A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary
Democracy Arsenal: "Top 10 Things the UN Does Well - The approach of D-Day on John Bolton makes this as good a time as any to remind ourselves why the UN matters and some of the ways that we count on it. As you know, I am guest-blogging this week on Dan Drezner. Check out that site for some items that ought to be on the UN's list of strengths, but aren't, and for my best assessment of who and what is to blame."
Chrenkoff: "Good news from Iraq, part 27 - Speaking of urban renewal, "The UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT), together with the Iraqi Ministry of Municipality and Public Works and the Construction and Housing Ministry, is holding a two-day round-table meeting beginning tomorrow in Amman, Jordan, on a "Slum Upgrading Strategy for Iraq."
Huffington Post [Rep. Ed Markey]: "Today, I will join Hans Blix at the United Nations for a discussion on the need to balance disarmament and non-proliferation. The real "nuclear option" that threatens our national security is not the one being debated in the Senate - this nuclear option will end in a devastating plume of smoke over our cities."
Selected summary of United Nations related news and events
UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Jolie urges aid for Afghans in Afghanistan and Pakistan
UN electoral team starts work in Lebanon for 29 May vote
Sudan: UN Food Agency Opens New Libya Root to Deliver Food to Darfur
UN sets up farming schools for Aids orphans
UN to co-host regional conference on development for rural women in South Asia
Recycling program provides tsunami survivors lifeline
Over 50,000 former Afghan soldiers have disarmed, UN reports
"A U.N. engineer from Myanmar was among three people killed when a suicide attacker walked into a Kabul Internet cafe and blew himself up, officials said Sunday, in the first fatal attack on a U.N. staffer in the capital since the fall of the Taliban in 2001." Full Story
"An exhibition of 19 sculptures by Tony Price (1937-2000), created from nuclear weapons salvage, will be on display at the United Nations through June 9th in the South Gallery of the General Assembly Visitors' Lobby." LINK
A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary
Agonist: "The previous Bolton Thread was too long, thus, we have a new one."
Blue Glow Worm: "As I have said in Questioning our U.N. Role from March 17th, the U.N. has a role to play in the world. However, there is little doubt, that reform of the United Nations is necessary and should be a requirement before continuing forward. A report requested by Secretary-General Kofi Annan and published in December, A More Secure World: Our Shared Responsibility, is a starting point."
Democracy Arsenal: "Nearly eight months after calling the mass killings in the Darfur region genocide and doing the heavy lifting on a resolution to get the UN involved, the Administration seems to have backed away from that term, and from any sustained effort to address the crisis."
Fistful of Euros: "Views of immigration are changing. Back in the mists of time, when I first came to the conclusion that ongoing demographic changes were going to be important, the voices in favour of a reconsideration of immigration policy were few and far between. Perhaps the first and most notable of these voices was the UN population division."
Juan Cole: "Hmm. Maybe, contrary to what John Bolton says, the United Nations does exist after all. Maybe a lot of countries even pay more attention to it than they do to Washington."
Selected summary of United Nations related news and events
U.N. Nuclear Conference Agrees on Agenda
Annan congratulates UK's Blair on elections, looks forward to collaboration on UN reform
U.S. Considers Joining Chemical Treaty
Tsunami provokes radical change in crisis response
UN says number of refugees fleeing insecurity in Togo down sharply
"United Nations Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie today saw off a convoy of trucks carrying Afghans home from Pakistan, pushing the total number of those repatriating with help from the UN refugee agency past the 50,000 mark for the year.
The Academy Award-wining actress arrived yesterday in Pakistan for a four-day visit to focus world attention on the plight of Afghan refugees. The 500 refugees who left Attock in the 35-vehicle convoy were all skilled carpet weavers carrying their talents back to their original homes in the northern Afghan provinces of Balkh and Jozan." Read more...
A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary
Betsy's Page: "Joel Mowbray, who does some of the more interesting investigative journalism of any columnist, reminds us of the love fest that Richard Holbrooke faced before a GOP Senate Committee when he was nominated to be Ambassador to the UN."
Blog Critics: "Is the United Nations necessary in spite of its failures? The answer is yes and the reason is because there is no other international forum of comparable importance and almost global representation."
Dead Pool: "Uncle Walter waves his NO NUKES sign a bit higher in the face of the old news networks... "When it comes to reporting on nuclear arms, the U.S. news media let readers and viewers down, giving them only part of the story, former news anchor Walter Cronkite said Wednesday. The celebrated CBS retiree, joining in a panel discussion on the sidelines of a U.N. conference on the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty."
Knitting for Boozehags: "Surely we can find a nominee for UN Ambassador that America can support and get behind -- not someone who divides our country and alienates our allies."
Selected summary of United Nations related news and events
Slaying of Afghan Women Concerns U.N.
UN extends mission in Ivory Coast
A Better Way to Fight Poverty
Ethiopia: 'Many children will surely die'
General Assembly approves chiefs for development and internal oversight