So This Is Kofi's Idea of Reform?

For announcing a U.N. reform program, it was a good start. Had Mr. Annan then apologized for the gross failure of his previous reforms, launched in 1997, and left the stage, there might be a lot more reason to hope the U.N. will shape up.

Instead, Mr. Annan went right on to deliver his latest plan for U.N. reform, by way of a 63-page report stuffed with high-sounding declarations wrapped around dozens of proposals to take most of what the U.N. does wrong, and do lots more of it, with lots more taxpayer money. Mr. Annan took the title for his report from a phrase in the U.N. charter, "In Larger Freedom." Truth in labeling would more accurately read: "In Deep Trouble."

To be fair to Mr. Annan, there are the germs of a few good ideas in this report. These include recognizing terrorism as such in all cases, rather than excusing select terrorists (i.e., as a U.N. rule of thumb, those attacking Israel) as "freedom fighters." It's also worth reshaping the U.N. Commission on Human Rights, which two years ago embarrassed even the U.N. by choosing as its chairman the ambassador of Libyan tyrant Moammar Gadhafi. And there's no question the Security Council needs reform, though given that the council's basic failing has been lack of integrity, it's not clear why Mr. Annan thinks the answer is to make it bigger.

From there, Mr. Annan forges on to propose nothing less than reforming the entire known universe, via the U.N., while he bangs the drum for a budget to match. He wants to expand his own staff, change the world's climate, end organized crime, eliminate all private weapons, and double U.N.-directed development aid to the tune of at least $100 billion a year, "front-loaded," for his detailed plan to end world poverty. This comes from a U.N. that only three months ago was finally strong-armed by Congress into coughing up the secret internal Oil for Food audits confirming that under Mr. Annan's stewardship the U.N. was not even adequately auditing its own staff operations.

Let's get this straight. The UN proposes a bunch of new programs, expanding the UN Security Council which reduces the US influence in that body, and wants countries to pay more into a system that is bloated, not transparent on how that money is used and spent, plus a bureaucracy that looks the other way every time there is a report of sexual misconduct by officials or peacekeepers.

This is improvement? Maybe in an Orwellian world perhaps, but in the real world where the UN is supposed to do real work and step in to stop genocide and violence before it ever reaches the level of genocide, these proposals fall short of dealing with the real issues. Kofi working harder does not solve any of the problems - as he is part of the problem for looking the other way every time a crisis arises (and then stonewalls for months, refusing to assist inside and outside investigations into the various scandals).

If Kofi were serious about fixing the UN, he would have announced his resignation coinciding with his news conference. It would have been the first positive step he'd taken in years. Failing that, it would have been nice to see Kofi call on member nations to revoke the diplomatic immunities of all individuals involved in UNSCAM so that investigators could track down all the involved parties.