Even I Can Admit That Tariffs Occasionally Produce Good (Unintended) Results

Yes, really.

I don't support tariffs, and the results of tariffs will always be overall bad for most people.

However:

In 1983, Ronald Reagan announced 45% tariffs on Japanese motorcycles with engine displacements of 700cc or more.

He did that for an openly protectionist/crony capitalist reason. Japanese motorcycles were cleaning Harley-Davidson's clock. Harley was coming in at the rear of the motorcycle sales pack and nearing bankruptcy. Reagan wanted to give the company a chance to get competitive again ... but making its competitors artificially more expensive.

Which, of course, is a bad thing. It meant that American consumers had to pay 45% more for big bikes from Japan, which gave Harley a cushion to keep its own prices high.

So, what was the up side?

Well, the Japanese companies decided to re-orient their production to smaller motorcycles ... and engineer more power and better performance into those smaller motorcycles. Instead of a 45%-tariffed 750cc, you bought a non-tariffed 699cc bike ... and you probably loved it.

Harley did make the most of the situation in terms of improving its own product and regaining market share, and survived when it probably shouldn't have (it continues on and off to have real problems with its business model and profitability).

But in the meantime, a whole generation of riders got a dramatically improved experience in the "mid-size" range. Speaking of which, Harley itself is now promoting a "Street 500" model.

I'm still riding small bikes, but I'll eventually move up into the 350-650cc range, and performance-wise I'll likely be getting a better bike than I would have if Reagan hadn't robbed American riders in the early 1980s. I don't agree he should have done that, but hey, silver linings.