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Can we just have a breakdown of companies who played a large part in the TPP formation so we can boycott them? Money seems like the only way to speak to these d

Can we just have a breakdown of companies who played a large part in the TPP formation so we can boycott them? Money seems like the only way to speak to these dickheads. Here's something close - a list of supporting businesses on the US side: http://tppcoalition.org/about/ http://tppcoalition.org/about/ What do we have here... Apple, EBay, Facebook, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Intel, Microsoft, Oracle, Xerox. This is going to be hard - I use every one of these companies every day. But what part did they play? If the press can find out, that will help the user make an informed decision.

lemming 11y ago
It's going to be a harder decision as soon as you or your family get sick - are you going to boycott the pharma companies?
- icanhackit 11y ago
  I don't really use them currently with the exception of aspirin or decongestant but if I or a family member were to become ill then there is no choice - we use the medicine if there's no valid alternative. Where you can safely cut something from your life, do it. It doesn't have to be a binary decision. I'd argue that the average Western lifestyle, chiefly the work component, is a major source of stress, sleep loss, depression, poor diet, lack of exercise and all of those factors interplay to amplify the effects. We work harder to have things in order to increase status, like monkeys with the most bananas. We wan't stuff. Stuff that doesn't make us happy. Stuff that owns us. Stuff we purchased with money we don't have. Stuff produced by the assholes who make secret trade pacts that move power from the individual to the corporation. Medicine is valuable, as are computers and the internet. And corporations aren't evil - they're just pushing what boundaries they can in order to maximise profit. It's an organic process just the way a toddler prods their way through what they can and can't get away with. Doesn't mean they're not little jerks though. It seems the only way we can respond is with our wallets. We need an in depth analysis of who was pushing for certain aspects of the TPP which will affect the individual negatively.
  - rndmind 11y ago
    thanks for articulating this nicely. I agree with your statements.
ddingus 11y ago
Honestly, the more productive thing to do is organize and fundraise to change how money influences politics.
- icanhackit 11y ago
  - https://www.kickstarter.com - Project title must inspire awe or anger - these valences are the most viral [1] - Make a decision about the split of funds - e.g. $150k for EFF, $30k for politician/s X to vote for/against X - Thank businesses and politicians who stand for your ideals - they might help spread the word or more - Ask community for graphics - some will be highly viral by virtue of humor or capacity to incite anger [1] http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1528077 http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1528077
- crdoconnor 11y ago
  This is also one of those times when calling your Senator can work. The ones voting for it are kind of hoping that nobody notices. A lot of angry phone calls will convince them otherwise and could help give them cold feet. It helps that there's not really a cohesive voting bloc in favor of the trade negotiations. It's just about the billionaires.
  - prawn 11y ago
    A comment on here might do little. Something a little noisier like a microsite or infographic linking each politician to payments from lobbyists might annoy them and get more attention?
  - tptacek 11y ago
    That's not going to help this time, because the TPP is fast-tracked and can't be filibustered, and has the overwhelming support of the Republican majority.
- filoeleven 11y ago
  There's a bill from Maryland's John Sarbanes, and which already has 150 co-sponsors in the house, which tackles that very problem. From the website[0]: The Government By the People Act has three specific policy prescriptions: 1. Empower everyday citizens and engage them in the political process by providing a $25 My Voice Tax Credit for campaign contributions. 2. Amplify these small-donor contributions, and give candidates the incentive to seek them out, with a six-to-one match from a Freedom From Influence Fund. 3. Allow candidates to earn additional public matching funds within 60 days of the election so that citizen-funded candidates can combat Super PACs and outside groups. [0]https://sarbanes.house.gov/bythepeople https://sarbanes.house.gov/bythepeople
ggchappell 11y ago
> Can we just have a breakdown of companies who played a large part in the TPP formation so we can boycott them? Unfortunately, it isn't that simple. We need to know what each company was pushing for. For example, maybe the TPP turns out to be not quite as awful as it might have been, because Company X wouldn't stand for the awful stuff. We really don't want to boycott them in that case. The big problem here is not the companies, anyway. It's the government. Companies are private entities. They can only be expected to push their own interests. But the government is supposed to represent the people. Theoretically, the government is what keeps private companies from running amok. When it fails to do so, we need to hold the government accountable. When it does just the opposite, and enshrines companies' unreasonable demands into law, then we have a serious problem.

