[OT] Worst news ever ...

[Alma J Wetzker]

Bill Campbell wrote:
> On Sat, Aug 28, 2004, Net Llama! wrote:
> 
>>On 08/28/2004 07:27 AM, Collins Richey wrote:
> 
> ...
> 
>>>I'm sort of neutral. I consider the UN to be worthless, but I'm for
>>>anything that helps advertise linux.
>>
>>They are worthless in the United States.  We don't need any of the 
>>special assistance programs that they provide.  But then again, the UN 
>>wasn't created just for the United States' benefit.
> 
> 
> Translation -- The taxpayers in the United States get to pay to
> support corrupt regimes all over the world.
> 
>   ``Foreign aid might be defined as a transfer from poor people in rich
>   countries to rich people in poor countries'' -- Douglas Casey

Much as I sympathize with those who think the UN is useless, and it is worse 
than that as a governing body, I fear we ignore the good that is done by that 
organization throughout the world.  I am thinking about health and food 
programs.  Without the UN, many of the "childhood" diseases, that everyone 
used to get and some died from, would still be hitting american school 
children.  (Ask the CDC about transmission and communicable diseases if you 
don't believe me.)  The UN allows US money to do lots of Good Things(tm) 
without the world stigma of accepting help from the US.  For humanitarian type 
of aid, I feel the most important thing is getting help to where it is needed 
rather than getting credit for doing it.

The UN also serves an incredibly important function of keeping people talking.

While the US receives very few direct benefits from the UN, the indirect 
benefits and general good done by the organization,I feel, outweigh the negatives.

As far as corruption charges go, you will find that everywhere you find 
people.  In the US we call it "patronage positions" and institutionalized it 
rather than try to fight it.  It is just our way of saying that bribes are 
only for the winners.

     -- Alma