The more I follow politics, the more I think the United Nations doesn’t work anymore. If the United Nations doesn’t work, should the United States continue to be a part of the process?
I think I can get agreement from the majority of people out there when I say that Iraq, Iran, and North Korea are the three biggest hot spots in the world today. If the UN is to work, they must react quickly and decisively in these three areas. Currently, the US and Britain seem to be the major governments trying to stabilize Iraq. Iran and Syria seem to be the major nations trying to destabilize Iraq. If the UN is going to be the forum for the world to resolve its issues, I would expect the UN to be actively engaged in seeking solutions with the US, the UK, and Iraq, and actively trying to prevent Iran and Syria from influencing Iraq. I don’t see that happening.
The United Nations seems to be very reluctant to do anything in Iran. France, Germany, and Britain are working to impose sanctions against Iran for its nuclear development efforts. Russia and China are working hard to prevent sanctions against a nation they consider to be a valuable trading partner. The United States wants tough sanctions, but is trying to give the European nations a chance to work things out. At face value, this sounds like diplomacy at work. The truth of the matter is that this is a continued failure of diplomacy. The UN Security Council set an August 31st deadline for Iran to stop work on enriching uranium, or face dire consequences. Since August 31st, the Security Council has been unable to reach any decision on what those consequences should be. In the mean time, Iran has been working to expand its nuclear program and continues to thumb its nose at the world community. This week’s elections show that the people of Iran don’t support Ahmadinejad’s policies, but the UN can’t develop a similar message to send to Iran.
Under the UN’s watchful eyes, North Korea has now become a nuclear power. While North Korea has returned to the negotiating table, it has done so with a list of demands for the rest of the world. North Korea currently sees these negotiations not as a chance to become a member of the world community, but as a forum to negotiate bribes for the Kim Jung-Il, and to discuss world wide arms reductions. As North Korea has admitted it broke previous treaties, I don’t hold my breath that anything good could come from this latest round of talks.
There are other reasons the United Nations no longer is a legitimate forum for the US. In the view of the UN, all countries are equal, and all should have an equal voice in how the world works. This is a logical conclusion if you believe that there are no nations that are better than other nations. This basic belief is flawed. The United States is quite simply the greatest nation on the Earth. Any forum that equates the views of the US with every petty dictator throughout the world instantly handicaps the US. We have every responsibility to help those individuals and those nations less fortunate than us. However, we don’t have to do it with a gun to our heads as the UN would have us. We can administer our own foreign aid, and peruse our own diplomatic resolutions.
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2 comments:
I am not anti-American at all. I was born here I love our Country. With that in mind is believe the following: I do believe the USA is a great county. The greatest, I do not know. That is like saying the granny smith apple is the greatest but you know some people just love those fiji apples as well. The greatest country is in the eyes of the beholder.
We need to stay in the UN because we are there for the everyday people. Yes i agree with you that we can feed and provide care for a whole lot of other countries in a direct manner. I think for the UN to work the world needs to, especially the USA, needs to start thinking that every country IS equal. We have found out in our country what happens when we look at people as unequals. We had slavery and the war that came with it. The trail of tears, the irish in NYC, the chinese in the mid to late 1800's the japanese in the mid 1900's. All of those are black eyes in american history. This has happened in world history as well but not enough room to list it all. it has all happened because of a lack of respet.
We need to treat every other country that is apart of the UN with respect. I am not talking about giving into the bullies and such like that. I respect the hell out of my Dad but I am scared to death of him. That is what the UN needs. Respect with an iron but judical fist. That is not what a pull out means, a pull out means we are better then the rest and that does not help. I agree the current actions of the UN have been a let down, but a pull out does not fix it. New and better leadership will. Hopefully with a new head of the UN coming in soon we can see a move in the proper direction. Yes i know you are going to say that they (Iran) does not give us respect, the want to kill us. That does not mean we do not give them respect, as a christian is that not what we are called to do, as an american is that not what we pride ourselves in (1st line, 2nd paragraph declaration of independence).
"A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus." ~MLK
"A coward is much more exposed to quarrels than a man of spirit."~TJ
I agree that we should treat other nations with respect. However, I think many of our problems come from the mistaken belief that all nations are in fact equal. That simply isn't the case. No matter how you define what makes a nation great, there are those that are near the top of the list and those that arn't. That doesn't mean that we should run all over the world and do what we want. It does mean that we stop treating the rulers of Iran and North Korea as valid politicians. They have shown repeatedly that they have no desire to be part of the international community, and it is time to grant them their desire.
There are more tyrants and dictators in the UN than there are democracies. As long as the UN continues to think all nations are the same, it will be ineffective.
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