The Blur of Transparency

Remember that little story a few weeks ago about Hillary Clinton's emails? Remember the White House addressing it by saying she had not followed the guidance given by the administration to assure their commitment to transparency?

Remember candidate Barack Obama who spoke at length about the need for transparency in our government? Remember his promise that his administration would be the most transparent in history? Remember when he promised that every major piece of legislation and grand idea (he didn't say grand idea, I'm improvising) that his administration proposed would be posted on a website for all citizens to be able to review and comment on before it went forward? What happened to all of that?

Should we be shocked about the reality of politics after the promise of campaigns? No, but we should be disappointed and expect more from those who present themselves as being more.

Overall the Obama Administration has been fairly typical and business as usual. Right now there's a major trade agreement in the works. It's called the T.P.P. (Trans Pacific Partnership) think NAFTA for Asia. Very little about this has been covered in the media and not much offered in detail from the administration. Yes like you I receive emails from the White House. Recently there was one on the T.P.P. but it lacked real specifics.

The stated goal of this agreement is to preempt the growing influence of China in Asia. It's to insure we don't miss the boat, so to speak, on trade in this area of the world and to strengthen our influence. We don't want to get outdone by China is the core message.

But what is the long term impact on American workers? Is it really beneficial or will it result in further wage stagnation and decline when confronted with workforces who are exploited by their own governments and ruling class? How will we enforce comparative employment regulations, if there truly are any?

I am no isolationist and believe in free and fair trade with the emphasis on fair but a bad trade agreement is not better than no agreement.

I'm not stating that the T.P.P. is bad, I'm saying I don't know because there is a serious lack of detailed information available.

Oh well, I guess we should just trust our leaders, they've never steered us wrong before. Right? Right?

I just wanted to be transparent about my confusion on this matter.