RYAN: Well I haven’t gotten any Valentine Snacky McYumYums from anybody yet, so I’m blaming tariffs because I keep hearing everyone talk about them.

PAM: –Okay, I think we should start the show and clarify things. I’m Pamela Kirkland.

RYAN: And I’m Snacky McYumYum-less, Ryan Willard. It’s Thursday, February 13th.

PAM: This is Ten Things You Need to Know.

RYAN: Today marks 25 days since President Trump took office, and he has been very busy making changes. In addition to signing several executive orders, you may have heard about something called a ‘tariff.’ A tariff is a tax on goods imported from other countries. <SFX RYAN: WHAT in the WORLD is HAPPENING(world news intro)>

PAM: There is so much going on with tariffs, that we are going to take out first part of 10 Things You Need to Know to break them down.

RYAN: Hold up. <SFX: Record scratch> Before we get too far into this, can we do a refresher on some of the terms being thrown around?

PAM: Of course we already defined a tariff, so how about an executive order?

RYAN: According to the ACLU, “an executive order is a written directive, signed by the president, that orders the government to take specific actions to ensure “the laws be faithfully executed.” It might mean telling the Department of Education to implement a certain rule, or declaring a new policy. Executive Orders, however, cannot override federal laws and statutes.

PAM: And a trade war is when two countries get in a conflict over the goods and services that they trade to each other usually by adding or raising tariffs on each other. Inflation is a general increase of prices, it usually makes for an upsetting trip to the grocery store.

RYAN: On February 1st, President Trump issued executive orders to put in place tariffs on Canada, China, and Mexico because he believes that ‘the tariffs will boost United States manufacturing, protect jobs, raise tax revenue, and grow the economy.’ In addition, the tariffs placed on Canada and Mexico are meant to encourage both countries to increase their border security and protect the United States from illegal immigrants and illegal drugs. And the tariffs on China are also meant to stop harmful drugs from entering the U.S.

PAM: Most economists are critical of the tariffs since it is not the foreign countries that pay them, it is American businesses. And those businesses usually pass on the cost of tariffs to consumers by raising the prices of the imported goods. Here is a real world example - if you like to buy maple syrup from Canada at Walmart, Walmart now has to pay an added tariff to import it. They may choose to switch to a U.S. provider or pay the tariff and raise the price of the Canadian maple syrup to have the consumer cover the cost of the tariff.

RYAN: Now let’s cover the latest between the U.S., Canada, China, and Mexico.

PAM: On February 4th, Trump introduced a 10% tariff on all goods we receive from China, meaning a product worth $10 would have $1 added to it. Since the tariff is on all goods, it’s considered less restrictive, but China isn’t happy with it. So, in response, they have placed a 15% tariff on U.S. coal and liquified natural gas products, plus a 10% tariff on crude oil, agricultural machinery, and large-engine cars.

RYAN: As for Canada, Trump originally proposed a 25% tariff on goods, but Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau agreed to work with President Trump, putting a pause on the tariffs for 30 days. In exchange for the pause, Prime Minister Trudeau is investing $1.3 billion into a border plan, adding new choppers, tech, and personnel, plus an increase of resources to help stop the flow of harmful drugs into the U.S. If this agreement happens to fall out, the tariffs on Canadian goods could affect the amount that we pay for items like steel, lumber, grains, and potatoes.

PAM: And, for Mexico, 25% tariffs are also delayed for one month. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum agreed to send 10,000 National Guard members to the border to help prevent drugs from crossing into the U.S., and in turn, the U.S. agreed to increase measures to prevent dangerous weapons from crossing into Mexico. Could these tariffs cause inflation? Potentially, according to economists, a portion of the cost of tariffs could end up being paid by consumers like me and you. This could happen if sellers decide to raise the price of the goods they are importing. Items like fruits, veggies, and grown-up beverages become more expensive if the tariffs take place.

RYAN: And one more complication to President Trump’s plans - businesses in Canada that are upset by the new tariffs are boycotting American goods. They are pulling American products from their shelves and Canadian consumers are avoiding American made products. This could have a real impact on American exports. We’ll keep you updated as this situation unfolds.

PAM: On to another story about food prices…

RYAN: One of my favorite restaurants in the world, Waffle House, is also raising its prices but only for one item on its menu, not because of tariffs, but because of the flu! The popular chain has added a 50-cent charge to each egg sold because of the shortage and increasing prices of eggs. But, why are eggs so expensive and few too far from none at the grocery store?

