The EU soon intends to sign two far-reaching trade agreements: one with Canada (CETA = Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement) and one with the USA (TTIP = Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership). The official line is that this will create jobs and increase economic growth. However, the beneficiaries of these agreements are not in fact citizens, but big corporations:
More info here. Or you can just sign the petition against it right away! If you happen to be a person with power, please do whatever it is that you have the power to do! In the long run the TTIP isn't a proposition that benefits anyone: not regular people, nor corporations. What's not good for the world affects us all, and this could have some pretty serious consequences. Spread the word!
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© CyberD.org 2024
Keeping the world since 2004.
© CyberD.org 2024
Keeping the world since 2004.
The problem with these protest/anti videos and website is they only propagate information and values from the anti point of view...the truth and reality of it usually lies somewhere in between what's presented in the actual text and the opinions on the other side of the spectrum. I wish there was more media that didn't present ideas as bad or good but rather present the information as is with minimal bias, and discuss the pros and cons, and encourage people to find their own answers.
I'm the furthest thing from an economist, but in theory, I don't see how that quoted snippet would be true, from a capital sense- Less rules means the ability to sell a wider array of products (not to mention at a cheaper rate as there are less middle men needed to "inspect" foreign trade) economy, which is beneficial to everyone, from the owners of the corporations, to the "day laborers" that work within the corporations (more sales requires more jobs and more hours), and the customers are happy because they pay lower prices, more net tax is accumulated, so we can hope the government can use the extra money for enhanced medical, educational, civil, and scientific, and artistic, protection/defense funding.
Your latter statement about the bigger picture involving the entire world (as related to the potential harmful environmental effects that may come with the bill)is a more salient concern to me, but both the EU and the US have high standards of public health and inspection (although the outsourced article pretty much insults the US EPA, implying that the country permits unsafe environmental practices!! not to say they are wrong though), and compared to lesser developed countries, have exceptionally low levels of disease so it's not like either country is opening the flood gates to introducing new illnesses by signing the bill. (Of Course the EU is generally healthier than the US- but that's mostly due to an irrelevant cultural issue of Americans over eating foods consisting of high corn starch, fried oils and high fructose syrup, leading to obesity, and related cardiac and pulmonary problems).
There of course are some differences in how things are grown between worlds, but that doesn't mean the EU and USA shouldn't be granted access to them. The problem here is that food products are not required in entirety to be labeled with potential hazards chemicals, i.e. "this apple was treated with this chemical pesticide to protect against this bug from transmitting this virus", or "this grain was genetically modified with this protein to increase this nutritional content". What we eat should be revealed in its entirety, including the whole agricultural process- people should have a right to know what they are putting in the body- but companies will never do that, fearing that chemical names will scare customers away. So what?? An individual has the right to be safe instead of sorry. The tests, results, and full research that agricultural departments use to deem a product and/or certain synthetic chemical or food safe should be fully available to the public. People need to make an educated decision...not just be an anti-government hippie, or be an ignorant sheeple that gobbles everything up.
With that said, I can see why this whole lack of transparency dilemma makes this bill unsuitable for European countries with stricter regulatory demands...now there's a chance you may have some "americanized" agents in your food that you wouldn't know about...doesn't seem right...but in the scenario that all knowledge was available to the customer, the ultimate question here is, what is wrong with the hormone-meat, chlorinated chicken, cloned cattle (WTF?) and genetically modified organisms (the only scientific process listed her I'm an advocate for in this f*cked up, underfed (in parts), fast paced (who's got time to grow wholesome, completely natural food these days!!) and overpopulated world) simply being just available to the general public? most likely for a lesser price, and sometimes a better quality (subjective related to taste, size, physical appearance, even smell, but many times these products have longer shelf lives and transport better)
The video also mentions the issue of who actually has a voice in the whole proposition...ahh, the double-edged sword of democracy...do we do the fair thing and give the right for every person of age to vote, where the populace contains a significant amount of uneducated people making unfounded votes, or let the corporations and those with money make decisions based on the best way to line their pockets...
In conclusion...I'm not against the bill, but I'm against all the transparency and censorship that goes on, from the farming and cultivating practices, to the legal and economic discussions that occur behind the close doors on the 100th floor of corporate buildings. Do super large skyscraping buildings exist in Sweden btw? I know I didn't cover a lot of the other legal issues, and I'm definitely against oil-fracking (gasoline is rather old hat...time to use solar-electric, dihydrogen monoxide, algael and other bio-fuels) but those issues would require a lot of scrutiny before I make a more informed opinion...
