COMMON FRONTIERS ONE-PAGERS: BACKGROUND RESOURCES
FS1 - Who controls Canada’s energy resources - document
Over a Barrel: Exiting from NAFTA’s Proportionality Clause - A new study co-authored by Gordon Laxer, professor of political economy at the University of Alberta and Common Frontiers member John Dillon, economic justice researcher at KAIROS, examines how the North American Free Trade Agreement prevents Canadians from exercising sovereignty over our own energy supplies. For the complete study go to:
http://www.policyalternatives.ca/Reports/2008/05/ReportsStudies1896/index.cfm?pa=A2286B2A
FS2 - Enough of NAFTA: We need a people-centred trade model – Release
PRESS RELEASE - Elections 2008 - Canada must renegotiate NAFTA now! (Montreal and Ottawa, October 1st 2008) – Given that the North-American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is emerging once again as an issue in the US elections, the Harper government has been quick to praise the agreement in an obvious attempt to avoid renegotiating it. We, civil society networks and organizations from Canada and Quebec, say: not so fast!
http://www.commonfrontiers.ca/Single_Page_Docs/SinglePage_1col_docs/Oct01_08_CF-RQICrelease.html
FS3 - Armouring NAFTA: Is that what Canadians want? – Quotes
Avi Lewis: “And I think when you look at the intersection of the economic agenda, the cover of the war on drugs, the immigration and border hysteria underneath it, Plan Mexico represents exactly that, the armouring of NAFTA,”, quoted by Stuart Trew. “Plan Mexico, SPP about “armouring NAFTA,” says Avi Lewis” Council of Canadians. Integrate This. August 1, 2008
http://www.canadians.org/integratethis/insecurity/2008/Aug-1.html
Speaking to the June, 2008 North American Forum, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, referring to threats like “narco-terrorists”, stressed the importance of hemisphere-wide links to “safeguard gains in governance and free markets by enhancing relationships with our allies’ militaries and defense ministries.” Key to this strategy is Colombia.
(U.S. Department of Defense. Speech. North American Forum (Washington, D.C.) As Delivered by Secretary of Defence Robert M. Gates. U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Washington, June 16, 2008.
www.defenselink.mil/speeches/speech.aspx?speechid=1257)
FS4 - NAFTA: Manufacturing job loss in Canada -Song
Kevin Wrycraft's "Buy Canadian" song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahFMgfmoSH4
FS5 - Trading away Canada’s food safety – Quote & SPP ‘best practices’ site
George W. Bush from concluding statement at 2008 SPP Summit in New Orleans: “To improve our citizens’ access to safe food, and health and consumer products in North America, we are increasing cooperation and information sharing on the safety of food and products. We are working to strengthen our respective regulatory and inspection systems to protect consumers, while maintaining the efficient flow of food and products among our three countries. We are working to make our food and product safety standards more compatible. We are also working to improve continental recall capacities and are engaging the private sector to ensure that our efforts are complementary”.
http://www.pm.gc.ca/eng/media.asp?id=2074
The new list of best practices announced after the 2007 SPP Summit in Montebello:
http://www.spp-psp.gc.ca/pdf/RCF%20Common%20Regulatory%20Principles-eng.pdf
It’s about minimizing regulation, not improving it.
Backgrounder to five ‘one-pagers’ prepared by Common Frontiers. They are located at www.commonfrontiers.ca