Monday, October 16, 2006

I'm In Bizarro World

I am stunned by this. This is twice now that news has come out recently of the UN acting sensibly. First the rather stringent North Korea sanctions and now this.
Guatemala topped Venezuela in the first four rounds of voting Monday for a U.N. Security Council seat, but it failed to get the necessary two-thirds majority to win a two-year term on the powerful United Nations body.

That result opened the door for others to join the race, in what could be a blow to both countries' chances for a seat. Now diplomats will search for a compromise candidate to break the deadlock.

The results were an embarrassment to Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez, who had waged a highly public campaign on the claim that his nation would use its seat on the council to speak out against the United States. The U.S. and its allies argued that Venezuela's stance could stymie the council and undermine its credibility.
Venezuela's ambassador certainly did not go gently into the night.
Venezuela's U.N. Ambassador Francisco Arias Cardenas complained the United States has pressured countries worldwide to prevent Venezuela from winning the rotating seat.
I think Chavez's recent bit of performance-art at the UN last month was what prevented their seat. The UN figured out it would be exceeding its quota for crazy if Venezuela had been elected to the Security Council.

Paint me cynical, but I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop. The UN will do something totally boneheaded (and completely in character) sometime soon.