WAR: Re: Hit the Road, Jacques

From: Mike Lorrey (mlorrey@yahoo.com)
Date: Sun Mar 23 2003 - 10:03:45 MST

  • Next message: Dehede011@aol.com: "Re: [POLITICS/IRAQ] Thank God for the death of the UN (Article)"

    --- ABlainey@aol.com wrote:
    > In a message dated 22/03/03 01:13:10 GMT Standard Time,
    > mlorrey@yahoo.com
    > writes:
    >
    > > On a similar note, I hear lots of europeans and others claim they
    > > love Americans but hate our government's policy. Turns out that 71%
    > > currently support Bush's policy and 78% think the UN is a failure.
    >
    > No argument on your first point. I assume these are figures of
    > American views? From my vantage point the figures here are very
    > different. I will add that my personal view on the UN. I cannot see
    > how it can be viewed as 'a Failure' simply because it didn't allow
    > the US and UK to act as they pleased or simply disagreed with them.

    The UN failed because it failed to act in the best interests of the
    Iraqi people. It failed because, just like the League of Nations,
    allowed fascist states to continue to oppress their subject people with
    the help of states that found commercial profit in propping up such
    fascists. It failed because it failed to present a united front against
    tyranny and the proliferation of WMD among fascist states.

    > The UN is after all a democratic group that collectively make
    > decisions based on each member states own wants and needs.

    The UN is NOT a democratic group. I know of absolutely no nation where
    the national representative to the UN is elected by the people. In the
    best case, some nations, like the US, approve such representatives in
    one or more legistlative bodies of popularly elected representatives.
    Most Ambassadors to the UN are not so selected and screened. Most are
    either members of the party in power, or have bought to position, or
    else are relatives or other cronies of the ruling thug of their nation.

    The Security Council is even less democratic. It has permanent members
    whose membership exists solely because they were the primary members of
    the victorious side of WWII. They can veto anything they want to. The
    temporary members of the Security Council are not elected to their
    positions either.

    To claim the UN is democratic is about as accurate as claiming that the
    Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council or the Palestinian Authority is
    democratic.

    > I will say that the UN does appear to be ineffective in events where
    > time is of the essence. This seems mainly due to the ungainly size
    > and subsequent slowness of the beast. hmmmm

    No, it is ineffective because prominent members find profit in
    subverting civilization.

    >
    > > ur
    > > government's policy is our own. We own it. Get it?
    > >
    >
    > And France's policy is its own. So why should you act against them
    > for expressing their views? If it is right and just to boycott French
    > goods and services simply because they didn't agree with our
    > actions. Then we are saying 'if you don't vote the way we want you
    > to, we will punish you' or even simpler 'do as I say or else'?
    > Democracy and freedom of speech, this is not.

    BS. Freedom of speech is not exclusive to one side or the other. Just
    as Hollywood stars have a free speech right to express anti-war
    opinions, I have a free speech right to not buy their movies and to
    recommend to others that they do the same. Just as France has a free
    speech right to express its opinion in the UN, I have a free speech
    right to not buy its products and to recommend to others that they do
    the same.

    The free market is its own democracy, and every dollar is a vote. When
    you buy products from countries that are anti-American, you
    economically support the proponents of anti-American policies. If Evian
    does not support the French government policy and wants my money, they
    can announce their support for our policy and opposition to France's
    policy. I will then buy their products.

    Since France is basing its opposition to US policy on its desire for
    profit from Iraqi oil, it evidently values the free market dollar vote
    of French oil companies more than the dollar vote of American consumers
    of French products.

    This crass commercialism is evident in the fact that France is now
    asking the US state department for the right to bid on reconstruction
    contracts, after announcing the other day that if Iraqi forces use WMD
    in the war, they will change their policy. Since Iraq has now used over
    a half dozen SCUD missiles it has claimed for a decade it did not
    possess, targeting Kuwaiti civilian communities, I think it is
    reasonable to suspect they have lied about a lot of other things.

    =====
    Mike Lorrey
    "Live Free or Die, Death is not the Worst of Evils."
                                                         - Gen. John Stark
    "Pacifists are Objectively Pro-Fascist." - George Orwell
    "Treason doth never Prosper. What is the Reason?
    For if it Prosper, none Dare call it Treason..." - Ovid

    __________________________________________________
    Do you Yahoo!?
    Yahoo! Platinum - Watch CBS' NCAA March Madness, live on your desktop!
    http://platinum.yahoo.com



    This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Sun Mar 23 2003 - 10:16:17 MST