A Dreadful Piece of Work?

I was going to title this a Nasty piece of work.  Then I remembered Blogger wouldn't allow me to put "disgusting" in the title of a post and decided the word "nasty" would just be Too much for them.  But that's what I think this is!
Let's see if they allow "dreadful" instead.

I don't like the inflammatory language or all of the aims of this organization.  But if you think NAFTA hurt American workers, check out this "action page" and its links on the TPT (Trans-Pacific Partnership)!

And below this article is One example of what the Trans-Pacific Partnership could hold in store for all of us!

Dear Friends and Activists,

Because people have specifically asked us to include in our alerts on

this more details about why the proposed Trans Pacific Partnership

("TPP") is so evil, we will make the most critical points in this

one. Please therefore read on, gentle reader, remembering it is

always our practice to have supporting reference links on the action

page itself.

But first, the latest petition directly on the outrage of how a fast

track bill for this is has just been formally introduced, without any

manner of proper or judicious consideration.

When you submit this action page, PLEASE go out of your way in your

comments to use the names of your members of Congress in the THIRD

person, so they will make sense also as letters to the editor of your

local newspaper. If your House member has not signed a letter

protesting fast track for the TPP, you can say something like, "I

don't understand why Representative X has not . . .," or "I am

disappointed that Representative X . . . ". If they have taken a

stand against this you can say something like, "I applaud

Representative Y for . . .," etc., or something like that.

And you can instantly determine where your members of Congress stand

on this by clicking the special new function button on the action

page below we created especially for this purpose.

BEGIN NEW PETITION:

Senators Max Baucus, Orrin Hatch and Representative David Camp have

just conspired among themselves to make a back room deal, just the

three of them, to put a fast track bill for the secretive Trans

Pacific Partnership up for the direct vote of Congress.

We Demand Full Committee Hearings On The TPP action page:

http://www.peaceteam.net/action/pnum1150.php

In doing so, they have disgracefully bypassed their own committees,

with a responsibility for considering and voting on any such

proposal. And yet the letter announcing this appears on the official

Senate Finance Committee web page, and as such on its face

constitutes gross abuse of their authority and duties as chairmen of

their committees.

What makes this all the more outrageous is their 3 man unilateral

press release touts how their fast track bill will promote "access to

information." Do they mean that as some kind of cruel joke!? No

"trade" proposal before has ever been negotiated in such extreme

secrecy, with members of Congress forbidden to disclose what they

know about the TPP now, and journalists systematically excluded from

access since talks on this began.

And it is hardly any surprise why. From leaked documents we know,

among many other evil things, that the TPP as proposed purports to

establish new special rights for corporations to take precedence over

the laws of all the nation states involved, even to be able to

collect damages in lost profits if, for example, they not allowed to

pollute any way they like.

This is truly the sickest proposal ever to come out of a craven

corporate attorney's mind. And shame on any member of Congress too

corrupt not to immediately stand up in vociferous protest.

Shame on any member of Congress who does not demand fully transparent

consideration and their full constitutional voting authority over the

TPP itself in the full and unhurried light of day. Any proposal to

cut Congress out of the loop by a deceptive fast track hustle must be

categorically rejected in any form.

We Demand Full Committee Hearings On The TPP action page:

http://www.peaceteam.net/action/pnum1150.php

The above is the actual text of the petition sent by the link also

above. And after you submit it, feel free to request one of our

dramatic new "Expressway To Trade Hell TPP" bumper stickers. You can

have one for no charge, not even shipping, must by submitting this

form.

Expressway To Trade Hell TPP bumper stickers:

http://www.peaceteam.net/all_bumper_stickers.php

Of course, if you can make a contribution of any amount, this is what

makes it possible for us to sent free stickers to anyone who cannot

afford to make a contribution right now.

THE CASE AGAINST THE PROPOSED TPP

We have already mentioned in the petition above itself the most

dastardly new evil in the TPP, super-national rights for corporate

business interests, which we only know about at all because there

exist leaked documents, albeit heavily redacted. The TPP purports to

define any law to constrain pollution, establish labor rights, etc.

as an "indirect expropriation" of expected corporate profits, and to

establish an unassailable tribunal to enforce these virtually

unprecedented prerogatives.

So, for example, if some mega-corporation wanted to frack in your

backyard, and you didn't like it, you would have to pay them as

damages the money they would presumptively have made from destroying

your environment, and your own government would be enfeebled to

protect you in any way.

And that's just the start. The TPP would make it easier to export

jobs to markets where labor is even cheaper than where they exported

most of our jobs under NAFTA and preceding "free" trade agreements.

