| Popcorn alert. You may also want to get a lawn chair and a refreshing beverage. |
| Heh. UN forgot to make nicey-nice with Congress...more at the link. |
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| Home Front: Politix | ||
| White House Tries to Halt GOP Effort to Withhold U.N. Dues | ||
| 2005-06-16 | ||
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| Posted by:Seafarious |
| #14 "Thotch, maybe it's not too high a price to pay for "having an ear in the enemy's den"?" That's a belief that some people have to justify foreign aid. It sure hasn't help the US, if that is a motivating factor. Look at N.Korea, Taliban, Pakistan, Central and South America, Africa to name a few hot spots in the world re: terrorists in the making, or who grew and needed to be put down. There's lots of resentment and hatred focused on America from the very countries who benefit from our foreign aid. It's like the resentment one would feel if one was beholden to a rich aunt who tells you what to do because she feels she "owns" you. It's a lose/lose situation for both parties. I think foreign grew out of the Marshall Plan and it does more harm than good for our nation. The poor countries get tyrants permanently installed due to foreign aid ( not just from us but from all the rich Western countries). Foreign aid has become politicized in some cases, like US foreign aid to Israel vs doing the same by Egypt, Jordan, Palestinians. Israel is now an affluent country - it should not get money from us. And if Israel needs investment, there would certainly be no shortage of private comporate investors or for that matter rich Jewish private philanthropists who would pour money into Israel. Egypt and Jordan might actually do something positive with their countries if they did not have royalty and strongmen in charge who siphon the lion's share out of foreign aid money. Not too long ago I recall reading that we were sending money to Saudi Arabia. That's probably been discontinued, but how stupid for that to have even taken place. Foreign aid is nothing more than guilt tax that our politicians take out of our pockets and merrily give to "poor" countries to make themselves feel "generous." Lots of anti-American NGO's would die out over night if we stopped UN dues and foreign aid, which in itself would be wonderful. I think it's much more reasonable to give "aid" on an emergency basis like for the Tsunami earthquake victims but to be collecting an ongoing tithe from Western countries to give to none Westernized countries is harmful to recipients and unfair to "voiceless" taxpayers. |
| Posted by: Thotch Glesing2372 2005-06-16 16:30 |
| #13 Brer Rabbit: Oh, Brer Bear! Please, please don't throw me into that UN-dues-withholding briar patch. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2005-06-16 12:09 |
| #12 I don't know if this is 'good cop bad cop' (if so, the President really is a risk-taker -- I thought he simply raised the stakes high, but if not then he's gambling that we'll put up until the UN caves) or if the opposition is real ... Thotch, maybe it's not too high a price to pay for "having an ear in the enemy's den"? :P |
| Posted by: Edward Yee 2005-06-16 11:02 |
| #11 But...but...but.... The U.N. is the LAST BEST HOPE FOR MANKIND! (Oh boy! Are we screwed or what?) Drop the U.N. Revoke their diplo immunity and kick the rats out. Let them suck off France's tit for awhile.... |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2005-06-16 09:45 |
| #10 trailing wife: Yes. (It just depends on who is observing.) I guess Bush really WAS concerned about the credibility of the UN during the |
| Posted by: eLarson 2005-06-16 08:49 |
| #9 Hear, hear, Gromgoru! Personally, I'm to the point where we cut the UN off completely, kick 'em out, withdraw all hostile countries' foreign aid and man our Southern (and probably even the Northern) border w/ military. |
| Posted by: BA 2005-06-16 07:56 |
| #8 Three cheers for the Founding Fathers. |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2005-06-16 06:50 |
| #7 Is Bush playing Good Cop, Bad Cop? |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2005-06-16 05:52 |
| #6 I'm not picking on you anon1, but a lot of people have drunk the koolaid pushed by the MSM and many others and can not see the UN for what it is. To use a somewhat crude analogy they are like a bunch of losers from the wrong end of town let loose with someone else credit card, and told 'don't worry, someone else will pick up the tab.' The so called reforms do not address any of the real issues with the UN. The UN is simply unreformable. It needs to be swept away and replaced by a body where democracies are represented on a weighted basis by population and economy. Non-democracies may be represented but on a lesser basis. Democracy may not be perfect, but its the best system we have. Under a democratic system elected representatives decide and bureacrats execute. The UN has reversed that and that is why the UN as a decision making body has to go. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2005-06-16 05:33 |
| #5 I wish they would cut funds to the UN! Yes, I agree. to be restored only when You lost me. Why should my taxpayer dollars continue to be be given to countries I could care less about? Foreign aid, the UN is all a recent loopy socialist way of revenue re-distribution and I'm sick and tired of the assumption that it's always been this way and it should always stay this way. No. Individuals can give away all their money to every Third World cesspool they want, but don't assume I want my $ given away. Where was the UN when Western nations were settled and people starved due to inhospitable conditions? Where was the UN when wars were fought for independence, when people toiled day and night to make a living? Give me a frigging break. If Africans and Southeast Asians can't figure out out to raise themselves out of the backwaters of their own creation, I might add, and win their own "human rights" and build their "own future", then maybe we should let Darwin's Law proceed. The UN should be dismantled. Foreign aid should end as of yesterday. |
| Posted by: Thotch Glesing2372 2005-06-16 02:39 |
| #4 I wish they would cut funds to the UN! to be restored only when independant audits are regular and when human-rights abusing 3rd world despots are kicked out of the UN human rights forum |
| Posted by: anon1 2005-06-16 02:22 |
| #3 "C'mon Hank, you're not following The Plan." "Plan? What plan?" "The Secret Rovian Plan, of course." "Never seen it." "That's cuz it's secret!" "When do I get to see this Secret Plan?" "When Bolton's approved, of course. He was gonna brief you guys." |
| Posted by: .com 2005-06-16 02:18 |
| #2 "We are the founder of the U.N. We're the host country of the U.N. We're the leading contributor to the U.N.... So why then, are we treated the way we are? Send a message and withhold the money. The next logical step, if Goo-fi's org continues on its current path, is to boot it out entirely. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2005-06-16 02:15 |
| #1 Representative Henry J. Hyde, an Illinois Republican and chairman of the House International Relations Committee, said that he was not surprised by the administration's opposition but that he was not persuaded. "The Constitution gives to Congress the power of the purse, and we intend to exercise it in pursuit of meaningful U.N. reform," a spokesman quoted him as saying. I guess that means moving the UN and its enviro-wankers ansd terror supporters to Paris is out of the question. |
| Posted by: badanov 2005-06-16 01:54 |