UN Ironies

The recent explosion of the UN headquarters in Baghdad was a great tragedy, as appalling as all such attacks inevitably are. Yet, contained within this horrific event were ironies that deserved to be explored, for the experience of suicide terror has become all too commonplace around the world. The root of these actions is a radical ideology that has affixed itself to a world religion with upwards of 1.25 billion adherents and hence a steady supply of recruits. Because of its metastatic tendencies, its unpredictability, and the availability of weapons of mass destruction, it represents as great a threat to world civilization as last century's twin scourges, Naziism and Communism. International terror is a contagion, therefore, that threatens everyone, even those who would appease it, and here now we must return to the UN, for no body has done more to placate this great evil or hinder effective action against it than the UN.

The first irony revolves around the long buildup to the war in Iraq, in which the UN determined that it would do nothing to enforce the 17 resolutions it had itself enacted against Hussein's regime, focusing more on its desire to thwart and isolate the US. Even after the rout of Hussein's armies, it finds itself bickering over whether to engage in the rebuilding efforts, lobbying for a preeminence it does not deserve. One would think the UN would be thrilled with the chance to assist in the effort to erect a peaceful and democratic Iraq under any circumstances. But, not so, for the bitter reality is that the UN Security Council is not so much a forum for advancing world prospects, but a playground for second rate powers like France, Russia, and Germany, to occupy center stage, and enjoy a degree of influence they would otherwise never have. The primary motive of the Security Council, therefore, is not to promote peace and prosperity, or to create a model democracy in the Arab Middle East, but for individual member states to selfishly and opportunistically oppose the US and thereby burnish, as they see it, their own images.

The second telling irony is that of all the nations who have experienced the horror of suicide terror, and there are many, there are none more intimate with it than Israel. And, yet, no nation has been more persistently singled out for censure by the UN, in its legitimate efforts to defend itself, than the beleaguered Jewish state. Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East, has been blamed by the UN as the “foremost violator of human rights in the world today.” This is a reckless accusation that, among other things, requires a serious downgrading of numerous other human rights violations occurring around the world that are routinely ignored by the UN. For example: the harsh treatment of Tibetans by China. The massacre of Chechens by Russia. The occupation of Lebanon by Syria. The ethnic cleansing in former Yugoslavia. The slaughter of nearly 2 million Christians in the Sudan. Etc., etc. The pernicious double standard applied by the UN (and others) towards Israel has only strengthened the hand of the terrorists.

The lesson lost on the UN is that terrorists are not concerned with supportive arguments made on their behalf by misguided bureaucrats and other assorted moral imbeciles. They may tolerate such deluded hand holders as a tactical measure, but in the end they are as much a target as their most vigorous opponents. For their enemy is anyone or anything that they are not: other moderate Moslems. Christians. Jews. Westerners of any stripe. Even ideologic allies in the UN and elsewhere, or genuine humanitarians. For their vision is of world domination, of a global fundamentalist Islamist theocracy, a pax Talibanica - by any means necessary.

It may come as a surprise to some, but our freedoms and way of life are not guarenteed. They are maintained by vigilance and strength and a brisk readiness to confront evil. Our current adversary cannot be appeased. Nor will they give up voluntarily. Al Qaeda, the Baathists, and Hamas are different faces of the same virulent infestation that confronts us all. One would think that the senseless bombing of the UN headquarters in Baghdad would be a wake up call for the UN. But the irony is that its significance will be lost on them. They will fail to recognize that we are all targets. They will see only evidence of American malfeasance and misconduct. They will not appreciate that the road from the World Trade Center to Jerusalem to Baghdad is a short one indeed. In a perfect world, the UN would reconsider its obstructionist tendencies, and act in a cohesive, determined way to defeat terror - but that is unlikely. The irony of the UN is that selfish opportunism and anti-Americanism prevail.