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Politics : Kofi Annan Must Go! -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Proud_Infidel who wrote (5)	12/2/2004 12:18:03 PM
From: Proud_Infidel	Respond to of 41

Bad smell overruns U.N. By Boston Herald editorial staff Thursday, November 18, 2004 news.bostonherald.com The depth of the corruption of the United Nations' oil for food program is beyond stunning. It's sickening. Saddam Hussein manipulated the humanitarian program to enrich his regime, fund the Iraqi military and support terrorism. And he did so with the willing participation of the ``world community'' President Bush [related, bio] is being inveighed upon to ``rejoin.'' Congressional hearings this week on the ongoing investigation revealed that Saddam reaped some $21.3 billion, more than double previous estimates, through a sophisticated smuggling and oil-sale kickback scheme involving foreign government officials, corporations and journalists. ``The humanitarian program was corrupted and exploited for the most horrible and aggressive purpose,'' said Sen. Joseph Lieberman [related, bio] (D-Conn.), referring to the use of the funds to build up the military. A particularly grotesque new finding was that Saddam's regime made some $2.1 billion by purposely importing rotting food and damaged goods, paying full price to the exporting companies, and then receiving a kick-back for the difference. Why should we be surprised that a man who sent so many of his fellow countrymen - and women and children - to mass graves would be completely indifferent to meeting their basic needs for food and medical care? It has also long been known that Saddam supported the families of Palestinian suicide bombers. Clearly, he used the aid program to make those $25,000 per terrorist payments. And that makes the contention that Iraq is a ``diversion'' from the war on terror even more offensive. Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.) suggested his investigation was being stonewalled by the U.N. which hasn't produced needed documents or provided access to key officials. It makes us wonder what else they're hiding. ``This is like an onion - we just keep uncovering more layers and more layers,'' Coleman said. And the smell will permanently taint Secretary General Kofi Annan and the body he leads, whether the U.N. was complicit or simply oblivious.