In 1958, Leonard Learn, in an try to jot down a model of Hayek’s “The Use of Information in Society” for a wider viewers, wrote “I, Pencil.” (It doesn’t cowl all of Hayek’s factors but it surely’s fairly good given its quick size.)
Many economists use Learn’s quick article of their courses to nice impact. It turned a lot wider recognized when Milton Friedman used it in his PBS TV collection, “Free to Select.”
One attention-grabbing factor I simply considered is that in laying out the assorted parts of a pencil that come from different international locations, Learn doesn’t speak about tariff charges. It wasn’t as a result of there was free commerce. In truth, tariff charges around the globe had been fairly excessive when Learn wrote. Certainly, as I wrote 2 months in the past, Trump is single-handedly undoing a lot of the progress that the world has made on commerce for the reason that Forties. So tariff charges had been fairly excessive when Leonard Learn was writing.
Nonetheless, I believe it’s attention-grabbing to take the 4 international locations from which a few of the inputs come and word the tariff charges that may now be assigned below Trump’s new excessive (although not reciprocal) tariff regime.
So listed below are the 4 passages, with the tariff price after every. Do not forget that the 
is speaking. Hokey? Positive, but it surely works. Numerous my 30-something navy officer college students cherished it.
“My ‘lead’ itself—it accommodates no lead in any respect—is complicated. The graphite is mined in Ceylon [Sri Lanka].” Tariff price: 44%.
“To extend their power and smoothness the leads are then handled with a scorching combination which incorporates candelilla wax from Mexico, paraffin wax, and hydrogenated pure fat.” Tariff price: 25%.
“An ingredient known as ‘factice’ is what does the erasing. It’s a rubber-like product made by reacting rapeseed oil from the Dutch East Indies [Indonesia] with sulfur chloride.” Tariff price: 32%.
“The pumice comes from Italy; and the pigment which provides “the plug” its coloration is cadmium sulfide.” Tariff price: 20%. Italy is a part of the EU and due to this fact will get the EU tariff price.
Postscript:
Due to commenter Andrew_FL for declaring the tariff price for Italy.
