[P2P-F] Fwd: ZNet Commentary: Pete Dolack: The Medicine of the Trans-Pacific Partnership as Bitter as Ever

Sun Oct 26 10:25:09 CET 2014

dear Kevin,

I think excerpts of this should be featured in the p2p blog, this threat to
the seed and other commons is very real,

Michel

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: ZCommunications <michael.albert at zmag.org>
Date: Sat, Oct 25, 2014 at 7:21 PM
Subject: ZNet Commentary: Pete Dolack: The Medicine of the Trans-Pacific
Partnership as Bitter as Ever
To: michelsub2004 at gmail.com

   Is this email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4BltDojSsILWXmids1-2BNoDp-2BcynwPtGdVVDO36blItpwqkiSzG9O6Gxp4gkP8l0kJ4Q-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrP3V6cble1yFEpK7-2FW-2BWLkDL-2BjPvEoc-2BT999pdBlV2oLTgD3YkZhrMq3KJTuBYQQdIsTYRCFj9uNOAa68NiheDNs4n7njURUUA7l38mMlhmx4DwPIZW1IejiQ-2Fl6SV1P7g-3D-3D>.

Pete Dolack: The Medicine of the Trans-Pacific Partnership as Bitter as EverZ
Communications Daily Commentary

The Trans-Pacific Partnership is as dangerous as ever. Denying access to
medicines, increased surveillance of Internet usage and mandatory patents
at the behest of multi-national corporations are some of the corporate
goodies stashed in the TPP’s intellectual property chapter, revealed by
WikiLeaks this month. Journalism could even be criminalized.

The more we know about the TPP, the worse it gets, which is why the
governments of the 12 countries involved, led by the Obama administration,
continue to negotiate in unprecedented secrecy. The latest text of the
TPP’s intellectual property chapter shows very little change from an
earlier draft also published by WikiLeaks. In a press release accompanying
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4Bm7kegeVfke2oSGUQ5lAhBV9gT-2B1vYbnxiYGyK6D37a4TiP0iBncYvkQTgPWV1EA9A-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrH9L0RJL0ga3OM900grKpJFoDjqKfdkYZIBLNj5xAo08C5uowWQC6FtvAzdmpfNsMvhRFqeSLuwXBtReNniepWTCujJXBbmEpdOwKx73-2Fz3Zi0TnmgKmBpat1-2F-2F0q1S6IQ-3D-3D>
this
month’s publication of the revised text, WikiLeaks says:

“[T]here are significant industry-favouring additions within the areas of
pharmaceuticals and patents. These additions are likely to affect access to
important medicines such as cancer drugs and will also weaken the
requirements needed to patent genes in plants, which will impact small
farmers and boost the dominance of large agricultural corporations like
Monsanto.”

An analysis by Public Citizen
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4Bmd1x3-2B4vMpbzTV2CPQJ93LlLfxtU33pSv1B6pHy2mvKxp0x7HT-2B4ukzF-2FGrxKx5Oc-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrJTs8UD5W09O6Op3IYlAv29lHK3gKiEdubxycajrURUST-2FjVrdKrxn3U67CD97M-2FkTJW4ur4igLeRJmYXQGX1PQBL48ROxDcjsfRSbsyXEZ7iy8JBwDGezD5ZkKR7PgG7w-3D-3D>
 explains:

“A rule [would] require the patenting of plant-related inventions, such as
the genes inserted into genetically modified plants, putting farmers in
developing countries at the mercy of the agriculture industry, including
seed manufacturers such as Monsanto, and threatening food security in these
countries more broadly.”

Monsanto, already attempting to gain a stranglehold over the world’s food
supply, is hardly in need of yet more favorable treatment. Proprietary
seeds and genetically modified organisms are Monsanto’s routes to control
what you eat
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4BnITe9BcIsU5ppgsOLHEfX7umzXOXefTlMplv0UWwZ5pEGtda8w2m8ni-2Fu6x7cGSq4-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrDWCEWTVhpOFbkZnfGvdKnYSp33JfsPatSCB3UNZKC6jFYgH6Usu8-2FaWr0pOqvTVE3JnrtCakrSyvPzcRehg86P-2BndHzKGn9yK5XAcBvMew-2BXjogWZpJckhnSafuCy4idw-3D-3D>
and
what farmers grow. Once under contract, farmers are required to buy new
genetically engineered seeds from the company every year and the Monsanto
herbicide to which the seed has been engineered to be resistant.

