exposed the #TPP

all about what TPP negotiations are
Trans-Pacific Partnership #TPP

Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement Where Countries Oppose United States

There are twelve countries that have been involved in the ultra-secretive process of negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

Six hundred corporate advisors have been given access to the text of this so-called free trade agreement while the public has been deprived of reading what is being negotiated on behalf of corporations. But that secrecy has been undermined significantly now that the media organization, WikiLeaks, has obtained and published a drafted copy of the intellectual property chapter in the agreement.

It was obtained after a TPP meeting in Brunei in August, and it shows country’s positions on the proposed provisions of the agreement.

According to the draft, the United States has been the most extreme negotiator in the process. The other eleven countries involved— Australia, Brunei, Canada, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam—have each pushed back on some of the most aggressive proposals for enforcement of intellectual property rights laws. However, Australia and New Zealand have often been more than willing to support the draconian measures proposed by the US.

The US has proposed “that its judicial authorities have the authority to order the seizure or forfeiture of assets the value of which corresponds to that of the assets derived from, or obtained directly or indirectly through, the infringing activity.” New Zealand is the only other country that supports this section.

The US has also proposed that each country apply “criminal procedures and penalties,” even “absent willful trademark counterfeiting or copyright or related rights privacy, at least in cases of knowing trafficking in” the following:

labels or packaging, of any type or nature, to which a counterfeit trademark 238 has been applied, the use of which is likely to cause confusion, to cause mistake, or to deceive; and counterfeit or illicit labels239 affixed to, enclosing, or accompanying, or designed to be affixed to, enclose, or accompany the following:
a phonogram,
a copy of a computer program or a literary work,
a copy of a motion picture or other audiovisual work,
documentation or packaging for such items; and
counterfeit documentation or packaging for items of the type described in subparagraph (b).]

This is only supported by the US.

“In civil judicial proceedings concerning patent infringement,” the US would like countries to be able to have their “judicial authorities” increase any “damages to an amount that is up to three times the amount of the injury found or assessed.” All countries involved in the negotiate process oppose this section.

Brunei, Canada, Chile, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, and Singapore each would like to be able to “limit the liability of, or the availability of remedies against, internet service providers” for copyright infringement that takes place on their communication networks. Both the US and Australia are opposed to this provision.

All countries except the US, Australia and Singapore oppose an entire section proposing a procedure for notifying internet service providers of copyright infringement.

The US and Australia want all countries negotiating to “ratify or accede” to the following agreements once the TPP is in force:

Wikileaks publishes the "Internet Chapter" of the secret Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement (SOPA's back)

Wikileaks has published the Internet Chapter of the secretive Trans-Pacific Partnership, a global trade-deal negotiated between corporate leaders and government reps without any democratic oversight (the US Trade Rep wouldn't share TPP drafts with Congress, and now it is headed for fast-tracking into law). TorrentFreak has parsed out the text, and compares it to SOPA, the brutal US copyright law that collapsed in the face of massive public protest. The treaty is reportedly at a "negotiated stalemate" thanks to the US Trade Rep, who has refused to bend on treaty provisions that other nations objected to.

Many topics are covered in the chapter including DRM and other ‘technical measures’, extended copyright terms, increased penalties for infringement and ISP liability, the latter with a proposal for “adopting and reasonably implementing a policy that provides for termination in appropriate circumstances of the accounts of repeat infringers.”

Reception to the leaked agreement has so far been highly critical. Knowledge Ecology International notes that the TPP IPR chapter not only proposes the granting of more patents, expansion of rightsholder privileges and increased penalties for infringement, but also plans the creation of intellectual property rights on data.

“The TPP text shrinks the space for exceptions in all types of intellectual property rights. Negotiated in secret, the proposed text is bad for access to knowledge, bad for access to medicine, and profoundly bad for innovation,” KEI concludes.

Burcu Kilic, an intellectual property lawyer with Public Citizen, says that some of the proposals in the text evoke memories of the controversial SOPA legislation in the United States.

“The WikiLeaks text also features Hollywood and recording industry inspired proposals – think about the SOPA debacle – to limit Internet freedom and access to educational materials, to force Internet providers to act as copyright enforcers and to cut off people’s Internet access,” Kilic says.

