TTIP trade deal faces growing anger and opposition on both sides of the Atlantic

[marmar]

(EuroNews) Thousands took to the streets in Hanover over the weekend to demonstrate against the proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership deal or TTIP.

The aim of the negotiations is to facilitate transatlantic trade by liberalising all parts of the economy, including manufacturing goods, investments, the service industry and agricultural goods.

Those protesting against the plan claim it is an attack against democracy and workers rights, adding TTIP is being created by and for big business not by the representatives of the people, namely politicians.

Those who back the new deal say they want to abolish the red tape that exists once goods have crossed borders such as differences in technical regulations, standards and approval procedures. ..............(more)

http://www.euronews.com/2016/04/25/ttip-trade-deal-faces-growing-anger-and-opposition-on-both-sides-of-the-atlantic/

[My Good Babushka]

1. Everyone needs to fight this

As I said in the other post: it abrogates the sovereignty of nations and gives corporations inordinate power over global trade over people everywhere. I couldn't hate it more.
I wish this forum would go back to elucidating it's ideas on issues, instead of pitting personality against personality. We will still be contending with these issues when our current politicians are dust.

[closeupready]

6. This is not a discussion board; it is a message board.

[My Good Babushka]

9. I prefer to think of it as the place

where even people who agree with you go out of their way to be unpleasant and argumentative.

[closeupready]

10. yup, lol. You nailed it.

I just don't take any of this seriously anymore. Which is bad but also good. So there you go.

[pampango]

2. "The Americans want to hold fast to their 'Buy American' idea. Europeans can't accept that."

That would be an interesting 'concession' that the EU wants to sink the TTIP talks on. It sounds like EU negotiators want no "Buy American", "Buy German", "Buy French" provisions in the TTIP.

I did not realize that Obama was 'holding fast to the "Buy American" provision.

https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/eu-us-trade-deal-fail-090302713.html

In the OP video, Europeans are worried about the relative lack of rights that American workers have compared to their European counterparts. Of course on the flip side Democratic support for TTIP may be based on a hope that it might provide European-style workers rights to Americans.

[marmar]

3. "Democratic support for TTIP may be based on a hope that it might provide European-style workers..."

A bit of wishful thinking. I doubt that it's anything that altruistic.

[pampango]

4. I doubt it too. Why Democrats like TTIP more than TTP is interesting but hard to figure

out why.

It may be that Americans are not as worried about 'low-wage, weak union' workers in Europe as competition compared to workers in Asia. Or there may be some other reason.

[jwirr]

8. If this trade bill allows corporations to take others to court

for lose of profits, couldn't the rights that European workers hold over American workers be seen as a lose of profits for US corporations?

I think all of these trade bills are terrible.

[pampango]

11. If that is true it would be bad. Of course, the status quo is leaving WTO rules to govern US-EU

trade. Figuring which is better or worse - TTIP or WTO - will be the important to determine rather than always preferring the status quo and rejecting change. Nor should we go back to the pre-FDR era when there were no trade agreements.

If somehow the TTIP had existed before there was a WTO, and then the WTO was proposed, we should not automatically reject the WTO and keep the TTIP just because it was there first.

All international agreements need to have some kind of independent enforcement mechanism. If there is no enforcement, they are not worth the paper they are written on. That is true of the Iran nuclear agreement, the Paris climate agreement, TTIP and any other international agreement.

[jwirr]

12. Since the extent of my business knowledge is my household

checkbook I really don't know what we should do. I was in my post thinking about why the Europeans should be so against this.

When it comes to the actual vote on these bills I rely on the Unions for direction. But one thing has happened in this election - I have lost trust in a whole lot of the status quo that I used to feel I could trust. Am beginning to feel damned alone.

[closeupready]

5. This agreement is like pimping out working people.

Along with NAFTA and most all of these 'trade' agreements.

[jwirr]

7. Come on Europe - please stop this as we do not seem to be

able to in the USA.