TPP is Evil: The "How to Fight It" Edition

I apologize to anyone who gets emails from CREDO already; you can just skip to the links.

Why is the Trans-Pacific Partnership bad for you? Well, what concerns you? Are you concerned about Internet freedom? TPP is bad for you. Worried about more American jobs getting moved overseas? TPP is bad for you. Think corporations are having entirely too much say in politics? TPP is bad for you. Wish you could help get much-needed medicine to sick people in developing nations? TPP is bad for you. Concerned about unsafe food, toys, and other consumables on shop shelves? TPP is bad for you. Why is TPP good for you? Um...I can't think of a reason. Want to put a stop to it? "Tell Congress: Say NO to fast-track trade authority. Click here to automatically sign the petition."

Need to know more? Well, I can't say it as well as CREDO's Matt Lockshin and the EFF, so:

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a terrible "trade" deal being negotiated in secret by the governments of a dozen countries (including ours) colluding with corporate interests.
Under the TPP, more American jobs would be offshored. Internet freedom would be a joke. Developing countries would lose access to lifesaving medicines. Unsafe foods and products could pour into our country. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Our best shot to stop the TPP is right now.

The enactment of the TPP will hinge upon the passage of so-called “fast-track trade authority,” which would allow the president to sign off on the TPP before the American people or Congress ever have a chance to read it.

A fast-track bill was introduced in Congress yesterday. So we need to speak out today.

Tell Congress: Say NO to fast-track trade authority. Click here to automatically sign the petition.

You might think such a far-reaching proposal as the TPP would be subject to intense public debate. But the text of the proposed deal is considered classified by our government and even members of Congress have been given extremely limited access to it.

Yet, while the government has kept the public and Congress largely in the dark about the TPP, it has given 600 corporate advisers access to the full text of the proposal.

We know the little we do know about the deal because drafts of some of its chapters have been leaked. And what we know isn't pretty.

A draft of the "intellectual property rights" chapter of the TPP was leaked recently, and according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, it "reflects a terrible but unsurprising truth: an agreement negotiated in near-total secrecy, including corporations but excluding the public, comes out as an anti-user wish list of industry-friendly policies."¹

That's only one chapter, when there are many other chapters that haven't been leaked.

The first stage in the plan to pass the TPP is a big push for Congress to pass fast-track trade authority, which would short-circuit the typical legislative process when trade deals like the TPP come up for a vote.Pressured by giant corporate interests that stand to make huge amounts of money on the deal, and faced with a public that has purposefully been kept ignorant about this deal, it’s not hard to see how the TPP could be rammed through Congress if fast-track trade authority is in place.

Tell Congress: Say NO to fast-track trade authority. Click here to automatically sign the petition.

Fast-track trade authority would allow the president to sign a trade deal before Congress has an opportunity to approve it. Then the president could send it to Congress with the guarantee that it would get an up-or-down vote within 90 day.

Fast track would mean there would be no meaningful hearings, limited debate and absolutely no amendments to the deal. And there would be tremendous pressure on Congress to rubberstamp anything the president signs.

The recently leaked drafter chapter is a huge red flag about the kind of terrible policies the Obama administration wants to include in the TPP.

The Constitution gives Congress exclusive authority over trade. And it would be a deeply irresponsible abdication of responsibility for Congress to pass fast track when we know the TPP is coming down the pike, especially when we know the consequences of the TPP could be disastrous.

It's the job of Congress to fully vet trade deals and ensure they work for everyone, not just giant corporations.

Tell Congress: Say NO to fast-track trade authority. Click the link below to automatically sign the petition.

http://act.credoaction.com/go/3087?t=6&akid=9741.700318.MYFSul

Thank you for speaking out. Your activism matters.

Matt Lockshin, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action from Working Assets

^1. "TPP Leak Confirms the Worst: US Negotiators Still Trying to Trade Away Internet Freedoms," Electronic Frontier Foundation, Nov. 13, 2013.

Links!

• Secret Fore-Edge Paintings Revealed in Early 19th Century Books: Wow! Absolutely beautiful! Excuse me while I go check all my old books...
• February 2014 LibraryReads list! Here, you can see what public librarians across the nation are recommending as great reads! Not familiar with LibraryReads? Learn more here.
• "Babies Ruin Bodies": Warning: Ninja Onions. Damn Ninja Onions. Also this Argentine Coke ad. Excuse me while I go hug my kids...
• The extinct tree which has resurrected from ancient seeds: Very cool! The plan is to breed Methuselah with a female date palm and bring back a fruit that was once so essential to Jewish life that, apparently, the Romans thought destroying it would cripple Israel's economy. Dr. Elaine Solowey has a really fascinating job. 
• Questions for God: Yeah, that always bothered me, too - I mean, how much sin can one boat get up to?
• 7-Year-Old Sophie Lester Asks Australian Science Agency For Pet Dragon.. And They Deliver!: I want a dragon, too. Just a little one - it could sit on my shoulder, and light candles for me. I could have s'mores without having to build a bonfire. This is an area where Science has pretty seriously failed us, people. Get on that, Science! 
• I know many of you are looking for jobs, or know someone who's looking for a job, so here is a very helpful infographic: How to Answer the Top 35 Interview Questions.