lemming 11y ago

It's going to be a harder decision as soon as you or your family get sick - are you going to boycott the pharma companies?

icanhackit 11y ago
I don't really use them currently with the exception of aspirin or decongestant but if I or a family member were to become ill then there is no choice - we use the medicine if there's no valid alternative. Where you can safely cut something from your life, do it. It doesn't have to be a binary decision. I'd argue that the average Western lifestyle, chiefly the work component, is a major source of stress, sleep loss, depression, poor diet, lack of exercise and all of those factors interplay to amplify the effects. We work harder to have things in order to increase status, like monkeys with the most bananas. We wan't stuff. Stuff that doesn't make us happy. Stuff that owns us. Stuff we purchased with money we don't have. Stuff produced by the assholes who make secret trade pacts that move power from the individual to the corporation. Medicine is valuable, as are computers and the internet. And corporations aren't evil - they're just pushing what boundaries they can in order to maximise profit. It's an organic process just the way a toddler prods their way through what they can and can't get away with. Doesn't mean they're not little jerks though. It seems the only way we can respond is with our wallets. We need an in depth analysis of who was pushing for certain aspects of the TPP which will affect the individual negatively.
- rndmind 11y ago
  thanks for articulating this nicely. I agree with your statements.

ddingus 11y ago

Honestly, the more productive thing to do is organize and fundraise to change how money influences politics.

icanhackit 11y ago
- https://www.kickstarter.com - Project title must inspire awe or anger - these valences are the most viral [1] - Make a decision about the split of funds - e.g. $150k for EFF, $30k for politician/s X to vote for/against X - Thank businesses and politicians who stand for your ideals - they might help spread the word or more - Ask community for graphics - some will be highly viral by virtue of humor or capacity to incite anger [1] http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1528077 http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1528077
crdoconnor 11y ago
This is also one of those times when calling your Senator can work. The ones voting for it are kind of hoping that nobody notices. A lot of angry phone calls will convince them otherwise and could help give them cold feet. It helps that there's not really a cohesive voting bloc in favor of the trade negotiations. It's just about the billionaires.
- prawn 11y ago
  A comment on here might do little. Something a little noisier like a microsite or infographic linking each politician to payments from lobbyists might annoy them and get more attention?
- tptacek 11y ago
  That's not going to help this time, because the TPP is fast-tracked and can't be filibustered, and has the overwhelming support of the Republican majority.
filoeleven 11y ago
There's a bill from Maryland's John Sarbanes, and which already has 150 co-sponsors in the house, which tackles that very problem. From the website[0]: The Government By the People Act has three specific policy prescriptions: 1. Empower everyday citizens and engage them in the political process by providing a $25 My Voice Tax Credit for campaign contributions. 2. Amplify these small-donor contributions, and give candidates the incentive to seek them out, with a six-to-one match from a Freedom From Influence Fund. 3. Allow candidates to earn additional public matching funds within 60 days of the election so that citizen-funded candidates can combat Super PACs and outside groups. [0]https://sarbanes.house.gov/bythepeople https://sarbanes.house.gov/bythepeople

ggchappell 11y ago

> Can we just have a breakdown of companies who played a large part in the TPP formation so we can boycott them? Unfortunately, it isn't that simple. We need to know what each company was pushing for. For example, maybe the TPP turns out to be not quite as awful as it might have been, because Company X wouldn't stand for the awful stuff. We really don't want to boycott them in that case. The big problem here is not the companies, anyway. It's the government. Companies are private entities. They can only be expected to push their own interests. But the government is supposed to represent the people. Theoretically, the government is what keeps private companies from running amok. When it fails to do so, we need to hold the government accountable. When it does just the opposite, and enshrines companies' unreasonable demands into law, then we have a serious problem.