The WTO Is Nearly Dead, Long Live the WTO

[Joanne98]

This is one of the most important stories of the year, decade if things further sour.


The World Trade Organization is almost dead. That’s the take from the New York Times. With India, China and, of course, the United States being blamed, the WTO has abandoned trade talks. Trade agreements are the organization’s entire mission. Nations can still create bilateral agreements between themselves. But this effectively shuts poorer countries out of the international marketplace. Poorer countries need a voice. Shutting them out of talks, or creating agreements that do not include them (or disadvantage them), is not only disheartening, it’s bad for the planet.The most amount of environmental degradation occurs in poor countries with weak or nonexistent environmental standards. The WTO had the opportunity to raise the bar for these nations, giving them hope of participating in the world market while at the same time requiring better environmental practices. That opportunity has been lost. (WTO critics say, mind you, that the organization’s bylaws were already so flawed that they actually prevent discrimination based on any kind of environmental standards anyway.) Poorer nations will now go the cheap route to producing products. That means without environmental consideration: illegal logging, toxic ingredients, non-sustainable practices, you name it.

Optimists can look for — and hope for — a better WTO, or successor organization to wear the crown. This one looks as though its time has come and gone.

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/betterplanet/2008/07/30/the-wto-is-nearly-dead-long-live-the-wto/

It's amazing how some people (who are always working for corporations) haven't noticed how much damage the WTO has done to the world. Especially the poor countries. Globalization has made pollution WORSE, has made logging WORSE, poverty WORSE.. ALL indicators show that the ONLY people who benefitted were the RICH and the biggest banks and corporations.

If the WTO is dead, then it's the best news the human race has had in a long time. But GREED doesn't die easily. I'll believe it when the body is in the ground.

[pegleg]

1. If you need any proof for the damage WTO has done just look

at how many jobs have been lost in the US to overseas competitors and how much near-slave labor has been created in place of those jobs.