PAM: Because of the bird flu, an infectious disease that primarily affects… well birds, it can infect humans in rare cases. There are approximately 2,100 Waffle House locations across the U.S., and they serve 272 million eggs per year, which is a lot of eggs and a LOT of money. The chain has said they’ll continue monitoring prices and adjusting or removing the 50-cent surcharge as the egg market changes.

RYAN: And if you were wondering, I like their pecan waffles with my syrup heated up…And whenever I say or hear the word waffle, I realize I need to take a quick waffle break. BRB!

PAM: Hey Ten’ers, we are officially halfway through Season 5 and we want to know: what are you curious about? Is there anything you want us to cover next or deep dive into? If there’s ANYTHING comes to mind, leave us a review or comment on Apple or Spotify, or send us an email: hello@thetennews.com. We might feature it on the show! Speaking of…let’s get back to it!

RYAN: We are back with… GGs! <SFX Playstation 5 Startup Sound> (EDITOR: then if possible, a sound of it powering down or crashing…) PLAYSTATION DOWN. PLAYSTATION DOWN! The Playstation Network was down last week for almost 24 hours, one of the longest outages in Playstation Network history. PS4 and PS5 users were not able to access various content and features in the 24 hour period, and when the network went back up, Sony added 5 additional days of online service to every account but did not give any explanation as to WHAT happened and WHY the network went down. We’ll keep you posted when we hear more details.

PAM: We are back with the wide world of sports… <SFX Soccer Ball Kick, then Baseball Bat Crack, then Basketball Net Swish and a Stadium Crowd Roar> Super Bowl 49 was last Sunday and the Philadelphia Eagles faced off against Taylor Swift and her Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs were hoping to win their 3rd Superbowl in a row, but instead, the Eagles DOMINATED the Chiefs, holding Kansas City to only one 1st down and zero points in the first half, while Jalen Hurts and the offense lit up the scoreboard. The Chiefs rallied back in the 4th quarter, scoring two touchdowns in the last few minutes, but it was too little too late. The Philadelphia Eagles are your new Superbowl Champions, beating the Chiefs 40 to 22. <SFX E-A-G-L-E-S EAGLES!(from the fight song)>

RYAN: The Super Bowl halftime show was historic and full of symbolism… Kendrick Lamar performed, who is not only a Grammy winner but also the first Pulitzer Prize winner to ever headline the Superbowl Halftime show. Fun fact about Kendrick Lamar: his first number-one song on the Billboard Hot 100 was “Bad Blood’ with Taylor Swift!

RYAN: There were a lot of fun commercials during the Super Bowl but there was one that was very disturbing and kind of scary. Kanye West, now known as Ye, bought a :30 second Super Bowl commercial to advertise his website. The ad ran in some markets and promoted his website selling one new product: a white t-shirt with a swastika on it. A swastika is widely recognized as a symbol of the German Nazi Party and a symbol of hate and evil. Over on Twitter/X, Ye praised Hitler, the former leader of the Nazi party and Ye then, identified himself as a Nazi. Actor David Schwimmer called for Ye to be removed from X saying, “This is so 2022. We can’t stop a deranged bigot from spewing hate filled, ignorant bile… but we CAN stop giving him a megaphone, Mr. Musk.” Ye has been known for sharing anti-Semitic views before and given the rise across the country in anti-Semitic attacks, it is important to speak up against hateful actions like Ye’s. *Shopify, who hosted Ye’s website, has finally taken it down, after enough voices spoke up and demanded it.* Being a Nazi, supporting Nazis or joking about any of it, is NOT okay, and if you have questions or want some advice for how to talk with your family about this, there are some really helpful resources in our show notes. Stay kind Ten’ers. And if you don’t understand why that’s not okay, please talk to a grownup about it.

