Obama's Trip to Asia

It's a 10-day trip to India, Indonesia, South Korea and Japan.

President Obama rounded off his 3-day visit to India today by addressing a special joint session of both houses of India's Parliament. Accompanied by some 250 business executives, the President's visit to India is part of a 10-day tour of Asia to boost U.S. exports. Meanwhile a number of groups are protesting Obama's visit to India, including some Left political parties, survivors of the 1984 deadly Bhopal disaster, and the families of cotton farmers who committed suicide, partly as a result of U.S. agricultural subsidies.

For more on Obama's trip to India

http://www.democracynow.org/2010/11/8/big_business_not_poverty_tops_obamas

The significance of the India trip

The Highlights:

> India is the world’s largest importer of weaponry, and the United States wants to sell as much as possible ... It's a $50 to $60 billion market.

> The second set of deals are again about a very small group of people. And that is, this is a set of deals to enhance the lifestyle of very rich people in the urban centers.

For instance, there’s a deal to build Harley-Davidson motorcycles in India:

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/11/04/india.bikes/index.html

> GE and Westinghouse are important players with the Obama trip to India.

The Indian Parliament asked for all its suppliers to maintain liability for what they are selling in India. But, GE and Westinghouse want this liability question to come off the table. They don't want this kind of liability on themselves, a they don't want to be liable if there's another Bhopal-type accident.

Bhopal gas tragedy

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhopal_disaster

> The issue of property rights of Monsanto and Cargill