"Dangers Posed by the U.N."

Ron Dart has an excellent piece on the dangers posed by the U.N. at Ron's Blog:

The people back in the 50s who opposed the UN were generally regarded as members of the lunatic fringe. I know I didn’t pay much attention, and it may be that they didn’t have the right slant on the issues, but it is time for the sane center to take another look.

One problem posed by the United Nations is that it provides an illusion of security in a world where there isn’t any. Nothing illustrates this better than the abject failure of sanctions on Iraq. All these sanctions accomplished was to create a golden opportunity for thieves to turn the oil for food program into the world’s biggest cash cow. And not only did the UN not prevent this criminal activity from happening, it now appears that it participated in it at the very highest level.

What all this has served to highlight is a simple, incontrovertible fact. The United Nations is not accountable to anyone. All of our elected officials are held accountable to the voters on a regular cycle. In the event of misconduct, they can be investigated by prosecutors with subpoena power to compel testimony. Presidents can be impeached, congressmen can go to jail. No such accountability exists for the United Nations. Period.

Thus follows Lord Acton’s dictum: Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. And power without accountability is as close to absolute as you can get.

But wouldn’t the world be more dangerous without the UN? No, it would not. But it would be just as dangerous as it is today. The difference would lie in the fact that we would have to face the danger and deal with it realistically. Having the UN deal with the growing threat of a nuclear armed Iran is a formula for disaster. What weapon are they going to use to pressure Iran into compliance? Sanctions.

I lost all faith in sanctions when I saw how much harm sanctions caused in South Africa. Yes, the government finally gave in an ended apartheid. But the wealthy and powerful were not harmed by sanctions. Only the little people, the most vulnerable suffered. And the criminal class made even more money. And arguably, South Africa is worse off than they were before.

UN sanctions are worse than useless. Right now, the action that could make the most difference in making the world a safer place would be the dissolution of the United Nations. This would force all nations to face reality and deal with it. That is always the best course.

Ron Dart is one of my favorite thinkers and though he doesn't post every day, his blog is always worth a visit.