These are nothing but free for all labor exploitation deals, and the

TPP is the worst yet by an order of magnitude. If you want to turn

the entire United States of America into a third world country, this

is the fast track to get there.

The TPP would extend drug patent monopolies, high on the Christmas

wish list of the greediest pharmaceutical monoliths, who are already

raking in monstrous profit margins.

The TPP purports to inhibit on an international scale the ability of

governments to perform proper financial oversight and regulation of

the same Wall Street banks and insurance companies that have come so

close already to wrecking the entire world economy. They would be

free to create toxic assets, play casino with client money, to do

more and more of the very things that created such crises in the

first place.

And that's not all. The TPP would leave governments, including our

own, powerless to regulate pesticides, food additive, or GMOs. They

could force-feed us this stuff against our will by infiltrating our

entire food supply.

This stuff is so unbelievably bad you will have to make a serious

effort to read the deliberately sparse information which is available

to appreciate the kind of peril we are all in right now, unless this

thing is stopped cold.

Oh, and there's more, too. They want to monopolize global food

supplies. They want to abolish policies to "buy local." And on top of

everything else they want to abolish all tariffs so THEY can retain

ALL the profit from the new labor markets they want to exploit.

The only thing "free" about this so-called trade deal is to make

giant corporations free from any accountability whatsoever, a new

world order where governments are entirely subservient to selfish

business interests.

But your voice speaking out can stop these 21st century fascists in

their fast tracks, if only you will speak out now while you still

can. As of this moment, because of your voices, they have been unable

to find a Democrat on the House side to co-sponsor the bill. It must

stay that way, and only our unflagging diligence and activism can

keep it that way.

You may forward this message to any friends who would find it

important.

Contributions to The People's Email Network are not tax-deductible

for federal income tax purposes.

If you would like to be added to our distribution list, go to

http://www.peaceteam.net/in.htm

Or if don't want to receive our messages, just go to

http://www.peaceteam.net/out.htm

usalone539b:17311

Monsanto's friends are trying to strongarm Brazilian lawmakers to allow the sale

of GMO 'terminator seeds'.

These seeds can only be used once -- making them very bad news for cash-strapped

small farmers.

Tell Brazilian lawmakers to keep their ban on these dangerous GMO seeds.

Sign the Petition

Under pressure from big commercial farms,

 the Brazilian parliament is about to hold a vote that will allow companies like

Monsanto, Bayer, and others to start selling so-called ‘suicide seeds’ to farmers.

 The genetically modified seeds can only be used once, forcing small farmers into

buying seeds from Monsanto or others over and over again -- literally forever.

The use of these seeds is essentially prohibited under a UN treaty on biodiversity

which over 193 countries, including Brazil, have signed. But if Brazil overturns

its own ban then this will have huge consequences.

Poor, small farmers could be locked into a cycle of endless debt and dependency

 -- and the rest of the world could be handing control of the global food supply

to a handful of companies. The stakes couldn’t be higher.

The parliamentary proposal has already been approved by some key committees

 and is now hurtling its way to a full parliament vote, which could happen in just

a few weeks time -- meaning

we don’t have long to stop this proposal.

Sign this petition to Brazilian lawmakers urging them to reject any attempt to overturn the ban on terminator seeds.

If the ban is scrapped, huge commercial farms will be allowed to use super fast-growing

GMO crops, damaging neighbouring farms through cross-fertilisation. Small farmers

will have to use the same terminator seeds just to compete -- tying them into buying

seeds from the likes of Monsanto forever.

If Brazil allows these dangerous seeds to be used, it will spark a global domino

effect

, as country after country race to change laws in order to stay competitive. Brazil’s

decision could set the stage for the global ban on terminator seeds to be overturned

when the UN treaty is renewed this year.

It’s absolutely vital that we stop this move in its tracks.

We’ve come together in the past to take on huge agribusinesses like Monsanto before.

 We’re fighting Bayer and Syngenta in their attempts to overturn Europe’s ban on

bee-killing neonicotinoid pesticides. We’ve taken on the might of Monsanto when we

campaigned to stop it receiving the World Food Prize. Now we need to demand that

Brazilian lawmakers reject attempts by giant corporate landowners and agribusinesses

to allow the use of these dangerous suicide seeds.

Tell Brazilian lawmakers that the world is depending on them to keep the ban on 'terminator seeds'.

Thanks for all you do,

Martin, Paul, Claiborne and the rest of us

**********

More Information:

Unease among Brazil's farmers as Congress votes on GM terminator seeds

, The Guardian, December 2013.

Brazil contemplates using 'terminator seeds'

, TakePart, December 2013.

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