COLUMN: A closer look at the U.N.
As nations around the world commemorate the date on which, in 1945, the charter of the United Nations went into effect, American citizens should take some time to think about the U.N., its history and its accomplishments.
The U.N. is the successor of the former League of Nations. It is significant that after much debate and discussion, the Senate voted to keep the U.S. out of this organization.
The League of Nations eventually collapsed, and the U.N. was created to take its place. The U.N. was sold to America as the world’s hope for peace. This time, the Senate was given no time to debate the entry of the U.S. into the new global organization. The Senate voted to allow America to participate in the U.N.
The justification used for the entry of the U.S. into the U.N. was the president’s power to “… make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present shall concur,” found in Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution. However, the entry of the U.S. into the U.N. clearly constituted more than making a treaty with another nation.
Alger Hiss, then serving in the U.S. Department of State was very influential in the creation of the U.N. and ensuring America’s involvement in the organization. Hiss was later proven to have been a spy for the Soviet Union.
The U.N. has repeatedly shown itself as the enemy of freedom. One example is the activities of the U.N. in the Congo, following the country’s independence from Belgium in 1960. After the country gained its independence, it was taken over by Patrice Lumumba. Disorder and terrorism were widespread. Under Moise Tsombie, the province of Katanga broke off from the chaos, and order was established. The U.N. intervened, and the government of Katanga was overthrown. The atrocities committed by the U.N. troops against the people of Katanga are well-documented.
The basic premise of the U.N. is fundamentally flawed. Its stated goal is to produce worldwide peace and order. The only way the U.N. can do so is by force. Therefore, the only way for the U.N. to achieve its goal is to deprive every individual of his or her freedom. This method of creating order and peace requires war. Under the U.N., order and peace will never be achieved.
Today, the U.N. is striving to increase its influence in the world. It has been asserting authority in many areas, including matters regarding economics, human rights, education and social welfare. This is done at the expense of national sovereignty, as was affirmed by Former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Anan, when he stated that the goals of the U.N. “must and will take precedence over concerns of State sovereignty.”
Recently, the U.N. has proposed the taxation on all monetary transactions made worldwide. This would just be one step toward an eventual U.N.-imposed income tax.
The U.N. has also created an International Criminal Court, which would have jurisdiction over every nation on earth. This would make it possible for the U.N. to enforce its resolutions. The U.N. clearly has no authority to establish such a court.
Global gun laws are also on the U.N. agenda. The goal is not only the disarmament of nations, but of their citizens as well. This would clearly leave all nations vulnerable to tyranny.
The U.N. is slowly positioning itself to become a world government.
In 1992, the U.N. held a conference in Rio de Janeiro. The result of this conference was a document titled “Agenda 21.” This document clearly shows the goals of the U.N. to govern every aspect of our lives. At the center of this agenda is the creation of carefully planned and rigidly regulated “Sustainable Communities.” In such communities, people would be crowded into multi-family housing units. The living conditions in these units would be determined by the corporations owning the units. These communities would be regulated by agencies, not governed by representatives of the people.
U.S. participation in this organization is clearly unconstitutional. Neither Congress nor the president have the authority to transfer the power delegated to them by the Constitution to another organization. The U.N. impairs the ability of Congress to perform many of its functions, such as declaring war and regulating commerce with other nations.
It is time for our nation to heed the council of George Washington, who, in his farewell address, warned “against the insidious wiles of foreign influence … The jealousy of a free people ought to be constantly awake; since history and experience prove, that foreign influence is one of the most baneful foes of republican government … The great rule of conduct for us, in regard to foreign nations, is, in extending our commercial relations, to have with them as little political connection as possible.”
It is time for the U.S. to remove itself from the United Nations.
Colby Lyons is a senior majoring in law and constitutional studies. Comments can be sent to him at c.lyons@aggiemail.usu.edu