If one were to think about the TPP by gauging its primary effect, they'd conclude it's not actually about "Trade", no matter the prominence of the word in the title. It's about rents.
It’s time for the non-profit trade press to go Onion! →
In a confidential document entitled, ‘The Way Forward: Relearning the Lessons ofTaylorism,’ the organisation describes its approach as “a blueprint for treating a group of passionate people as cogs in a poverty and corruption-ending machine. And then replicating that machine wherever we can get funding to do so.”
I'd love to read some comparative work on the non-profit, aid crowd's org structures. Different structures are better suited to different contexts and/or particular, preferred outcomes. Perhaps AidHope's structure is, in fact, suitable to their aims, even if it looks hypocritical.
EU suspends trade talks with Ukraine, crowds rally against government →
The EU had kept its offer on the table but Fuele said on Sunday the Ukrainian government's subsequent arguments on the terms of the deal had "no grounds in reality". "Work on hold," he added.
Fuele's words suggested the EU has lost patience with Kiev's demands for financial aid and was irritated at the way the bloc was being forced to take part in a 'bidding war' with Russia over Ukraine.
On Election Day, Latin America Willingly Trades Machismo for Female Clout →
This is really impressive, given how quickly things have changed. Though "such advances are partly the result of quotas", public opinion may have dramatically shifted:
“The gains for women in politics in various countries have been remarkable, reflecting a broad shift in thinking,” said Marta Lagos, the director of a Chilean polling firm that works throughout Latin America. She said that about 80 percent of people in the region now thought that women should participate in politics, up from about 30 percent in the early 1990s.
The U.S. has some catching up to do.
Federal Judge Rules Against N.S.A. Phone Data Program →
Ruled against, but what I'm hearing is that it's only "possibly" unconstitutional.
In fact, Benjamin Wittes, over on the Lawfare Blog, finds the opinion rather odd:
For one thing, it’s focused on a constitutional matter on which the 215 program is—at least under current doctrine—on pretty solid ground. And it ignores, because of the judge’s Administrative Procedures Act ruling, the issue on which the 215 program stands on far shakier ground: that is, the statutory question of whether the program is, in fact, authorized by Section 215 of the Patriot Act.
And here's a nice summary (with links to others' opinions).
Parental Leave 20 Years After FMLA →
The letter seems to have missed the spirit of the law. Several things stand out, but one caught my eye: while women continue to temporarily leave the work force more than men (for various reasons), continuing wage discrimination means they can afford to less so than men. It's still a story of socioeconomic "necessity" that they do so.
*Something* is going down in South Sudan, but it’s unclear what →
As of this morning, there were still reports of fighting.
Rodman Headed to North Korea Again Despite Turmoil →
Kim just executed his uncle, and the KCNA has purged much of their news backlog...