*Stealth ‘fast-track’ process needed to sneak TPP through Congress*

Concomitant to the secrecy shrouding the TPP is the stealth needed to pass
the “free trade” treaty. The Obama administration is seeking to be given
“fast-track” authority by Congress. Under the fast-track process, Congress
cedes its right to make any changes, limits its time to debate, and must
schedule a straight yes-or-no vote (no amendments allowed) in a short
period of time. Some of the worst “free trade” deals have been approved in
this manner, and the importance of fast-track is shown in that the last
U.S. trade pact approved, with South Korea, was approved in 2007 — literally
one minute
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4Bkg3VH3QulaKAeLoRkTCuwmGhl9iWvOd0o7t8IVSzmUPPrQMfRHmGwvzigZJo-2BIi60-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrKJrzJIOeQhKzMePy8kIGZsJhKiEum-2Bbk8jweElaJtWoufSfsJwhHbqX14VkOT3DSxq-2Ba2gL1qm7PJLs-2B-2BGpMOtAyb0POWgmWdrjibuMc0-2FsRm4rrr-2F2Nvwk7DzEYMHJIg-3D-3D>before
fast-track authority expired!

A fast-track bill, known as Camp-Baucus for its two sponsors, was
essentially dead on arrival early this year due to widespread opposition in
Congress, mostly by Democrats but also some Republicans. That this arose
was because of organized activist work by groups across the United States.
But Democratic Senator Ron Wyden, last April, signaled his intention to
introduce a new fast-track bill, which he rebranded “smart track
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4Blz6iajexdxISrEZB9A8gtMW1GR1RBb0l6qV20XtUq5x7yqdLL1m0DktC0WFGiSPFk-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrC7cMwaDkZxkyY470YzNyRVfs6gEVX83ZX-2FcSN7PzKPbQu9Aeuz-2BfyAGPZYfPJBttJAhIPPGLVAMpmYgfFRCLSgHmn-2Fscvofs6UZAZCObGHdbPeXiZq6CtkcIK6DYOcW7g-3D-3D>.”
U.S. activists widely speculate that either Senator Wyden’s thinly
disguised “smart track” bill or a more openly fast-track bill, perhaps
written by Republicans in the House of Representatives, will be introduced
in Congress following the November election with the intention of ramming
it through a lame-duck session.

U.S. activists for the past year and a half have focused on stopping
fast-track in Congress because it will be virtually impossible to pass the
TPP otherwise. Other countries have signaled their reluctance to agree to a
final TPP text unless Congress grants the Obama administration fast-track
authority. Without such authority, Congress would retain the right to make
changes to an agreed-upon treaty, potentially unraveling any deal. The
Canadian government, in late September, made this reluctance explicit.

*Washington Trade Daily* recently reported that the Canadian ambassador to
the U.S., Gary Doer, said Canada and other negotiating countries won’t
conclude negotiations until the Obama administration has the “political
muscle” of trade-promotion authority (the formal name for fast-track).
Thus, activists advocate no lessening of vigilance against new attempts to
introduce fast-track legislation. A Week of Action
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4Bm3jRMEddvORvAUO6mI2rmiift14irnByXk4y0kIlYGGxYf98Y-2BeJx-2BaRJKhlqZYfA-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrL-2FXoU4x2riJivEeqPv332-2BVnyid6iNwMmS1fK8VklzddjnaRGt-2BjWzyxuGp3oANtTO-2FUHvGv-2FB2WH2wIFLd4hKEbfWay8xXqHkypdUTrs7Ho2xG-2FDNyEsXaS8JMfkbvvQ-3D-3D>
Against
Fast Track is being organized for November 8 to 14 in the U.S. In
Australia, a series of rallies
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4BluRsQmD82syvEmn3qTfBtR9-2BjciVxzL4WsyZkzaKP1YqxBqr-2FFL0MYzrOcfs4AHfY-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrO2azIKLd-2B25aAPokmp7JeQ-2FfvZxGnnB9uKU9i7-2BXJZ09GBgRLVrdgWVOxQ5ABwi3AHDJ93PwF64iRRKMKCefwViLJa6vdcuJYuiMIHO-2FSWF0k90pLdw83J3k7XkxQrOpw-3D-3D>
opposing
the TPP are taking place this week in Sydney and Canberra.

