Look with your eyes, not with your hands.


Such a minute fraction of this life do we live: so much is sleep, tooth-brushing, waiting for mail, for metamorphosis, for those sudden moments of incandescence: unexpected, but once one knows them, one can live life in the light of their past and the hope of their future.



A grad student muses on her life, film, friends, politics, reality televizzle, and music.

 
On the Brink

We are approaching a very important 48 hours, it's hard to say more than that right now. I guess this whole situation is making me realize how different America is than many other countries. Okay duh, it didn't take a degree in political science to figure that out, but there are some very interesting reactions that can only be explained through cultural differences, regime incompatibilities, and perhaps different ways of evaluating national interest. Today, members of Congress and representatives from both parties met with Bush at the White House this afternoon and they, in addition to doves in his administration, have solidified support for an attack. Since we're leading the battle cry, I wonder what other options exist. Just the same, I tend to believe that politicians are all self-interested actors and therefore have few options but to put their views aside and get on the bandwagon. Meanwhile, Parliamentary systems are obviously different - as are British politicians, like the leader of the House of Commons who resigned today because he won't be affiliated with a government waging war on Iraq, I guess I just find it next to impossible to imagine that scenario in America. In the end, maybe the Bristish aren't so different - maybe bailing out now will be better down the road for the defectees. Time will tell. Also, I am really surprised that Canada won't committ troops and Australia will, that just seems weird, doesn't it? And where has Australia been all along, anyway?

Meanwhile, I have some ideas about some reforms for the United Nations. I think they should do away with any militaristic functions and get out of the political, regime changing, and peacekeeping game entirely. I think the UN has become an organization that deals effectively with the human rights agenda, has made great strides for healthcare, dealing with landmines, diseases, programs for women and children, and often hold some important international cultural summits. But I really think that the whole idea of the �permanent members� is antiquated and I�ve thought this long before the most recent crisis with Iraq. It is absolutely ridiculous that declining almost 3rd world Russia retains �superpower� veto � and that history�s sissy, France, gets a veto while Germany and Japan (never mind countries like Brazil, India and Australia) are snubbed. I also think that in an increasingly global world, it is unforgivable that three inhabited continents (South America, Africa, and Australia) have no veto power at all (I know that member states can sometimes be on the Security Council, but it�s not the same). In all intents and purposes, by shifting their mission toward the humanitarian and away from the militaristic / strategic, they wouldn�t really have to deal with the tough �veto� matters anyway. Countries build other alliances for specific matters � Kyoto for environmental concerns, EU for a whole host of reasons, the WTO for trade, NATO for security. I think this go at Iraq really proves that the United Nations might not be the best institution to really spearhead all international law and that based on complicating factors of financial alliances, history, and regime type � it just seems really impossible for the whole world to make unbiased decisions in choosing the best course of action. That being said, I also think that countries should retain sovereignty in choosing their own foreign and domestic policies and that the UN shouldn�t necessarily dictate behaviors. Blah, I just don�t see the UN doing any good in dealing with Iraq, it just seems like an actor that by its nature appeases. In some cases, I guess that in this case the UN forced the US to be temperate and really make it�s case for the world and this is good � but in the end, if the behavior is no different, who really cares? My father says that the UN has jumped the shark.

Anyway, I had to get that off my chest. A rather uneventful day for me � got up early for the house appraiser, went to the car wash, the gym, gave my dog a bath in the sink� A little red head tells me that it�s St. Mick�s Day or something, I guess I missed that one. Erin go yawn� bedtime.
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posted by lmjasinski at 12:40 AM