Every [Corporation] for Himself: The TPP’s Growing Controversy

From NYU's student run Journal of Politics and International Affairs:

Just this week, international headlines have declared that the 12 member nations have come to a final agreement. If passed, the TPP would officially become the largest trade deal in global history.

Amid the discussion of fast-track approval, populist politicians and domestic labor unions began to publicly denounce the TPP. It was argued that the essence of these behind-the-door negotiations denied the public of their right to know what this mega-partnership entailed for the common man. Lobbying, establishment politics, and years of undercover arrangements began to frighten Americans everywhere. The uneasiness, without a doubt, remains well warranted.

Over time, remnants of the trade deal’s content began to become public. Those who condemned the TPP continued to, but this time with the ability to identify its negative externalities.

More here.

You know, we can argue about protective tariffs and other impediments to trade. That's a real discussion, one that's actually about trade. But the story with these mega global corporate "trade" deals has been the same since NAFTA. They're not really trade deals. They're investor agreements about "intellectual property rights." And they're definitely anti-sovereignty. I mean, environmental laws are now the same thing as protective tariffs? That's totally absurd. They're just not the same thing.

And the ability to sue to "recoup" this fiction they're calling "future profits" makes me want to alternatively laugh and vomit. It's totally Orwellian mixed with Dr. Seuss. This shit makes the fact that massive corporations run everything totally obvious to anybody who wants to see it.

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