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One month.
Described by experts Lori Wallach and Ben Beachy of Public Citizen as“one of the most significant international commercial agreements since the creation of WTO” [3], the TPP is more than a trade agreement - it’s an underhanded attempt by old industry interests to censor the Internet.
If it isn’t bad enough that these talks have occurred behind closed doors, President Obama is now taking this secrecy even further by attempting to “fast track” the deal through Congress.
This means that elected U.S. Congress members would be forced to vote on the agreement without the possibility of sharing, discussing, or amending its contents. Under such intense pressure from the President, it seems as though the most comprehensive and covert post-WTO trade agreement could be finalized by as early as the end of October. The urgency to wrap up this controversial deal is reaffirmed by the White House’s recent announcement that they’ll go ahead with the TPP -- despite the current government shutdown [6].
Unsurprisingly, Congress members have not taken to Obama’s undemocratic, fast track plans without protest. Several representatives have recently spoken out against this backdoor deal, including Rep. Rosa DeLauro [7]: “I oppose fast-track authority like what we have had in the past [...] we are not just here to rubber stamp what gets done.” Echoing this sentiment is Rep. Alan Grayson [8], who has described the Obama Administration’s secrecy about the TPP as “an assault on democratic government.”
Negotiations are “being done without sufficient input from members of Congress,” DeLauro said. Lawmakers should have more of a say because the TPP is a 21st century agreement that goes beyond traditional tariff deals, she said. The TPP would entail issues including environmental protection, Internet trade, access to medicines and market access for small businesses.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, urged her colleagues to vote against Froman’s confirmation in June until USTR released its negotiating texts.
“If members of the public do not have reasonable access to the terms of the agreements under negotiation, then they are unable to offer real input into the process,” she wrote in a June 13 letter.
Froman said USTR shares information and gets input from groups that may be affected by the discussions to make sure there are “no surprises” in the trade negotiations.
Bottom Line
“You can’t release the text to everybody” from a negotiating standpoint, Ed Gerwin, president of consultancy Trade Guru LLC of Falls Church, Virginia, said in a phone interview. “It’s like buying a car and letting everyone in the shop know what your bottom line is.”
Siddharta
It's Froman, not Forman.
And with the right name the interweb suddenly is uncensored.
Michael Froman
edit on 15-10-2013 by Siddharta because: wrote the name wrong myself
Michael Froman was confirmed on June 19 to succeed Ron Kirk as U.S. trade representative.
Froman and President Obama know each other from their time as editors of the Harvard Law Review. Now Froman has signed on for the unusual dual role of international finance adviser for both the National Economic Council (NEC) and the National Security Council (NSC), linking the two bodies in an effort to stem the world financial crisis. He'll also work as a liaison to the White House during Group of 7, Group of 8 and Group of 20 meetings.
A veteran of Citigroup, a bank that received $45 billion in government funding in order to stem its credit woes, Froman could receive some flak for being part of the beleaguered company's tumble. Citigroup has also been a poster-child for Wall Street excess as Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner had to urge the company to cancel plans for a $45 million private jet, despite accepting billions in taxpayer funds.
AbleEndangered
Google has already started censoring.
I went to look up a Nano-Technology Experiment that increased the speed of light inside a Nano Crystal.
I can't find anything about it 6 months later.
I have been noticing, if it involved Nano, you aren't seeing much about it on the internet...
Like a whole class of science is being hidden from the public...
Its like they have the ability to "scrub" something or someone from existence...edit on 15-10-2013 by AbleEndangered because: addition
Michael B. Froman (born August 20, 1962)[1] is the U.S. Trade Representative. He previously was Assistant to the President of the United States and Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economic Affairs, a position to be held jointly at the National Security Council and the National Economic Council. His responsibilities included serving as the United States sherpa to the G7, G8, and G20 summits of economic powers.[2] On May 2, 2013 President Obama nominated him to succeed Ambassador Ron Kirk as the U.S. Trade Representative.[3][4] He was confirmed on June 19, 2013.
AbleEndangered
reply to post by FyreByrd
Nope, nearly same results.
This is a search I used:
"gold carbon nano crystal increased speed of light"
That should have pulled the experiment right up, instead its giving crap...
Also noticing Nano Machines that were discussed and shown in public are impossible to find now years later!
Senduko
People with Icrap just have to let world know they are on a .
Look I have said this to my friends over and over, "the" internet was the wildwest. A brave new world. The people had a tabula rasa, WE the people created the internet.
What happened? Just that, people saw gold. a goldrush started and adds where popping up everywhere. We have the biggest library within our fingertips. Yet we go on E-bay.
And I agree with X poster above, even ATS is part of the problem. I remember when SOPA was in the news, ATS was on fire, even S.O made a whole thread about not supporting it. Then we got PRISM, and they all went mad.
But lets not forget google plus and all the facebook addons intwined in this site tracking your every movement. Lets face it; ATS is in bed with the enemy.
This just proves we as a whole are flawed to the bone. Every chance we get to make something, we rig to make profit out of it.
sorry The Above Network but your part of The Big Problem. You as a private company ( for example, i'm not picking on ATS itself) shouldn't, ( I repeat Should Not) have the right to censor even anything that goes through or onto your own servers. You should stand up for American freedom and allow anything goes on your servers without censorship - you would do this because you want to respect the rights and freedoms of Americans and you have the servers.. the ATS website set up, for the sole purpose of contributing to a global community of free thinkers and information sharers - nothing more.. not as a business model but as a global outreach conduit.
...they tend to care more about the dollar bottom line than they do about true freedom of expression. It's an abuse of the intention of the internet from the start. It's a disgusting mockery of what was supposed to be a tool of freedom for We the people.
So let it all go to hell it's already too corrupted.
FyreByrd
AbleEndangered
Google has already started censoring.
I went to look up a Nano-Technology Experiment that increased the speed of light inside a Nano Crystal.
I can't find anything about it 6 months later.
I have been noticing, if it involved Nano, you aren't seeing much about it on the internet...
Like a whole class of science is being hidden from the public...
Its like they have the ability to "scrub" something or someone from existence...edit on 15-10-2013 by AbleEndangered because: addition
Try duck Duck Go