US Out Of UN? UN Out Of US?

I'm not sure that Edd Hendee ever got answers to his UN questions this morning on KSEV (AM 700), since I arrived at work in the middle of his discussion of the matter. I thought I would contribute what I know, on the chance that he didn't.

The US signed the UN Charter on June 26, 1945, in San Francisco. It was ratified as a treaty on July 28 of the same year. On October 24, 1945, the Charter became effective with its ratification by all five permanent members of the Security Council (US, UK, France, China, USSR) and a majority of the other 48 original signatories.

The House and Senate passed Public Law 80-357 on August 4, 1947. It wrote into law the special status of the UN Headquarters in new York, and authorized the building of the present structure. It also authorized a loan to the UN for construction purposes.

Could the latter agreement be revoked? Yes, but it would only do away with the special diplomatic status of the property, not UN ownership. The loss of that status might be sufficient to make the leadership at the UN decide to leave.

Can we quit the UN? That is a bit harder. The Charter contains no "exit mechanism" that I've found. As a general principle of international law, a treaty with no expiration date is usually aboe to be repudiated with sufficient notice -- generally a year. On the other hand, it might be advantageous to stay, given that our veto power would be lost if we quit and that has often been the only means of protecting the US and Israel from action by the Seciurity Council. Our presence reduces the UN to the status of an infant, impotently thrashing its limbs and loudly squawking, but incapable of effective action.

The US currently pays 22% of the UN budget. Other contributors include Japan (19.63%), Germany (9.82%), France (6.50%), the U.K. (5.57%), Italy (5.09%), Canada (2.57%) and Spain (2.53%). The remaining quarter of the budget is paid by the remaining 190 or so member nations. Interestingly enough, permanent members of the Security Council (with veto power) China and Russia are not major donor nations.

FDNY Heroism And Sacrifice Continues

You have probably never heard of Christian Engeldrum.

Odds are you have never seen his face.


You might have seen him at the bottom of this ladder at Ground Zero on September 11.


You almost certainly didn't know about this part of his life.


Sgt. Engeldrum died on Monday, November 29, 2004, when his vehicle hit a mine outside of Baghdad. He leaves his wife, Sharon, and two teenage sons, Sean, 18, and Royce, 16. Two other members of his unit were also killed, and sixteen soldiers were seriously wounded, including FDNY firefighter Daniel Swift.

Sharon Engeldrum's widow says her husband was the "ultimate patriot". My words can add nothing to that accolade.

Adoption

Adoption usually isn't a funny topic -- but this piece certainly tickles the ribs. It gives 15 reasons why adoption is preferable to artificial means or reproduction.

A couple of highlights:

13. You can watch your kids develop talents that nobody else in your family has.

14. You can have some fun if your kids don't look like you, or like each other. One foster/adoptive mother of many responds to incredulous inquiries about her "unusual" family by saying: "Yes, they are all mine. They all have different fathers."

Really, folks, think about it. Do you have a place in your heart and home for one -- or more -- kids who really need a loving family? The Loyal Opposition and I are trying to get matters arranged so we can adopt. Why don't you?

Black-Robed Tyrant Overrides Will Of The People

The people of Arizona have spoken. They don't want their tax dollars going to enemy invaders who illegally cross our nation's borders. They said so when they passed Proposition 200 on November 2, which requires state and local government employees to verify the immigration status of people applying for public benefits and report violators of our nation's immigration laws to immigration authorities.

U.S. District Judge David C. Bury has spoken. He doesn't give a rat's ass what the people of Arizona want, and has substituted his will for that of the people. He said that when he issued an order forbidding the implementation of a measure passed by the voters themselves.

"It seems likely that if Proposition 200 were to become law, it would have a dramatic, chilling effect upon undocumented aliens who would otherwise be eligible for public benefits under federal law," Bury wrote.

The thing is that no one is denied benefits by the law. It simply makes it state policy to check the citizenship/immigration status of all applying for programs and allows for the reporting of those in violation of federal law. There is no plausible right to not have one's illegal activity exposed to the authorities, is there?

Also outrageous is this quote from "Latina student" Marabella Ayala, who likely has US citizenship only because of the illegal activities of her parents who are "immigrants of Guerrero state in Mexico":

"We can breathe now. This means a lot. The Hispanic community is devastated because of this."

What needs to happen is that Ms. Ayala and her parents need to be unceremoniously dumped across the Mexican border, where they can file a suit in the Mexican court system demanding that the Mexican government supply the benefits that they tried to steal in the US. The rest of the invaders should scurry home after them. Why? Because the American taxpayer is no longer willing to subsidize their illegal presence in our country.

No Christians Allowed InHoliday Season Parade

There will be a group honoring gay Native American men and women as holy people.

There will be a group marking the Chinese New Year.

There will be German folk dancers and an "international procession."

Don't forget Santa and the gingerbread house

All varieties of cultural traditions are welcome in Denver's Parade of Lights. Well, almost all.

That's what Pastor George Morrison of Faith Bible Chapel in Arvada, Colorado found out. It seems that Christians are not welcome in the city parade -- at least not if they want to have a sign that says "Merry Christmas" or have the choir sing Christmas carols on the float.

According to parade spokesman Michael Krikorian,

"We want to avoid that specific religious message out of respect for other religions in the region. It could be construed as disrespectful to other people who enjoy a parade each year."

Might I suggest, as does Pastor Morrison, that it is highly disrespectful to hold a parade marking the Christmas season and leave out the most important cultural aspect of all? After all, the parade is scheduled when it is to precisely coincide with the Christian holiday. This isn't neutrality towards religion -- it is outright hostility!

And they wonder why the Christian majority in this country feels marginalized.

Only Enforce The Laws They Want?

Congress is currently considering a simple, reasonable, common-sense approach to our ongoing border control and immigration problem. The Clear Law Enforcement For Criminal Alien Removal Act would penalize state and local governments if law enforcement is not authorized to enforce our nation's immigration laws, or if they fail to file appropriate reports regarding suspected immigration violators. The penalties would take the form of reduced federal dollars for state and local law enforcement agencies.

The International Association of Chiefs of Police has come out in opposition to the proposed law.

In a release, the IACP said it took the action, its first-ever position on immigration, after a careful review of the impact that enforcing immigration law could have on state, tribal and local law enforcement and the communities they serve.

Listen up, you doughnut-eating glorified bureaucrats with tin shields. Your job is to enforce the laws. It is not your job to determine what they are, nor is it your place to refuse to enforce the laws you don't like. You may not have heard about the attack on our country in 2001, but the rest of us do remember 9/11. We also remember that most of those involved were here illegally, and that many of them had contact with law enforcement personnel along the way who could have reported or detained them.

If enforcing immigration law to enhance national security is too difficult, I suggest that you apply to work at the local mall, guarding the food court.