Monday, January 20, 2003

Bizarro United Nations

Wow. In the alternate universe of the United Nations, Blix and ElBaradei succeeded in getting Iraq to agree to stop interfering in specific matters-if one believes Iraq. The Iraqis say they too will search for weapons of mass destruction that they have "forgotten" in their country-uh huh (just how many do they have that they can overlook some?). In addition, they will add more documents to their "complete" declaration, add scientist to their "full " list, encourage their scientists to talk to the UN in private, and they will pass a law banning production of weapons of mass destruction. All these are amazingly seen as "encouraging." Wow. France declares that American action against Iraq is illegal unless all the 'i's are dotted and all the 't's are crossed-yet accepts any Iraqi obstruction as somehow in the spirit of international law. And Libya gets to chair the Human Rights Commission of the UN-rigghhttt. "The Libyan candidate, diplomat and former journalist Mrs. Najat al-Hajjaji, won 33 votes in a secret ballot of the 53-country Commission, with 17 states abstaining and three voting no -- apparently including the United States." A South African envoy was dismayed that we had broken established practice and hoped that this would be the last time that we would sacrifice substance for the procedural fetishism that animates the modern United Nations.

And so how is this body not a farce?

Apparently, in Bizarro UN, all this advances international peace and human rights. Up is down. France has influence. And America is the real threat.

Screw 'em. By UN logic, we bought them dinner.