A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government.
Edward Abbey
As a body constituted to maintain international peace and security, the Security Council is a spectacular failure. On the other hand, as a sanctuary for self-important peacocks1 strutting their stuff and representing the egotistical interests of self-obsessed nations, it is more successful.
No country has more magnificent peacocks in the council occupying one of the four permanent perches than the United States of America. Currently, the US has two magnificent black specimens to represent their more hateful, imperialist positions on matters affecting the world order with great prejudice. They are Linda Thomas-Greenfield and Robert A. Wood, who is the alternative. And they have a marvellous power, only shared with four other peacocks on the council who also occupy permanent perches out of fifteen.
It is called a veto.
Lesser peacocks and ordinary human beings are usually loathe to witness the exhibition of this power when one (or more) of the five raise their stunning plumage in the air in defiance of the others to demonstrate their monstrous power. Consequently, a great many humans in the world suffer the consequences of another imperialist decision. (At this point, I must admit that one of the American peacocks is a peahen, which makes her plumage a touch drab in contrast with her companion).
Since October last year, these creatures have used that majestic power of the veto on three separate occasions to block a ceasefire in Gaza, which the vast majority of the human world was desperately crying out for. In yesterday’s latest Security Council vote, only the American peahen used this disturbing power. Meanwhile, the English peacock got his plumage stuck on the fence, a customary show of cowardice since October last year. While tens of thousands of mostly women and children were being massacred by the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) in Gaza, the sitting American peacocks, acting like language Nazis, persisted in vetoing the ceasefire resolutions drafted by nations attempting to end the carnage.
The magnificent US peacocks masquerading as language Nazis cosied up to arguing over language while human beings were perishing in the tens of thousands. And this, while back in the home country, all the hyenas on Capital Hill were preparing to send more bombs to the IDF to no doubt kill more Palestinians.
There is no doubt that these peacocks will continue to strut and cackle ceaselessly in the Security Council in coming sittings while the world looks on, powerless to do anything.
Radical change is required. The first thing that must be taken away must be the power to veto. Then, we can discuss purging the peacock sanctuary and putting actual human beings back in charge.
- I realize that I may be insulting peacocks, and offer my humblest apologies. ↩︎
lenny unencumbered 