The future of hemispheric free trade: towards a unified hemisphere?
I. INTRODUCTION Although the push for free trade among neighboring nations has been a reality for some time, as evidenced by the implementation of bilateral treaties between nations, the concept of free trade itself has taken on global proportions. The original bilateral trade agreements between neighboring countries...

Softwood wars.
Byline: The Register-Guard The benefits of regional trade pacts such as the North America Free Trade Agreement have always been hotly debated by stakeholders who stood to gain or lose under terms of the agreements. For the most part, however, government leaders in countries that signed the...

Biting without teeth: the citizen submission process and environmental protection.
The Dominican Republic-Central American-United States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR), (1) recently ratified by the U.S. Con gress (2) and signed by the President, (3) has been a controversial piece of the Bush administration's economic policy. The treaty is principally aimed at expanding the market for U.S. business opportunities within...

Free trade in the Americas: a perspective from the organization of American states.
I. Introduction Momentum is building towards the creation of a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). That much appears to be undeniable. What is more uncertain, and therefore stimulates much speculative debate, is the final structure that the FTAA will take and the process that will...

The impact of international trade agreements in the legal systems of the American continent.
I. Introduction This article explores the impact of international trade law on the legal systems of the American continent, particularly those of Latin America. My principal argument is that formal legal systems and culture, in general, are undergoing a substantial transformation process. This is a result, in...

Exporting American jobs & industry: CAFTA, a forerunner of an "EU of the Americas," trades away American jobs in the name of rewarding Latin American "democracies.".
Allen Johnson, chief agricultural negotiator for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, was enjoying his vacation in late February when he received a panicky call from the White House. The mid-year meeting of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) was on the verge of delivering...

Alvaro Uribe seeks justice and peace: in an interview with Americas, Colombian president Alvaro Uribe reveals his plans for eradicating guerrillas, paramilitaries, and drug trafficking, while advancing free trade and democracy.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Americas magazine spoke with President Alvaro Uribe Velez at a time when two issues were dominating the news in Colombia: peace negotiations with illegal armed groups, and the signing of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the United States. As we were writing the introduction...

"Harmonizing" our decline: our standard of living is being deliberately undermined to merge our nation into a centrally directed global economy.
As part of his September 2001 visit to the U.S., Mexican president Vicente Fox accompanied President Bush to Toledo, Ohio, where they addressed a carefully selected crowd of 8,000 people. Toledo was chosen because of its large and growing Mexican immigrant population. This changing demographic in America's heartland was...

Sustainable development: a strategy that reflects the effects of globalization on the international power structure.
I. INTRODUCTION All day they've raced round in the heat, at top speeds, Unsuccessfully trying to sell Zizzer-Zoof Seeds, Which nobody wants because nobody needs.(1) The proponents of sustainable development, like the sellers of Zizzer-Zoof Seeds, are racing around unsuccessfully trying to generate public interest...

Leadership matters: international treaty ratification in Canada and the United States.
The ratification process for international treaties has become increasingly politicized in many democratic states. While scholars have devoted attention to the negotiation of international agreements, few have studied ratification struggles that define the ultimate success or failure of international commitments. Fewer still have examined the dynamics of this process...