These efforts come against a renewed push for a completed deal; negotiators
are meeting this week, to be immediately followed on October 25 by a
ministerial-level meeting in Sydney.

*Criminalizing your right to know*

There is much to oppose in the Trans-Pacific Partnership itself. A
trade-secrets provision in the leaked intellectual property chapter is
written in a way that makes it possible for reporting the contents of a
future trade deal to be prosecuted. The article in question
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4BlqJaQPEsxpLxWBL-2FMjA8QeDLtESr8lT5hZBofpDL3uO1BuOqlzw1UgFrZaevsH5ag-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrJDuiVVoy8NFx1p1CdD9nZhgtJdgE9d5-2BmHomAg3vyxXFY9KkcdobhiwJcSsTqFSFpslaxAnDzEMH4nGxkTIR2aViyvIjkuy3MH89RMbz2e-2BYDb-2FIt62ciGByFbJmoNgxw-3D-3D>
states:

“In the course of ensuring effective protection against unfair competition
… each Party shall ensure that natural and legal persons have the legal
means to prevent trade secrets lawfully in their control from being
disclosed to, acquired by, or used by others (including state commercial
enterprises) without their consent in a manner contrary to honest
commercial practices.”

Criminal penalties would be mandatory for:

“the unauthorized, willful access to a trade secret held in a computer
system; the unauthorized, willful misappropriation of a trade secret,
including by means of a computer system; or the fraudulent (or
unauthorized) disclosure of a trade secret, including by means of a
computer system.”

WikiLeaks’ publication of this text would be a criminal matter under this
provision. This provision would make it mandatory for signatory governments
to enact strict laws protecting undefined “trade secrets.” The text of the
TPP itself is classified as a secret! Legislators and the public are
excluded from seeing the text. In the United States, the only people other
than negotiators to have access to the text are 605 “advisers,”
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4Blhv7ORAhKtITFJkXG3G-2FLq1n7dClHFpjRwZSZKYCx8w7l80J-2BB6UmmGOQKgCQMmyg-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrMX2a0c-2FkqOCkiI2w7qfYV7QWIgdFIrDsJKKD3T6692Ts-2Fen5sXGQYUYTKRgRQVdKGKSd7Y9-2FOvbBsQhabbc2Zx6XlZ4x3sYERFewialINFLl0swVoGz-2B4CY2s-2Brfh9-2FDA-3D-3D>
who
are almost all executives of multi-national corporations or corporate
lobbyists.

*The Age* newspaper of Melbourne summarizes the threat to journalism
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4BlX55joWaCSU-2Bj8VBsYSF46yklbK7uZ-2FVAmv-2BMew-2Fzcvn-2BRDe7Uu-2BTO9kcaQPCeeZE-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrIilrwqFZgrF3HiCf24q1beHv45t7R6OVzHUKPRPluvnxlbaLFQLJm99ljLqsKll8WGTJgefWmugzfLgxIMsKvoqbmwgKXtKoFvyWg-2BePBenS9-2Fvy1oPZrsa46h4e6bCVw-3D-3D>
this
way:

“The leaked treaty text shows that in an effort to deal with ‘unfair
competition,’ largely from Chinese industrial espionage, the United States
has pushed ahead with proposals to criminalise disclosure of trade secrets
across the Pacific Rim. The draft text provides that TPP countries will
introduce criminal penalties for unauthorised access to, misappropriation
or disclosure of trade secrets, defined as information that has commercial
value because it is secret, by any person using a computer system.  …

There are no public interest or free speech exemptions. Criminalisation of
disclosure would apply to journalists working for commercial media
organisations or wherever the leak was considered harmful to the ‘economic
interests’ of any TPP country.”