Marvel works in four unique superhero series for Netflix

Netflix on content does not stop. While some time ago announced their commitment to own original content will only increase , including productions for Latin America ( one of its most important markets ) , now we have reached an agreement with Marvel, as advertised on their official website where will birth four original series based on superheroes , exclusive to Netflix.
" At the end of this series , the four heroes would join a great event " Superheroes who will have their own series on Netflix are : Daredevil , Luke Cage , Iron Fist and Jessica Jones . Each of these series has secured at least 13 episodes in the first season and beginning with Daredevil , the series will premiere in early 2015.
Marvel plans are even more ambitious to announce they hope that after completion of these four series, will join in a big event stories , something akin to what made DC Comics in The Avengers , to link the history of several of his heroes, and that undoubtedly is not unusual in the world of comics . This mega - event will also be a series for Netflix , which will be called The Defenders .

Anti-War Website Sues FBI For Spying On Them

The website’s founder and managing editor Eric Garris, along with longtime editorial director Justin Raimondo, filed a lawsuit in federal court, demanding the release of records they believe the FBI is keeping on them and the 17-year-old online magazine.

Antiwar.com says this is one more example of post-9/11 government overreach, and a stark reminder that the First Amendment has been treated as little more than a speed bump on the road to a government surveillance state. The lawsuit is particularly timely, considering recent scandals in which the Department of Justice secretly seized months of journalists’ phone records at the Associated Press, and did the same and more to a FOX News reporter, while the IRS is acknowledging it singled out conservative groups that criticize the government for extra scrutiny.

Hosea Feed the Hungry

Carol and Willie Fowler’s daughter Tamara had planned to get married at the Villa Christina catering hall, but the wedding was unexpectedly called off just 40 days before the event was slated to take place. At the initial news, the family was understandably upset that the planned celebration was not going to happen. But, then they had an idea, they didn’t want to let all of their planning and money to have to go to waste.

So they decided to invite 200 of the cities homeless to feast on the four-course meal which had been planned for Tamara’s wedding reception. In order to organize the event, the family contacted Elizabeth Omilami, from the Hosea Feed the Hungry organization. The gesture was so generous, that at first Omilami thought that it was a prank. Children make up a large portion of Atlanta’s homeless, so in order to make the event more entertaining for the children, a clown was hired for the evening. The event has been titled ”The First Annual Fowler Family Celebration of Love,” and the family asserts that they will be hosting another charity dinner next year, planning to make the act a yearly ritual.

1500 Indigenous Native Brazilians Occupy the Capital

The proposed amendments to the Constitution (PECs) include numbers 038/99, 215/00 and 237/13, Bill 1610/96, the bill for Complementary Law (PLP) 227/12, and the Portarias (ministerial orders) 419/11 and 7957/13. A summary of the bills was circulated via the support communities on social media for Chief Raoni:

• PEC 38 would give the Senate power to approve processes of demarcation of Indigenous lands, determining that “the demarcation of Indigenous lands or units of environmental conservation respect the maximum limit of 30% of the surface area of each state”;
• PEC 215 gives Congress exclusive authority to decide the boundaries of all Indigenous lands;
• PEC 237 permits the possession of Indigenous lands by rural producers;
• PLP 227 limits federal lands that can be used for demarcation;
• Portaria 419 intends to streamline the licensing of public projects by means of the reduction of Indigenous rights, of the rights of traditional communities and of the environment;
• Portaria 7957 creates the Environmental Operations Company of the National Force of Public Security to permit the use of military force against Indigenous Peoples who oppose the large-scale projects of the PAC (Program for Acceleration of Growth), especially hydroelectric dams;
• PL 1610, allows mining in Indigenous lands.

The protestors, composed of more than one hundred ethnicities, attempted to enter the National Congress but were met with pepper spray by the police.

Live Animals Being Sold As Key-Rings In China

Keyring ornaments are perhaps the most useless item you’ll ever carry in your pocket or stuff in your purse — but now, thanks to an increasingly popular item being sold in China, it can easily be the cruelest, too. For the price you might expect to pay for some kitschy trinket, Chinese street vendors are selling live animals, permanently sealed in a small plastic pouch where they can survive for a short while as someone’s conversation piece. Apparently, these unimaginably inhumane keyrings are actually quite popular — and worst of all, it’s totally legal

According to The Global Times, these keyring accessories containing live animals are widely available and sold publicly in subway stations and on sidewalks. Potential buyers (read as animal-abusers) have the choice between a living Brazil turtle or two small kingfish, sealed in an airtight package along with some colored water. One vendor claimed that the trapped creatures “can live for months inside there” because the water contains “nutrients,” though veterinarians have already disputed this claim.

