What can the head-scratching plot line of the first prequel tell us about the debate over the TPP?
May the First is May Day across Europe, or International Workers’ Day, depending on the country you’re in. May the Second is National Education Day in Indonesia, obviously. May the Third is Constitution Day in Poland, and in some pockets of Chicago.
And May the Fourth … is, well. You know what today is:
Yes, that’s right: It’s May the Fourth, adopted annual holiday of Star Wars fans around the world and the Outer Rim, because of how similar the phrase “May the Fourth” sounds to the traditional Jedi farewell. They’re particularly psyched this year because there’s a new entry in the film series due out in December. Did you see the trailer? Episode VII is going to be legit:
Yes, there are good times ahead for Jedis, Wookiees, Sand People, Jawas, protocol droids, and Lando Calrissians everywhere. But before we can get to them, I insist we look back into the mist of history, to 1999, and examine Episode I: The Phantom Menace.
This is probably the most maligned of the Star Wars movies, and there are plenty of reasons for that. It heavily relied an overwhelmed child actor (poor kid). The film’s coolest villain was barely on screen. And it featured a hard-to-follow plot that began with a trade dispute.
Wait. What?
Yes, the very first Star Wars chapter opened with some nonsense about a trade dispute that’s not very well explained before it devolved into extended scenes of computer-animated scenes of Jar Jar Binks, who was awful. And its premise has since caught a ton of flak from fans over the years. The people do not go to see Star Wars movies for trade disputes! They want good story-tellin’, and blastin’.
But! Though it may be hard on a day like today, May the Fourth, to take your mind off anything not found on Wookieepedia, please remember this: Trade disputes matter. They really, really matter.
They mattered last year, when thousands of American steelworkers rallied across the country in the face of ridiculously unfair import competition.
They matter in 2015, when steel imports have jumped to record highs and even more American steel jobs could be made forfeit.
And they matter right now on Capitol Hill, where the Obama administration is cajoling wary legislators to greenlight a Pacific trade pact that would grant market access to partners who already run large surpluses with the United States thanks, in part, to regularly manipulating their currencies to gain an artificial advantage.
Look, I’m not going to say that adding a discussion of currency manipulation into The Phantom Menace would have made it a better movie. More of this dude definitely would have …
But here in the real world, again, trade is important. The details are worth discussing. Tough trade rules are worth discussing. The task of preserving American jobs isn't an incomprehensible plot point.
So go watch one of the good Star Wars movies, and then sign a petition that demands our legislators strengthen American trade laws before they sign any new deals.