I will grant that, depending on how one chooses to construe the documents, it may be difficult to reconcile the United States' action in Iraq with the U.N. charter and 1441. Nonetheless, I'm sure that the United States will play the global political game and try to explain how what it did in Iraq was in compliance. I would rather that it did not.
Instead, I would have the U.S. simply state, as Bush has suggested in the past, that the U.N. has demonstrated a fatal lack of will and that the United States will not be bound by the collective wills of its members. The U.N. has served its purpose and may still be good for something (e.g., distributing humanitarian aid), but it has largely proved to be blundering, incompetent, and corrupt. The United States has shown its willingness to thumb its nose at the world before (for better or worse); this is one time that it did so advisedly.
I do not let my one-year-old dictate my actions, and, similarly, the United States should not allow its actions to be dictated by the likes of France, Germany, and Russia. It's not that those countries are irrelevant, it's just in some cases, like the present, the fact that they disagree with the United States is insufficient to keep us from doing what we see as being in our best interest. Furthermore, the more often that they throw up roadblocks to impede actions that unquestionably are for the good of the world--and, more importantly, in the United States' best interest--the less their opinions will matter to us. In a gross generalization, the United States cares more about what its allies think that what its enemies think. France and Germany just moved a bit on the scale away from ally and toward enemy and further similar shenanigans will result in similar shifts in our view of those countries.
France and Germany (but particularly France) saw an opportunity to thrust themselves into the center of the world stage by leading a coalition to oppoose the imperialistic Americans. It's been a long time since Napoleon, and the once-great Nation must be stinging from almost 200 years of military insignificance. France's opposition was little more than a pissing contest, and France got sprayed in the face.
The United States stands astride the globe as no other country/empire/regime in history. History tells us that this condition likely will not persist, but for now, no one should be surprised that the United States acts in its own best interest. It does so because it CAN. Any country in its position would do the same. The rest of the world should be thankful, however, that the United States views spreading democracy and basic freedom across the globe to be in its best interest. Such has not been the case with others who were in (or aspired to be in) similar positions.
One should not be deluded into thinking that the United States will be bound by or cares unduly for the U.N. The United States created that organization because, at the time, it served its interests to do so. Similarly, although the United States will continue to pay lip service to the U.N., when it serves its interests, the United States will ignore it.
You can continue to argue over whether the United States breached its U.N. obligations. It presents a somewhat interesting question of international "law." In the end, however, it just doesn't matter.
- JNOV
