OBAMA HAS ANOTHER "EPIPHANY"

I am so thrilled that Obama has signed an executive order to prevent discrimination by employers against GLBT folks who are looking for work. This is big, especially for a president who is perceived to be slow on gay issues. It would be even bigger if there were actually any jobs to apply for. Sadly, Obama is actively pushing the Trans Pacific Partnership which would destroy US jobs for decades to come. But it would create many jobs in Vietnam and other countries with 25 cent an hour wages. So Obama isn't concerned with fairness in the work place. He is actively seeking to destroy the workplace with the TPP, as he's also his broken campaign promise to stand with unions which strengthen employee's rights.

You haven't heard much about the TPP lately, possibly because several countries in Asia, the US dairy industry and other agriculture associations want out of the rotten deal. So rotten that the Obama just went to Malaysia to offer US military support to that country if they'd support it. NEWSFLASH: He didn't go there because a malaysian airplane crashed. Or maybe you haven't heard about the TPP because the trade deal is secret, created by the Obama administration with corporations. Legislators can't even copy or discuss specifics of the deal to their constituents. So rotten that Obama has thrown his weight behind getting the TPP fast-tracked through Congress with as little debate as possible. You mean this reviled, do-nothing-except-shut-down-the-government Congress can fast-track something if Obama's pushing it? They have to ram it through. Because if we knew what was in it, we would never support it.

Obama WAS handed a mess by Bush, but he's making it worse and you can't blame Bush for the TPP. You can realize that neither major party represents US workers. Bill Clinton, also a democrat, signed NAFTA. That killed tons of US jobs. The TPP has been described as "NAFTA on steroids." The idea that Obama is risking some of his political clout going to bat for GLBT folks in the workplace is humorous when you consider how he's actively diminishing American jobs for gays and everyone else. Though unemployment figures are down, that's because low-paying jobs without benefits and part-time jobs have been added. And the drop in unemployment is a false impression because so many Americans have stopped looking for work--permanently. And you know that retirement is out of the question for many. You now work until you drop. How bad does it get before you open your eyes?

I don't ask you to believe me, but I do ask you to simply google the TPP and hit news. Here's one article from a paper in hard-hit Detroit where houses can be bought for $1. Or you can continue to dream that Obama is struggling to correct Bush's errors. He's more of the same if not worse. Both parties work for the corporations which have bought them. Are republicans worse? Sure, I think so. But that doesn't excuse democrats when they fail again and again to represent working Americans.

"The good news is that the Obama administration plans to create a lot of new jobs. The bad news is that those jobs will mostly be in Asia.

President Barack Obama's recent trip to Asia revived debate about the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, the cornerstone of this administration's so-called pivot to Asia. The controversial agreement -- not likely to be finalized anytime soon -- currently involves the U.S., Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, Australia, Brunei, Chile, Singapore, Peru, Vietnam, Malaysia, Japan and South Korea. Other countries expressing interest include China, India, Taiwan, Indonesia, Laos, Colombia, Cambodia, Bangladesh and the Philippines.

Tell you what: Why don't we just effectively erase all the borders in Asia and turn it into one giant pool of exploitable labor, because that's exactly what this agreement would achieve. The White House won't say that, though. Instead, the Obama administration is promoting the idea that the TPP will result in higher labor standards.

"The president has always made clear that he will only support trade agreements that include fully enforceable labor standards, which we are pursuing in TPP," according to a February statement from the Office of the United States Trade Representative. "TPP will offer new tools to fight exploitative child labor and forced labor, deter employment discrimination, and will embed fundamental labor standards in our trade agreement with Mexico and Canada."

What utter nonsense. The U.S. government isn't even capable of following through on such guarantees at home. In fact, its policies promote the precise opposite."

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