UN: Corruption Continues To Spread

The UN has great promise -- as Bush Sr. proved when he brought the world community together, and launched a legal war to keep Hussein from invading a sovereign country. The UN also does some very important humanitarian work and can keep the peace once the battles are over in war-torn regions.

But it sure is screwed up and Kofi Annan hasn't improved things any. Now it looks like that food-for-oil program was corrupt enough to make the dockyards and Fulton Fish Market -- legendary stomping grounds for organized crime -- look like Sunday picnics.

The current investigation of that scandal has reportedly unearthed information showing that half of the 4,500 companies involved paid kickbacks or gave illegal surcharges. HALF! Literally THOUSANDS of companies played dirty when dealing with scum like Hussein because they wanted a piece of the action. And never mind this meant less money for the people of Iraq who were hurting because their cruel dictator wanted to defy the world and watch his people starve rather than live up to the agreements he made.

That level of corruption is astounding. Now if only we had someone at the UN who believed in the potential greatness of that institution or at least understood the desirability of cooperation among nations whenever possible, someone who could lead us out of this morass into a brighter future. Sadly, all we have is loose cannon John Bolton. And how many of those companies involved in this shameful affair are American companies? How many are American companies that have donated to Bush? How earnestly will Bush work to see those companies fined or prosecuted to the fullest extent or at least publicly exposed? Don't hold your breath.