<You should not blame the UN for this, since the UN was not created by the UN. To a large extent, the US created the UN, so if you don't like USSR being there, then much of the blame belongs here.

This is a good point, and indeed the U.S. was not blameless in this. Like I said originally, from a world political standpoint, there may have been no choice but to include Stalin, a WWII ally. But that doesn't negate the thesis that this was an original cause of the eventual decline of the U.N. as an authority based on high principles.

We've continually kicked Taiwan around in an effort to keep China from throwing a hissy. Try to have Bush mention the Republic of Taiwan in his next SOUA, if you don't believe me.

I believe I did mention that the U.S. was not blameless in this area either.

I agree that NATO may have outlived its usefulness, but may serve as the foundation for something better.

There does need to be a forum for international discussions, on trade and many other issues, and maybe the U.N. can serve this purpose just fine. Where it falls flat is when it tries to play cop.