*Barriers to cheaper generic medications*

Other rules in the TPP intellectual property text would raise barriers to
generic medications
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4BnOdYuLwoMaGSDFAfQfnXA-2FFjqbt8AFJI-2BlLELQ3qJjTpXBAE5Tj1NXP7stmHw82q4-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrNOaO3IpCl5lyzq0jM-2FEe7QHZjk9SkUEz3VL9wJcZRc2ooWqgsq1cjdd7BW5G979SU9t7ommPzrmVjQ64WOs5JDCRlaInzx9W64ypP8DCSJLz5YDCuUqMRnEU8EzL14oxA-3D-3D>
becoming
available and mandating that the terms of patents be extended on demand
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4BnOdxtYgvkROw0PBq4-2F9oD5Xei1sPmclkblvV16rQAI82YuKkAqBduvqjpNYRIYL2w-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrAAwGRl4GUGD5s1-2B2czyNeGaOCerS6eN-2Buzki7zYIQIk84LQdePm9HnWgdh5ljR4oKZvX6E4Pq2-2BmEIo1v99JFtyjIM39JVQdhpANMRt3r0HvllbM66HYOEonuH5xwfUjg-3D-3D>
by
patent holders. The United States and Japan even propose language that
would require intellectual property enforcement
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4Bm-2B6GChOT2GzbJA6we9ODhDQxV1zMsGc3jB6x0I98pF6lDoX31j0t9mTFFIhTZZpZw-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrN6DgydjEbcx7KWyj6H54f-2Btrh3ha5qmhtjDWkXs9zvhEiCUPPgv6iJwV1W-2BVg6FpOKInWohJjVFlyVZHz9UdC51-2BwMuC6vVekevr34kqm1eSOxHG7CGTaC5gMj1XMwntQ-3D-3D>
to
be elevated above any other legal consideration! The U.S. is also seeking
the criminalization of copyright infringement, even in cases where there is
no attempt to gain financially, such as a fan posting a work, and would
also mandate that Internet service providers remove content
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4BliacsK-2BlU5LGDMFp-2BoHxNEEQBopA9f2ogb31doH92JLooccymYYaFXY-2FRX-2F1aBMnU-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrKmyH47xtdS9RzQjBGCftdhyJvwSjhTzpKJ2M0CaW-2BKwWQSwtXgXFUrpDzwQfYZfPE4FW51A-2BD9vJzQ-2F5svShf9bofJdB0vGtjKOZ9wLy23mzOycHsOde3QYjMkIdlKxYQ-3D-3D>
upon
a corporation’s demand to avoid legal penalties.

The linchpin to enforcement of draconian rules — the worst of which are put
forth by the United States with Japan often seconding — is the “investor-state
dispute mechanism
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4BmGr4pWBeDR4526epG-2F2jBJ-2BEbef8PRGVfXkP-2BM1pNJj-2BXU-2BO2W0UM-2FZDu0wuo0fEo-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrGjFIg9yOi-2FA41tzO67b3hWUW-2FlrMLzGYJ5iZ9VMuDSyFiFzuAx2EVhWk7x2MzD5evDoxtFEKCIAWN2qlT0VPbkyDiQk5QF4n3ob6Nwtcs4aVEU0cjAiFOoMkHvLqBuQ-2Fw-3D-3D>.”
That is a requirement that governments submit to binding arbitration in
secret tribunals when an “investor” wants a law changed; the judges in
these tribunals are corporate lawyers.

