EDITORIAL : SENSELESS IN SEATTLE; WHAT ARE GLOBAL ECONOMY PROTESTERS REALLY AFRAID OF?

WHAT on earth does the World Trade Organization do that could prompt such an ugly and out-of-control protest that rocked Seattle this week and brought back memories of the 1960s anti-war demonstrations?

Protesters claim the organization, whose 134 member-nations set the rules for global trade, allows big business and giant multinational corporations to pillage and plunder the weak, the poor and the innocent, sacrifice the environment and exploit children.

Environmental problems and lack of civilized labor protections are real issues that will only be solved over time as the global economy brings wealth to the poor and raises expectations around the world.

So we ask: What are protesters really protecting?

The WTO seeks to bolster the world's economy, and so enhance the wealth of nations and their citizens by fostering international trade. The jobs created in the poorest nations are better than the jobs that exist.

What's so terrible about that?

Not a thing.

The real puppeteers of Tuesday's dangerous charade were the union leaders who are trying to protect the wages and benefits of their workers without regard to that old union ideal of solidarity of all working people.

Just as they opposed reducing trade barriers with Mexico, they argue that free trade globally will somehow hurt Americans as industry expands in other countries.

Clearly, that's true in some cases where products can be made cheaper elsewhere, but increased trade creates many other new jobs. That's why unemployment in the United States at a record low. That's why is the American economy is enjoying robust health.

For every example of child labor and sweatshops, there are dozens of others where people in Third World countries are earning more and having better lives thanks to the global economy.

Free and fair trade leads to a healthier economy. And as we've plainly witnessed in this country, a vibrant economy helps build prosperity and well-being for more people and at a faster rate than any government-intervention program.

So we ask again: What are the Seattle protesters really fighting about?

Of course, they are fighting for themselves - not the exploited children of Bangladesh. And that is their right if they are honest about it.

Organized labor wants to protect its gains, not promote the general welfare of the rest of the world.

Labor doesn't want to share the wealth, it wants to stop the unstoppable process of creating a true global economy that interconnects all people and all nations.

Rather than the progressives they want to be seen as, they are in fact reactionaries fighting against the winds of change.

The WTO and its members certainly need nudging toward reforming policies that allow for more, not less, free trade. But that will come through serious discussion, not at the hands of street performers looking to hide their real agendas.