You Got Egg On Your Face
World Government. It's a concept that you see a lot in Sci-Fi, and hear about from the left. I remember thinking along those lines up until five years ago, roughly. The idea that all the world's ill could be resolved by giving the UN some balls seems like a good idea, but when you stop to consider that Syria sat on the Human Rights Commision, and Iran is on a UN Internet panel trying to grab for power, it's suddenly becomes clear how bad an idea that really is. Then you add something like the UN Oil for Food scandal and then you begin to see that the UN is far from the ideal organization it was set up to be.
I remember hearing about Saddam abusing this program well over a year ago, but I don't remember where and a Google search doesn't yield anything that far back that I can easily find. I should say I'm surprised that it took this long for everybody to get on this story, but I'm not. We were in the middle of election season and honestly, the MSM just didn't think it was that important.
But now, everybody is reporting on it, 2001 Liberty Medal receipient Kofi Annan is facing a vote of no confidence from the UN. His son looks to have profited immensely from the arrangement. (NYT requires registration). And he'll probaby be forced to resign soon. France and Germany are revealed to have profited from the scenario as well.
Which goes a long way to explain why France, Germany, et al, were so vehemently opposed to the Iraq War, not because of some superior world view or morality, but because money was involved. That doesn't mean that all opposition to the Iraq War is now rendered moot, just those member states positions, and, of course, the belief that France and Germany held the moral high ground on this issue.
So, all in all, the value and the validity of the UN is now up for debate, and I imagine that unless serious reforms are undertaken the UN will quickly slide into irrelevance much like the League of Nations before it. And maybe, in order to get an actually effective world body, we need to let the UN die.
I remember hearing about Saddam abusing this program well over a year ago, but I don't remember where and a Google search doesn't yield anything that far back that I can easily find. I should say I'm surprised that it took this long for everybody to get on this story, but I'm not. We were in the middle of election season and honestly, the MSM just didn't think it was that important.
But now, everybody is reporting on it, 2001 Liberty Medal receipient Kofi Annan is facing a vote of no confidence from the UN. His son looks to have profited immensely from the arrangement. (NYT requires registration). And he'll probaby be forced to resign soon. France and Germany are revealed to have profited from the scenario as well.
Which goes a long way to explain why France, Germany, et al, were so vehemently opposed to the Iraq War, not because of some superior world view or morality, but because money was involved. That doesn't mean that all opposition to the Iraq War is now rendered moot, just those member states positions, and, of course, the belief that France and Germany held the moral high ground on this issue.
So, all in all, the value and the validity of the UN is now up for debate, and I imagine that unless serious reforms are undertaken the UN will quickly slide into irrelevance much like the League of Nations before it. And maybe, in order to get an actually effective world body, we need to let the UN die.
posted by Serge at 12/02/2004 05:47:00 PM
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