Congress let U.S. down By Henry Lamb web posted July 28, 2003 Congress had two opportunities recently to uphold U.S. sovereignty, save billions of tax dollars, and to take the leadership in advancing the principles of freedom throughout the world. Congress failed. On July 15, Congress had the opportunity to stop all funding to the United Nations. The vote failed 74 to 350. On July 22, Congress had the opportunity to block the funds required to rejoin UNESCO. The vote failed 145 to 279. A telephone survey of selected Congressmen who voted to continue funding the U.N., revealed a frightening lack of knowledge and understanding of the United Nations, its agenda, and even its procedures. A California Congressman said that people who are afraid of the U.N. "see blue helmets behind every tree and black helicopters everywhere." A spokesman for another Congressman said that his boss is a "big believer" in international organizations, especially the U.N., "to assist in our war against terrorism." When asked why that attitude persisted in the face of the U.N. Security Council's refusal to support the U.S. action in Iraq, he said simply that his boss believed that the countries that opposed us "must have had good reason." Those U.N. supporters who participated in the survey, were all opposed to elimination of the veto in the U.N. Security Council; global taxation; and the International Criminal Court - declared goals of the U.N. Despite this reality, all still supported U.S. participation in the U.N. To one degree or another, all participants believed that the idea of global governance was a pipe dream created by conspiracy freaks. None had read Our Global Neighborhood, the 1995 report of the Commission on Global Governance. Some had never heard of it. On rejoining UNESCO, one Congressman said that restrictions had been placed on our rejoining, which would trigger withdrawal "if they started doing what they once did." "Our membership in UNESCO is another avenue for us to exert our influence," said one spokesman. I asked if there were any concern about UNESCO or the U.N. exerting influence on the U.S. that would result in forcing us to conform our laws to their dictates. "Absolutely not," was the reply. "What do you say then, about our land management policies within U.N. Biosphere Reserves being established by committees of UNESCO?" I asked. His reply: "I don't know about Biosphere Reserves." No wonder the votes on the U.N. and UNESCO were so one- sided. Our Congressmen simply do not know very much about the United Nations, and they don't have time or inclination to learn. Sadly, they know far more than the general population. The U.N. is an obstacle to U.S. influence in the world, not an aid. The U.S. should stop all funding to the U.N. Those international agencies and organizations that provide useful functions toward the advancement of freedom should be continued – outside the administrative control and corruption of the U.N. The prevailing attitude in Congress, as reflected by these recent votes, may well condemn future generations to live in a world where freedom is a relic of history. The United States is the only hope for developing nations to ever know the benefits of freedom. If our Congress lacks the knowledge, or the backbone, to resist the international socialist construct called "global governance," not only will freedom be denied to the rest of the world, it will continue to evaporate from the United States. The last time there was a vote in Congress to withdraw from the U.N., the bill drew only 62 votes. The 74 affirmative votes cast this time, represents some progress, but very little progress. During the next year, candidates in every state will be asking for support. One of the questions that should be put to every candidate for every office should be "Will you support withdrawal from the U.N.?" The question should be put to state and local candidates because these are the people who "grow up" to become Congressmen. We should get them started on the right track. Not all the blame can be laid at the feet of Congress. After all, if our government is "of the people," the people have a responsibility to see that their representatives reflect their values, attitudes and beliefs. This requires effort on the part of the people, contacting candidates and officials, perhaps even working in campaigns. With the election season just cranking up, the people have another opportunity to elect representatives who will choose freedom, rather than global governance under the rule of the United Nations. Henry Lamb is the executive vice president of the Environmental Conservation Organization, and chairman of Sovereignty International. Enter Stage Right -- http://www.enterstageright.com