Fair Trade Truth

Quoting Economist:
http://www.economist.com/debate/days/view/515&fsrc=nwl

"When it comes to ethical trade the big guns of the free trade movement are firing at all the wrong targets. Ethical trade brands that give a better deal to small farmers growing tea or coffee? A brazen attempt to distort markets and—even worse—mislead consumers. Shunning toys or garments produced by child labourers? Just another case of thinly veiled protectionism.

This is the sort of thing that gets free trade a bad name. Whether we like it or not, trade is a human connection. It ties consumers in rich countries to some of the world's poorest people. Consumers should care about how their purchasing power affects the lives of others and they should be demanding information and making informed choices. The market for ethically traded goods is growing not because most consumers do not listen to eminent free trade economists. It is growing because people care about social justice."

Hi-Tech Sweat Shop report!

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/china-taiwan/091103/silicon-sweatshops-disposable-workforce

SLAVERY!

Slave

Pronunciation: \ˈslāv\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English sclave, from Anglo-French or Medieval Latin; Anglo-French esclave, from Medieval Latin sclavus, from Sclavus Slavic; from the frequent enslavement of Slavs in central Europe during the early Middle Ages

Date: 14th century

1 : a person held in servitude as the chattel of another
2 : one that is completely subservient to a dominating influence
3 : a device (as the printer of a computer) that is directly responsive to another
4 : drudge, toiler

     Now think about working person. 

     In the modern society, one HAS to earn money to make a living. If one does not have an outstanding/unique ability to make money (say writing, singing, composing, starting and succeeding at entrepreneuring), he or she has to make money through jobs. Jobs that are perceived secure and pay good money. Preferably jobs from big companies that do not risk closing down any time soon.

   Once one takes the perceived good job, one usually conforms to the company policy or culture. One feels the pressure to do so to keep his/her job. So if the company asks the person to sacrifice more and do more work, one has to obey, in the fear of disobeying will cost him/her the job, thus the money that feeds one.

   So, the money along with the company forms the DOMINATING INFLUENCE that one have to be a subservient to. One stops being an employee, and becomes a SLAVE.

   Just think of the sweatshops. How did the sweatshops come to being?

   First of all, local people need jobs to advance their living condition. A paying job at the sweatshop usually rewards higher than a local job, although comparatively low compared to other places. Such job is usually repetitive and does not need much sophisticated skills.

Once a person is on the job, due to the money this job pays, he has to keep the job, therefore no matter how tiring the job is or bad the working condition is, he/she just have to work through them. If they attempt to do otherwise, they will be let go, and the next local person who has this low-end skill will take the job, probably for the same amount of money, or lower.

    Condiser the condition for slaves back in the pre-Civil War era in North America. Slaves were bought off by their owners with MONEY on a slave market (as oppose to the job market). Then they were forced to work. They have to work hard, or physical punishment will ensue (the modern term is fired or no pay raise). They have to obey their owners, and if they run away, they probably would have a chance to escape such a miserable life, but if they get caught, harsher physical punishment will ensue too (quit your job, and it might be harder to find a better job).

    Owners do not care much about their slaves’ well-beings (neither do the companies, or no sweatshop will come to being. One may wonder why employees from Foxxcom commit suicide. This is why: Foxxcom do not care about its employees’ well being). Owners want as much labour they can get from a slave as possible (Companies want to generate as much profit as possible, be it to rip their employees off, then be it.). Slaves were driven to death by laboring too much (How often do you hear people get over-fatigued and died on a job these days?). If a slave gets sick, most owners would not give a damn than to buy a new slave. If an employee is sick, he or she either get an unpaid leave, or just leave. 

So, you see how the current monetary-based, corporate-dominated society has forced us into a modified version of SLAVERY and trap us in it?