US embassy cable - 05SANTIAGO1633

UNCLAS SANTIAGO 001633 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR IIP/G/WHA, INR/R/MR, WHA/BSC, WHA/PDA, INR/IAA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KMDR, KPAO, OPRC, CI 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION - UNITED NATIONS 
 
 
On July 31, government-owned, editorially independent La 
Nacion (circ. 3,800) ran an article by columnist Jose 
Rodriguez Elizondo entitled, "Quo Vadis (Whither Goest 
Thou?) UN."  Quote: 
 
"On its 60th anniversary, the UN is suffering from the 
syndrome of irrelevance...which began with the UN refusal 
to support George H. Bush's previous war in Iraq to oust 
Saddam Hussein.  Following Clinton, who valued 
multilateralism, George W. Bush took up the unfinished 
task, disregarding the UN at the first opportunity.  And 
that opportunity arrived tragically with the September 
11, 2001, attacks in New York.  To the relief of Bush 
son, the UN secretary general was no longer the impudent 
figure his father had to deal with....  The results are 
there for us to see.  Bush is waging war not to 
strengthen democracies that truly exist, but to instill 
democracy in other civilizations, reminding us of the 
medieval crusades or a science fiction author trying to 
implant the future in societies of the past.  In this 
sense, he has gone further than the UN would have 
intended and beyond that which Western civilization 
permits.  The worst part is that he does not know how to 
end this adventure, while the UN continues to seek its 
destiny." 
 
KELLY