And if liberating Iraq was wrong, Mr. Annan must also believe it was wrong for NATO to have intervened in Kosovo, where Russia once again prevented Security Council unanimity. How about the recent French intervention in the Ivory Coast, which the Security Council got around to blessing only after it was a fait accompli? And notwithstanding the latest U.N. promises, what if Gallic and Chinese oil interests block international action in Sudan, allowing the continued attacks on Darfurians? It would appear, on this evidence, that Security Council unanimity isn't exactly the gold standard of legitimacy, much less of morality.

[Via WSJ.com: Opinion]

In this article Kofi Annan "stated flat out that the liberation of Iraq was "illegal" and a violation of the U.N. Charter". He did not mention the ugly little secret that the UN policies are so ineffective that their inaction is probably encouraging corruption and genocide. This belief is a direct result of my increased understanding of the "Oil for Palaces" scam. It was difficult for me to believe that the UN could be so blatantly corrupt. Yet the more I investigated the recent UN history the more I became convinced that the problem is systemic to the organization. The fact that the UN actions in Srbenica and Rwanda allowed genocide to proceed unchecked is just plain wrong. The UN could have chosen to exercise their role as the peace maker. Instead they chose not to execise their power to protect and to give a diplomatic solution a chance to work. Their actions leading up to the war against Iraq show a similar ambivalance to the threats posed by Iraq under Saddam. It appears that UN compliance with Saddam's political desires is a result of bribes rather than concern over injustice. The lack of polictical progress at resolving the threat posed by the combination of Iraq with worldwide terrorism left the US, UK, and others with no other course. As Clauswitz said several centuries ago,

War is not a mere act of policy but a true political instrument, a continuation of political activity by other means.