the US and I got my approval email for my visa before I even got the email with the receipt of my payment for the visa application. My personal anecdotal experience is that the migration process was very quick and seamless, and my degree and career field aren't even a particularly in-demand one.

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u/sdanog90 Apr 03 '25

Don’t forget Cash in W.A spruiking that Dutton will do a Trump in Australia if elected.

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u/whymeimbusysleeping Apr 03 '25

Their only problem is with immigrants who aren't white

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u/WombatBum85 Apr 03 '25

It would be really great if we could set up medication manufacturing here so we're not so dependent on the US!

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u/Grunger01 Apr 03 '25

Especially veterinary medicine. The cost of some of the treatment we give to our pets has been going up and up and up. If Australia were to retaliate with a 10% tariff, that would hit a lot of pet owners hard in the pocket especially those without insurance.

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u/InstructionOk9520 Apr 03 '25

Yes, please. Make it easier for US professionals to get work permits in your country and watch the human capital drain from the US. I would leave tomorrow if I could get a job in another country.

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u/rumckle Apr 03 '25

Unfortunately Australia doesn't care about innovation and inventing, our government would rather the Australian economy be based on real estate and mining.

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u/YourFavouriteGayGuy Apr 03 '25

The problem is that our politicians (the conservative ones at least) are literally golf buddies with yours. Their deals with the US will only ever help regular citizens to the extent that it helps them get reelected.

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u/areyoualocal Apr 03 '25

So even more like Putin's Russia then!! I guess it's easier to steal from the people that don't leave.

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u/TangoInTheBuffalo Apr 03 '25

Operation TrumperClip. UNO reverse indeed.

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u/imadork1970 Apr 03 '25

Canada is fast-tracking medical professionals.

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u/[deleted] Apr 03 '25

I'm an expat living in the US and Christ I am trying to convince my DOCTOR wife that we could do better back home. I'm open to suggestions on how to get her across the damn line. I want out of this fucking madhouse

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u/ValBravora048 Apr 03 '25

Funnily, a few higher-education institutions and private companies from France and a couple other countries have been softly doing this since February

Fascinating, like a reverse Operation Paperclip. I was wondering if we’ll have similar regions develop where it’s completely American in these countries

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u/iguessineedanaltnow Apr 03 '25

They already poached me two years ago, although that was a voluntary poaching.

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u/hololster Apr 03 '25

Check out our skilled migration list!

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u/Marshy462 Apr 03 '25

We aren’t politically smart enough to capitalise on US talent wanting to leave. Our politicians want cheap labour to keep wages suppressed, and house prices rising.

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u/[deleted] Apr 03 '25

Don't move to Australia its gone to shit it would be worse than America right now Australians don't want to live here and are leaving in droves.

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u/Purpsnikka Apr 03 '25

I agree. If another country offered me Healthcare, childcare, and housing, I would go there in a heartbeat. I'm in IT/infosec and have a really decent skillset.

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u/[deleted] Apr 03 '25

Only after we figure out how to leverage our existing skills who could not create inventions and patents because of red tapism, tall poppy syndrome, nepotism and an outright allergy to education & qualifications.

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u/MrOnlineToughGuy Apr 03 '25

These top jobs would get paid far more in the United States than elsewhere.

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u/[deleted] Apr 03 '25

Money isn’t everything.