Tariffs and Jiu-Jitsu Economics

In this episode of Fighting Matters, Jeff Shaw and Jesse Walker are joined by Jose Fernandez, a health economist and purple belt who chairs the economics department at the University of Louisville. He explains who pays for tariffs, why 70% of the world's gis coming out of one country matters for your gear budget, and what gym owners should do about prices and leases while their students are getting squeezed.

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👥 Featuring:
- Jeff Shaw — https://bellinghambjj.com
- Jesse Walker — https://roughhandsbjj.com
- Jose Fernandez — https://louisville.edu/faculty/jmfern02

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🧠 Topics Discussed:
- The tight labor market and consumer sentiment
- Gym pricing, leases, and rate freezes
- Politics in the gym and local elections
- Tariffs on gis and rash guards
- The AI bubble and robot labor
- The federal debt and taxing the rich
- Insurance paperwork and doctor hours

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📖 Chapters:
00:00:00 — Introducing Jose Fernandez
00:03:57 — The indicators and the debt
00:06:47 — White belt signups slow down
00:08:51 — Leases, rent, and expansion
00:11:48 — Why you shouldn't cut prices
00:13:38 — Family discounts and freezes
00:19:05 — Politics in the jiu-jitsu gym
00:20:29 — Vote in your local elections
00:25:09 — Who pays the tariff on your gi
00:28:23 — Trade deals without tariffs
00:32:31 — Why the stock market climbs
00:38:00 — Robots replacing human labor
00:47:54 — AI, drones, and modern warfare
00:54:12 — Cheap gas and the oil reserves
01:00:03 — The debt and the sacred cows
01:11:24 — Insurers waste doctor hours