PAM: Alright, and let’s move on to some way more positive news…Hey Ten’ers, for 10 points…what animal is this? <SFX FROG SOUNDS> <SFX Three second clock tick, then DING!> Did you guess it? Eleven endangered male frogs who made a 7,000-mile-long trip to save their species have given birth to 33 froglets! The Darwin frog species’ that once thrived on a remote part of an island off Chile's coast was threatened by the dangerous chytrid fungus. So, in October of 2024, conservationists decided to move the healthy frogs to London to remain safe and reproduce. Darwin, male frogs, or ‘frog daddies,’ carry their tadpoles inside their vocal sacs, keeping them safe until they metamorphose into froglets. Then, here comes the cool part: once it’s time to give birth, the frog daddies spit between three and seven froglets out! Darwin’s frogs are so tiny that even when they are fully grown, they weigh less than two grams. That’s like the size of a single piece of pepperoni!

PAM: Speaking of pepperoni, on January 11, Connor Stephanoff of Rockstar Pizza in Brownsburg, Indiana, was delivering a pizza in blizzard-like conditions when he ran into Lieutenant Richard Craig. Craig recorded a TikTok of Stephanoff on his way through a snow-covered street to deliver a pizza, later asking him if he received a good tip for his work. Stephanoff stated that he only received $2. Flabbergasted, Craig posted a follow-up TikTok giving the delivery driver an extra $15, plus started a GoFundMe called “Support Rockstar Pizza Driver’s Dedication.” To their surprise, it has raised over $41,000 for Stephanoff, who plans to use the funds to buy his own car, hopes to help his grandmother with bills, and, if there’s some leftover, maybe go to college!

RYAN: Mannnn, I LOVE when I hear of good things happening to good people. I have a feeling our Trivia Master, Owen, does too!

OWEN: I do love a heartwarming story, especially in time for Valentine’s Day tomorrow! While plenty of heart-shaped pizzas will be ordered tomorrow, even more flowers will be sold. The most popular flower sold on Valentine’s Day is a rose. Do you know how many flowers are sold on the holiday?

Is it:

100,000
3 million
250 million
Or 1 billion?

The answer is… C! It’s estimated that 250 million stems of flowers are sold globally for Valentine’s Day. February 14th was first declared Valentine’s Day around the year 496 by Pope Gelasius. And, ever since the Renaissance era people have been exchanging handmade Valentine’s cards. While cards are still a popular love day gift, it has evolved into an even bigger celebration of people spreading love to one another through cards, candy, flowers, and more. Speaking of… here’s your card, Pam. Happy Valentine’s Day! <SFX hands card>

PAM: Awww, thanks Owen! And here, I got you a huge bag of gummy bears.

OWEN: My favorite! What’d you get Ryan?

PAM: You actually already guessed it…

RYAN: Ummm, can I help you?

ADAM: Delivery for Mr. Ryan?

RYAN: Yeah, that’s me…who’s this from?

ADAM: Pamela Kirkland.

RYAN: Here’s a $10 tip, thanks for delivering this–<SFX Opens Pizza box> Oh my word. It’s a heart shaped pepperoni pizza!

PAM: Happy Valentine’s Day, Ry. Wanna share a slice with me and Owen?

RYAN: I absolutely do, though we should probably give Ten News Snaps first.

PAM: And before that, here’s a quick note for the grown ups…

PAM: A Ten’er named Gina left us a comment on our Spotify and said, “You guys are the best. My kids love you.” Oh wow, thank you Gina! We love that you listen with your kids, and please let them know that we love them too! Happy Valentine’s Day!

RYAN: I LOVE THE HEARTWARMING STUFF! Thank you Gina. And if your kids ever want to be featured on the show, just email us at hello@thetennews.com. If any Ten’ers want to be on the show, have your grownup send us an email!

PAM: Two extra notes for the grown-ups, you can now get ad-free versions of our episodes when you join the Ten’ers Club on our website.

RYAN: And if you want to help support the Ten News, you can make a tax-deductible donation at the link in our show notes. The whole team thanks you for your support!

PAM: “The Ten News” is a co-production of Small But Mighty Media and Next Chapter Podcasts, and part of the Airwave Podcast Network.

RYAN: The Ten News creative team is warming their hearts and sending love to our Ten’ers and includes Tracey Not a Crooks, Adam the Great Bambino Bernard, Brian Not Ryan Douglas and Carson Not So Harry Potter. Big thanks to Owen, Not Slowin Down for Anybody.

PAM: Our Production Director is Jeremiah Tittle, and our Executive Producers are Donald Not Dim But Albright and show creator Tracy Takes the Leeds Kaplan. I’m Pamela Kirkland.

RYAN: And I’m Ryan Willard, thanks for listening to the Ten News.

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