"...Not to produce but to consume."

John Kenneth Galbraith once said, "there's no question that this is a time when corporations have taken over the basic process of governing," and the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) is the most recent example of this. His views regarding corporate power and influence have been criticized by many economists, most notably Milton Friedman, but in today's economic landscape they may yet carry weight. The arrival of the TPP will bring with it a new wave of economic turmoil for the American middle class, much in the same vein NAFTA stifled the bargaining power of industry sector workers of the early to mid ninety's. Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) in this day and age do nothing to further the advantage of the working class, but rather they allow governments to protect their corporations' interests by using their political might to further their economic growth. In this way, calling the TPP a genuine trade agreement is akin to labeling a wolf a sheep.

The culminating question I have is: is this not without merit? Do we as a country not benefit when our corporations excel on the global market place? I look at the dwindling of the middle class and our nations shrinking purchasing power as incentive to innovate. As a nation we need to rise above the rest, and not be confined to sacrifices that hamper progress in the name of fairness. With the ability to enforce our will across wide markets, we can further the goals of our citizens. While this will be looked down upon as individual interests shackling the freewill of the markets; I say so what -- America can, and should, continue it's quest for economic hegemony.