The dispute mechanism is not directly mentioned in the intellectual
property chapter, but the one article that purports to uphold national
sovereignty
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4BnLw6NCyP1kKq-2FtwvDvWz-2BW-2BAgiqb3vyXyuEYu2SeESE31hX1O3Wb-2FD7j84nrs2iAk-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrD9Gx1KufA68g-2F5cL2kJiuIa9X6vcgkQlnT-2FWreRk3AGy2sgSrMIR2xE8DUu09uv4lLMA2BhpVZMiGr-2F-2BdKFIVxQsL1owAQxpmw2xpMZEdU-2BemR4ijFmBrq-2F305ohI0e7g-3D-3D>
is
contradicted by another article that mandates that multi-national
corporations be given the same rights
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4Bk3aOPq1IkS2kc03F-2By6Hhf-2FuLPpD0Ecf5Vzai8ZelgSoC0FJaGHCON7IPQ0GfoZx0-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrH-2BWm-2FzkVUk6py-2FfWgb-2BENxbVvu-2B93AaIV1EDlea8q4ia50tMa9eE85hIwAo8-2FlaH7fLtp542yZUpbOV3lG1k3Iia9-2Fg-2BQcm0n8gLOnavxE7J-2BcAY-2FBYAOdIeBlpj8FF1w-3D-3D>
as
national corporations. That clause, standard in “free trade” agreements, is
a battering ram used by the secret tribunals to order the withdrawal of
laws safeguarding environmental, safety, health or labor standards. These
rulings, in turn, become precedents that are used to hand down future
harsher decisions.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership, however, is far from the only danger to
working people. There is also the Transatlantic Trade and Investment
Partnership
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4BlPO418qXuMCYaz1yeKZXGwLwqEtt8U8HIjdM01zk51vLDY8-2F-2F6F2tm05V-2FjlYFr8A-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrCL0hTCJSbJQfOZc0bPzsuoOyd8tM1h1tTlP52u4HCHr6MoB8oVEY7y3h769uWTm971aWLc-2Bg-2FE19pVbk080K5RSVpeFCGP7ZPJTkRo56IcAXQtNv0nNw44auh9I-2BIFoRw-3D-3D>
between
the U.S. and the E.U.; the Trade In Services Agreement
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4BnPUTFQwMWPrZINzKJ72DGffX8LxZKqRSKeevRjkSgO0fgrwyBoRWmmiSBgKNFiPpk-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrAZrDp98QXqP1WBiMKNyQKSZIvnr7nklXG7gwh97pr7v2x6-2FkSbEmABTwC8LyaEj0W4P1MPK50IREuZVSeXgQijIrsV8f-2FJz7m1IMw6G5Agj9UrsW9c6Bjrb2sAKCYSqHQ-3D-3D>
that
would eliminate the ability of governments to regulate the financial
industry (50 countries are in on this one); and the Canada-European
Union Comprehensive
Economic and Trade Agreement
<http://send.zcomm.org/wf/click?upn=CfxvrCXFYELtZdskNZLHR0dIc259CbJPYYp2kQLFwMHZA7ZSf1phARdauqZ6iGpAOoH1V9nsbbgR-2FOKY5SgVc-2BC6d9YNE3gXCuBggESE4Bl4Wl-2BemHvJ5TfWZ0hMjqDoe-2BhQwWSk-2FUtoERK1M89gAhgssuAvFnkyh1DA1kRzOt0-3D_V-2FUUiW5KvBPNV-2FItFYsbuIFOqr58NacNTIV3-2FGcH-2BSCEuTcdGgSmrXnkwEvCyDVyp8a1iLjAAbdS5x1tjEDKrDiuCsQeN3R28cDJZb4L5Va6mBp2-2BAVWKpxmOsMSEt4Xv-2Bxde0VSPceCl3ihrx-2BBHQMMx4-2F59CPO2gQo7YNIG-2BkWqTz896IU8O-2FQ7-2B2eGRQEbZ2LU2oaDmCXyIpP3ff9fw-3D-3D>.
Each of these are designed to elevate corporations to the level of a
country, although in practice, because of tribunal precedents, they would
elevate corporations above national governments.

“Free trade” agreements have little to do with trade, and much to do with
imposing the domination of capital in as many spheres of life as possible.
They are massive failures for working people in all countries. They offer,
and can offer, nothing but a race to the bottom. Attempting to reform a
race to the bottom is a fool’s errand. The TPP and its equally vile cousins
must be defeated, and a complete re-conceptualization of trade and who
should benefit from trade, substituted. That in turn requires directly
challenging prevailing economic systems, otherwise we will be shoveling
against the tide.

ZCommunications, 18 Millfield St., Woods Hole, MA, USA, 02543
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-- 
Check out the Commons Transition Plan here at:
http://en.wiki.floksociety.org/w/Research_Plan

P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net  - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net

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