Nations of the World, Unite!
(By guest blogger Philip)
Or don’t. Probably better that way. I wondered about what I would write my first blog post of all time. But NPR answered that question for me when Michael Krasny decided to discuss the possible future secretary general of the U.N. candidates this morning. If there is one thing I can’t sit through it is a bunch of socialists talking about their plans for the U.N. Enter the caller from Berkeley. He didn’t have anything topical (i.e. about the potential future candidates for SG) but he was absolutely certain what the world needed: a U.N. tax on all citizens of the whole entire world. Thank you, Berkeley. Now I remember why I don’t call on you much, though you sit at the front of the class and raise your hand constantly.
Increasing the power of the U.N. is an idea that is an affront to the entire accumulated knowledge of human kind as far as it applies to government. Doesn’t human history scream out that power is abused? That centralization leads to extreme power? That even the best-intentioned governments eventually fail into corruption and self service? So now we ought to take an absurdly undemocratic institution (Brunei has a monarchy with absolute power to the sultan who appoints the UN ambassador, who therefore essentially has a personal vote in the UN; India shares one vote amongst its whole democratic populace) that spans the whole world (the British Empire only got halfway) and give it money (is power) so that it doesn’t even have to answer to the only people it currently answers to at all (the governments who fund it). Then it would be sure to further all of the noble goals set forth by its unelected representatives (mostly appointees of countries who rule themselves poorly) and better the lives of all us oppressed folk who previously only had our own democratically elected goverments to look after us.
Now, like communism, world government has fatal flaws that will prevent it from ever really working. But also like communism that wouldn’t stop it from maiming or killing hundreds of millions trying.
Let’s keep the U.N. poor and small and focused entirely on international ambassadorship. Let’s channel our international charity through our own home grown institutions. Let’s not throw out every bit of fear of government we have earned over recorded history just because we all wish for world peace, prosperity, and health. The U.N. isn’t the way.
I am sure I’ve made lots of new friends in class today by kicking the big fuzzy teddy bear that is the U.N. Please leave your love notes in the comments section.
September 8th, 2006 at 1:16 pm
Yeah, the UN’s only function these days is stalling until Iran gets nukes. From the narrow view of an Israeli, their “resolutions” are never materialized and the rhetoric is nearly always biased. The UN should be disbanded.
September 8th, 2006 at 3:14 pm
It will be interesting to see how much of your anonymity remains after a few such messages - reading between the lines of this one already gives many clues.
September 8th, 2006 at 4:58 pm
Phil, great entry. The problem is your Berkeley friends really think that the regimes like Saddam, Ghadafi or Ahmadinejad more or less treat their people like G.W. Bush .
That’s why I support the following action. The next person that supports greater role for UN, shall be temporally stripped of US citizenship, given Iranian, Saudi Arabian, Chinese, passport and forced to live there for six month. If a single person (aside from clinical masochists) after that six month had any desire left for putting their future in the hands of those countries and their loony leaders, I will pay my share of UN tax.
September 8th, 2006 at 7:32 pm
Well, Freeman, you are more flexible than I am. I would not pay the tax even so. I am unmoved by others’ stupidity.
Nick, my anonymity is not such a big deal, really. However, other than that I have read some history and that I live in the Silicon Valley (which you already knew from Saar’s introduction) I would be interested to know what you read between the lines.
Also, I would like to clarify that I do not consider Michael Krasny a socialist. Though he sits a bit on the leftist side, I respect his opinions and I think he has a balanced world view. I still disagree with him often enough over liberty and gov’t issues, but I think he is perceptive. The socialists I referred to were his callers.
September 10th, 2006 at 8:38 pm
Nice introductory blog posting Phillip. Bashing the UN is a great way to get comments!
September 22nd, 2006 at 8:04 am
Can you blame a despot for trying? :)
Saar - I can’t agree that UN should be disbanded - it should be realized for what it is… a place where the world’s leaders (a majority being rather nasty) can communicate with one another when they so choose. Let’s put peacemaking in the hands of the G-8 or G-20.