Flashback Friday

Here's a Slate post from November 26, 2002 by ELMERFUDD on the UN resolution to disarm Saddam.

The bottomline to all that is currently transpiring between the USA/UN/Saddam can best be summed up in this way and with this prediction:

The UN will allow itself to be an accomplice in the foot-dragging "compliance game" now begun and being waged by Saddam. This charade will last only until the US decides enough is enough and makes up its mind to end it.

Prediction going well so far...

Just as the US is about to conduct its 1st strike against Saddam the UN will "discover" its backbone and decide to sanction the use of military action to disarm Saddam.

The first cracks appear in Elmer's prediction. I don't think the UN discovered their backbone after the invasion as much as they discovered their middle finger.

If the events transpire as described at least member nations will be on the hook to assist in both the work and cost of cleaning up the mess afterward.

Evidently Elmer was raised by people who cleaned up after him. Unfortunately, those of us in the responsible real world do, in fact, live by the 'Pottery Barn' rule.

However, what I fear is the UN, by FINALLY coming on board to disarm Hussein, will want to dictate the terms of a ceasefire and final outcome. Their track record in this regard is similar to that of their resolution enforcement - it sucks!!!

George Bush would give his left nut right now to be in a position where the UN could come in and dictate a ceasefire.

Thanks in large part to the demands of the UN, in 1991 we did not move into Baghdad to complete the job that we are having to complete now - at no doubt a MUCH higher cost in terms of military resources, American/Iraqi lives, and money.

Right, it would've cost less lives back when Saddam still had some WMD's.

There is really very little to suggest that the nations of the United Nations are actually united!! The goals and values of key member states are often NOT parallel to our own. And this has been made abundantly clear with respect to issues involving the safety of the American people and the security of America itself.

Welcome to reality, Elmer!! Hopefully in the past two years you've figured out that nations are NEVER all on the same page. And countries that want to stay the most powerful in the world need to understand that, or deal with the consequences. And right now in Iraq, we're dealing with those consequences.