Well, everyone propagates information from their own angle. The government from theirs, the corporations from theirs; the people from their own very unmentionable and small corner. It would be neat with unbiased media, but then again who's really willing to take in ALL the facts and form their own opinion? I appreciate that some people do, and then make something like this petition out of it, so at least you're made aware of the potential problem. Then it's up to the individual to do their research.
I watched the video and read through the 'reasons' page before posting this, didn't want to throw in too much info in the blog, but the thing that concerns me the most in this proposition is how corporations would be able to sue a COUNTRY over loss of profit. Taking recent file-sharing trials into consideration, some corporations often heavily exaggerate their losses, gladly place the blame on independent parties when their own business model is often faulty and worst of all: they get their way.
The judicial system's already corrupt, corporations ruling for profit, regular citizens discriminated against, but with this proposition it wouldn't be about something petty like the Internet (well, it could be about that too), it could be about something like GMO. Looking at the gigantic foothold that evil Monsanto corporation has in for example India I'm scared shitless of what they could accomplish were they free to take their business to us, and blame any potential setbacks on us. Environmentalists and people who care for the world wouldn't even have a say, the state would pay. Even if there are benefits it's just not worth the risk. It's like nuclear power.
GMO seems like the biggest danger, but even that other thing about pumping gas into the ground and polluting drinking water at its source seems pretty terrible. I didn't think some things were so much better here in Europe, but apparently you have some practices over there that I really hope never crosses the oceanic divide!
All the potential extra money for enhanced medical, educational, civil, and scientific, and artistic, protection/defense funding wouldn't mean much if we would face such extreme environmental vandalism. Or: the country gets sued, and potential money's for nothing anyway.
On the topic of how what we eat should be revealed in its entirety (definitely agree), I think I read something about California forcing manufacturers to list all potentially dangerous ingredients? Maybe not chemicals used on fruits/vegetables specifically, but on artificial edibles, health products and such. Well, you pretty much summed up the things I wouldn't want here. There are benefits, sure, but I wish people could just go back to their roots! Partly. Start growing nutritious food again. Quit being so greedy. Live a bit instead of making profit off of others misery.
There is already GMO, there's probably plenty of chemicals being used that should be banned, the EU actually recently introduced a law the PREVENTS companies from specifying if their skin-care products have parabens. Imagine if there was a law against mentioning that a product may contain nuts? Nuts.
All process here isn't good, but I can see this turning the dips and dunes to a steady slope...
Doesn't the fact that 90% of the consultants involved in this pact work for corporations seem a bit shady to you? The corporations don't care about the people (not the big ones, it seems). They care about the profit. And people shouldn't care about profit, they should care about what's important. And what's important is, well, I think I mentioned all this already...
Mmm.
I don't think we have any 100 story buildings here... actually there are probably few buildings that'd classify as skyscrapers... apparently there are a few! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Skyscrapers_in_Sweden
Thanks for the elaborate comment and consideration man! Though that petition could use another name. ;)
People this is so old just free market, and it will never die until the economic model changes, all these countries and companies need these agreements to survive.
Sounds like... a good reason to sign the petition then? If the current corporate order of the world collapses maybe it'd make way for a better way of life!
Economic models aren't changed by making petitions you should know better than that.
Yeah, but... what do? The path to becoming a part of the powerful elite and having an actual say in the matter is long and harsh! And by getting closer to solving the problem, I'd become part of it. :/
Educate the people, organize, unite, and fight, that is how change is done, of course any of those steps takes a lot of time, effort and commitment.
A post about the petition sounds like a step in the right direction though, maybe not organizing and uniting, or fighting, but educating! True that. So much easier to post a post than go out and do something about it.
Well getting people aware of things happening is important too, but, yeah if we keep sitting in front of our screens without moving nothing is really going to change.
Yet here we are! Sitting without moving. What do you say we stand up and... do something? I think I'ma write an inspiring post about this...
Na i am too much of a bastard to do something.
Ah the old "but not us them".
Straight off the bat! We have a chat! In this habitat where all is rad like maxipad stacks in the back of a black van full of goons strapped with gats! THAT is where it's @