From: Lee Daniel Crocker (lee@piclab.com)
Date: Wed Nov 27 2002 - 15:51:02 MST
> (Brett Paatsch <paatschb@ocean.com.au>):
>
> I was surprised to read in some recent posts that the UN
> was as badly regarded in the US as it appears to be. I guess
> its because in part its physically based there so
> Americans or New Yorkers at least possible see it up close
> warts n all more than the rest of us AND just recently
> its probably represented a frustrating "go slower"
> counterpoint to be the more popular (doubtless media
> influenced) American reaction to the Iraq situation. I don't
> say that negatively at all.
That has nothing to do with any experience of what the UN
actually is or does, but with the very idea in the first place.
Sovereign means sovereign, and Americans don't much appreciate
being told what to do or what to think by a gang or Euroweenies.
We make mistakes, but they're ours, dammit, and we own up to
them and take responsibility for them and move on, trying to do
what /we/ think is right. Abdicating responsibility to another
group is a moral weakness in its own right.
The UN might be a fine thing for helping struggling nations
get economic help and feeding refugees and negotiating treaties
among them, but to pretend that it is actually a /governing/
body with any authority over real countries is something few
Americans have patience for.
What amazes me is that people actually think the US is being a
"bully" when it refuses to participate in stupid things like
the mine treaty and World Court, when it's the other nations
trying to force those things on us. At least we have the
courage and integrity to stand up and say "this is stupid,
and we won't sign it" rather than just doing what most other
governments will do, which is to sign it and ignore it.
-- Lee Daniel Crocker <lee@piclab.com> <http://www.piclab.com/lee/> "All inventions or works of authorship original to me, herein and past, are placed irrevocably in the public domain, and may be used or modified for any purpose, without permission, attribution, or notification."--LDC
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