Wisconsin Manufacturer Struggling to Recruit Workers

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@Producer #1, when was the last time you visited WI? I live here, have for the last year and a half, to work for a software provider for the insurance industry–one of the largest in the nation. Although the political scene may be a bit heated at times and definitely the focus of many news articles as of late, people do get along, business continues, and kids still get educated. None of the teachers that I know are happy about their bargaining rights being taken away, but they still have jobs and haven’t quit to find other work, although they could. I have only seen one person who was a loose friend with another get so irritated with the democratic/republican arguments that they don’t talk anymore. The majority of us appreciate the other’s opinions, though we may not agree.

The unfortunate truth is that the cost of education is not practical for graduating high-schoolers and becomes less so every class. A salary of $40,000 a year is more than the majority of my friends who have graduated with a four-year degree make. If you take a skilled-trade worker that did that kind of work for 2-5 years and then went to college, you have a highly-marketable individual.

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Why wouldn’t a high school graduate jump at the chance to learn a skilled trade if they are not interested in college? If an American doesn’t want a job like this, an immigrant family man will jump at the chance to work overtime and give his family a wonderful life (comparitevly speaking). Just as “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure” skilled labor is a way up for working class folks.. Americans and immigrants. A good job helps give good self image and that means a positive demeanor… win … win

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If you “liked” NAFTA, you’ll “love” the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement.

You probably haven’t heard of the TPP despite the 12th round of negotiations having taken place last month. That is because it is being negotiated in complete secrecy. Not even the chairman of the Senate Finance subcommittee with authority over trade agreements was given access to the drafts! Of course, more than 600 major lobbyists have had intimate access and input into the process.

Each draft of the TPP is uniquely watermarked so that any leaks can be traced to their source. Despite this unprecedented effort to remove the stakeholders from the decision making process, leaks have occurred.

I strongly urge each of you to find and read the leaked TPP drafts. I’ve read the Investment and Intellectual Property chapters. This is the stuff of nightmares. I wish I was exaggerating. The TPP would quite literally make an end-run around Democracy itself. The provisions in the investment chapter severely and materially undermines and side-steps domestic legal systems. The IP chapter is even worse and would result in severe chilling effects and massively increase litigation and business operating costs. I doubt there are even 1,000 I.P. attorneys in the entire United States that are qualified enough to handle litigation involving these highly nuanced areas of the law.

The TPP’s I.P. provisions read like a Christmas wish list of various special interests. Many provisions in the TPP were written with very specific language relating to prior court cases which went against the special interests. They could not win in court, and they could not win in the court of public opinion and get legislation passed. So instead they have completely shut the public–the actual stakeholders–out of the process and written a completely secret “Trade Agreement” which Obama claims does not even require Congressional approval (and somehow won’t change existing law even though it ABSOLUTELY says a LOT of stuff that is contrary to existing U.S. law).

Don’t take my word for it. TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP. Look up the leaked draft of the “Investment” and “Intellectual Property” chapters. If you aren’t good with legalese then send the drafts to a friend that can understand it. Read. And make up your own mind. I am profoundly confident that anyone who reads and understands the implications of the TPP will be *furious* with what these folks are trying to pull off right under our noses. I cannot comprehend why the U.S. Congress isn’t the most furious of all. The TPP and any future similar endeavors represent no less than the destruction of Democracy. The TPP is the ultimate representation of special interest government, except it goes beyond just the United States and attempts to create an alternative global legal framework that cannot be amended or eliminated by any one nation.

And for all of you who are still mired in the “partisan politics” distraction here in America– know that the TPP contains truly ‘bipartisan’ provisions. The ‘investment’ chapter provisions will be highly desired by the Romney crowd looking to suck the marrow from the bones of the US economy and turn us into low-skilled wage slaves while getting rich exporting their ‘ideas’ (read Romney’s old Bain partner’s op-ed in Bloomberg about what he sees as our ‘idea economy’, where 10 people’s idea makes them billions while everyone else gets to be a waitress [sadly I'm not making that up]). The ‘IP’ chapter provisions will be highly desired by the Obama crowd looking to please their Big Hollywood base.

TPP is a slow-motion train wreck that no one is watching. USTR Ron Kirk recently explained the complete secrecy. He said that if the drafts were made public that the agreement would no longer be politically viable. Read that again. He actually said this! In other words, if people actually KNEW what the TPP is trying to do there is no way they would allow it to happen. “RES IPSA LOQUITUR”