The League of Nations failed largely because one of the most powerful countries in the world, the United States, failed to join and sank into isolation, believing it had done its duty and didn't need to be involved because the Atlantic and Pacific protected it from trouble elsewhere. The UN has been successful largely because in order to do so, it must have the cooperation of the larger and more powerful nations in the world. It cannot succeed if America either withdraws or attempts to use it as a tool in the acquisition of cheap natural resources to build an economic empire at the expense of the third world and the weaker developed countries.
The problem with Bush and the UN is that he can't decide whether America should have a role in policing the world's trouble spots or not. He flip flops, depending on what his own particular self-serving interests demand. He blasted Clinton on Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo and declared that it wasn't the job of the US to be the policeman of the world. But he fell back on the "world policeman" position to justify his Iraq debacle when the stated objectives for the war--the search for weapons of mass destruction, nuclear arms, and harboring terrorist groups--turned out to be non-existent. Wonder what his position was during his father's term in office. George H.W. Bush never made a move without the UN, and I recall several instances where American soldiers were punished for refusing to wear UN insignias on their uniforms. The UN sanctioned the first Gulf War because the stated objective was to liberate Kuwait. Notice how GHWB didn't go one step beyond that, but stuck with the UN line in the ground regarding the advance of US troops. Did junior oppose his daddy's policies?
In addition to enriching the pockets of VP Dick Cheney, Iraq has put the US oil corporate conglomorate in a position to capitalize on cheap oil. By controlling Iraq's supply, the world's second largest reserve, they can continue to purchase oil at the lowest prices on the world market, and avoid the price squeeze that is coming with the peak in oil production. That means they can continue to raise their retail prices and increase their profits while still paying below market rate per barrel. There's the real reason we are in Iraq. I'm glad to see that Kerry is finally ignoring all the Republican subterfuge and is getting to the bottom of the issues in his campaign speeches. Seems to be drawing some attention to himself, at long last.
The UN has succeeded in many places in the world. There's no doubt that the bulk of that success has been due to US involvement. As long as we were cooperative, and didn't attempt to force our own self interests, it worked pretty well. We've been able to do a lot of good that we couldn't have done on our own. When we get absorbed in our own self-interest, and try to use the UN to bully others, it doesn't work. It is childish, immature and ignorant to stalk off and threaten to leave if we don't get our way. THere are times when it is important for us to take a step back and see how the world is perceiving us at the moment. We're so large and so powerful that we can't always see what's best for everyone.
Two great sources and some very interesting reading:
The Party's Over: Oil, War and the Fate of Industrial Societies
Powerdown: Options and Actions for a Post-Carbon World both by Richard Heinberg.
UN absurdity
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