Smog Shuts Down Chinese City Of 11 Million

Winter is coming, that’s for sure. The northeastern city of Harbin today ushered in the season with smog so thick that visibility was reportedly limited to 10 meters in some places. Classes were canceled, roads closed, and planes grounded, in the country’s first major air pollution crisis of the winter.

An index measuring PM2.5, or particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers (PM2.5), reached a reading of 1,000 in some parts of Harbin, the gritty capital of northeastern Heilongjiang province and home to some 11 million people.

A level above 300 is considered hazardous, while the World Health Organisation recommends a daily level of no more than 20.

The smog not only forced all primary and middle schools to suspend classes, but shut the airport and some public bus routes, the official Xinhua news agency reported, blaming the emergency on the first day of the heating being turned on in the city for winter

Fukushima Is Here In San Francisco

Help break the media logjam. Please share this video widely through social media, connect with others and take action wherever you live. Go to www.FukushimaResponse.org for ideas and materials that can help you raise awareness of this critical issue

McDonald’s sues Australian town for rejecting its fast food

Plans by fast food giant McDonald’s to build its first restaurant in the Australian town of Tecoma, located in the state of Victoria, are being challenged by nearly 100,000 individuals who recently signed a petition demanding that McDonald’s stay out of the area. According to Yahoo! TV in Australia, representatives from an activist group known as BurgerOff recently flew 10,000 miles to the McDonald’s global headquarters near Chicago to deliver the petition and signatures, which company officials reportedly refused to touch.

For over two years, BurgerOff and the people of Tecoma have been fighting to keep McDonald’s out of their town, pointing out that the company’s intent to build a large, 24-hour drive-thru location near an elementary school would be “a giant advertisement for junk food” for young children who would walk by it daily. But according to the International Business Times, this massive grassroots effort that has included public demonstrations, flash mobs, social media and other forms of community outreach has thus far been unsuccessful at thwarting McDonald’s plans.

So to raise the stakes, BurgerOff went straight to the heart of the beast, bringing along signs, petitions and plenty of fervor, which has put the effort in the global spotlight. The group even set up little inflatable kangaroos at a busy McDonald’s location in Chicago, which helped draw even more attention. The ultimate goal of the protest, of course, is to show McDonald’s that it is not welcome in Tecoma and needs to look elsewhere for its expansion endeavors.

The iPad mini with Retina display

A Retina display-equipped iPad mini now seems inevitable. In August, both The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg reported that Apple was working on such a device, and they said that it was likely that it'd use the same 7.9-inch screen size as the current tablet. If Apple decides to stick with its developer-friendly model of quadrupling the screen resolution when jumping up to Retina, the device will likely have a 2048 x 1536 resolution.

However, there has been some debate over when Apple could ship a Retina iPad mini. Reports haven't pinned down a specific date; the consensus seems to be that the device will be announced at the October 22nd event and ship in time for the all-important holiday season, but there have been hints of supply issues. Reuters reported earlier this month that supply will be very limited this year, while supply chain analysts IHS iSuppli concluded that Apple wouldn't be able to launch until the first quarter of next year. If a 2014 launch is accurate, it's unlikely that Apple will announce the tablet this month, as the company typically puts its products on sale soon after they're revealed. However, even if Apple can get supply in order for this year, the government shutdown could throw a wrench in the company's plans: much of the Federal Communications Commission's staff has been furloughed and can't approve new devices.

Valve demonstrates how its Steam Controller works with your favorite PC games

You've seen the design, and now Valve is showing gamers how its Steam Controller works in practice. The company has posted a new video to its YouTube account that demonstrates how the unique gamepad functions when being used with popular games like Portal 2, Civilization V, and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. It's not quite the finished design that Valve showed off last month; what you're seeing here is the same prototype controller that will be distributed to Steam Machine beta participants later this year. Valve says that more demos will follow soon, "including footage of some other game developers using the controller to play their own games." Is it a worthy replacement for your trusty keyboard and mouse? Reach your own conclusions after watching the clip below.