NAFTA

[Aggie]

Clinton and Obama have threatened to pull out or renegotiate of the North America Free Trade Agreement (although interestingly enough it may just be campaign rhetoric).


Let's Freaking Go.  It's not like the US even bothers to follow NAFTA when it doesn't want to anyways - I fully blame the US's softwood shenanigans as the reason I'm stuck out in the oil-soaked flatlands instead of back home in the forest-covered* mountains where I belong.

Prime Minister Harper has said there's a few things we'd be happy to chat about if NAFTA is renegotiated, and the hints from other levels of government is that this is one of them:

Under NAFTA, Canada is prohibited from cutting off oil exports to the United States if there is a worldwide shortage or supply disruption unless supplies are also rationed to Canadian consumers by the same amount.

...which means that if the Democrats get in this time around, you can expect the next Republican government to start reporting on the terrorist threat in Alberta. 



*well, except the bits we've clearcut already. 

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

What, another US trade agreement in which the *partner* gets the short end of the stick? The universally beloved Colombian president (yeah, right!  ) Uribe signed a free trade agreement with the US which hasn't been ratified by the democratic congress. The *deal* benefits the US far more than it helps Colombia but the idea of free trade is a political no-no nowadays in the US. Just for that I'd vote democrat. 

[Sibling Chatty]

NAFTA has been a TOTAL clusterf*** from the get-go.

That Hillary claims Bill's years of experience as hers as well tells me that she NEEDS to accept the BLAME, too.

And NAFTA has been total crap for everyone but---the BIG multinational corporations.

NAFTA needs to go. The proposed South American version (referred to as SHAFTA, although it's supposedly SAFTA) needs to never be instituted.

The concept of 'multinational' needs to be explored and--REGULATED--to the benefit of the economy, the populace and the taxation systems, NOT to the benefit of the CEO's.

Dammit, I just need to be In Charge.

I wanna be Empress of the World for about 18 months. Then I promise to give most of it back to sane people. OK, semi-sane people, no Neo-Conmen.

[Bluenose]

Sounds like a good plan to me.  Out of interest, which bits would you keep control of?

[Sibling Chatty]

I shall retain universal oversight of medical care, and the ability to assure adequate distribution of life-sustaining commodities, such as food, clean water and clean air, as well as shelter

I'm also demanding the immediate ability to halt all wars, rumors of wars, and rumors of rumors of wars. Even postmortem. (Yes, I WILL come back and haunt warmongers.)

The money saved on wars will more than provide for the medical and life-sustaining programs.

[pieces o nine]

Keep talking llike that and you'll get your own mosaic with a square halo!

[Sibling Chatty]

What can I say? I'm an anarchist at heart, right there with being the supreme Mama of the world...