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November 30, 2004

Expiration Date

I just checked the carton - Kofi Annan is well past his Best If Used By date.

Slowly but surely, there are increasingly mainstream grumblings from within the political classes that Kofi Annan must go. In an editorial of the same name, Senator Norm Coleman argues for his removal on the basis of the oil-for-food corruption scandal alone.

But there is more - so much more - to show why Annan must be removed.

Simply put, the UN has been an abject failure under his watch - from genocide in Darfur and Rwanda, to the outright failure of the UN to lead in the Ukraine crisis, Annan embodies the vile corruption and feckless indifference to meaningful action that the UN has come to stand for.

Dick Morris argues for a more targeted act against the UN, reducing US payments to the body until the UN charts a new course - beyond simply cycling Annan out - that leads to real internal reform. Sort of a "You're on restriction and I'm reducing your allowance" action. While I can't disagree, I do think an open, and honest, discussion needs to happen regarding the UN's continued viability. We should not continue to support it out of habit or fond memory or misplaced utopian ideal. It must be an effective institution for real progress - not simply a forum to pin the world's troubles on Israel.

Posted by mchester at November 30, 2004 07:09 PM