Has Rest Of The World Tired Of U.S. Policies And Demands Made On Others?

Monday, May 14, 2001 - Re: "U.N.'s council of hypocrisy," May 8 William
Safire column.

Maybe William Safire's hysterical column about the United States' recent
ouster from the U.N.'s Human Rights Commission holds the answer in itself.

Maybe the rest of the world, as represented by the United Nations, is
finally fed up with American hypocrisy and self-centered politics.

Maybe they are tired of the United States' childish refusal to pay nearly
$600 million in back dues - until or unless they do as we say.

Maybe they are tired (and probably fearful) of the recent backward ideas
coming from Washington, D.C. Tired of broken treaties, irrational talk of
"star wars" defense raising its ugly head again and the sudden lack of any
leadership in or knowledge of foreign affairs.

As Safire was writing his diatribe shouting for someone to find out which
countries "betrayed" us, he was perhaps unaware that the U.S. has also been
voted off the U.N. International Narcotics Control Board, so he didn't
include that little item.

But I did read about it and my argument is about the same.

Maybe the rest of the world has tired of U.S. policies and demands made on
other countries built around our utterly irrational "war on drugs."

Why would anyone want to interact with an entire nation that so obviously
cannot learn from its own mistakes? Did we learn nothing from failed
Prohibition?

Can't we figure out after squandering billions of dollars, locking up tens
of thousands of our own citizens and rapidly heading toward a police state
that our "solution" does not work?

We want the most, have the most, waste the most of any nation in the
history of human civilization. But still we insist on always having what we
want or threatening to take all the marbles and go home.

Are we doomed as a country and a people to an endless, petulant adolescence.

Diane F. Smith

Denver