-But the United States flipped a finger at the international justice courts, smirked when the security council asked them to sit out on a hearing about their illegal invasion and then used the 'veto threat technique' on anything they were allowed to sit on - making actions essentially useless.

The reason its hard to take the UN seriously is because of what goes on inside of it. It's corrupt, really corrupt. It's anti-semitic. Quote off of Wikipedia: "The new UN Human Rights Council has to date condemned only one country, Israel." Come on. No Darfur, China, Cuba, any other number of countries? We definetly aren't the only one who uses that 'veto threat technique' China, Russia and France use it every other week. The Secratariat at one point had over two-hundred "diplomats" being paid by the KGB. Drug deals go down in the parking garage, because they have diplomatic immunity. If you want an eye-opening experience about the Secretariat, read "The U.N. Gang" by Pedro Sanchez. Did you know the UN once asked for 60million to redo the floors in the UN building? 60 MILIION dollars, for floors. The number one issue in the UN shortly after 9-11? The shape of Switzerland's flag. How are we supposed to take that seriously?

-When fined, the Bush administration refused to pay.

Not exactly sure what you're talking about, but if you are refering to our past dues owed, we said we would pay them, as soon as they cleaned up corruption....and then the oil-for-food scandal broke. The UN is a joke.

-It should be noted that the British government has also broken international law with their invasion of Afghanistan which caused public outrage, the resignation of countless officials (including the governments advisory on international law) and had a knock-on of justifying to some extent the US' joint movement. Our government paid for it dearly by losing their majority in the House of Commons and have the media harrassing the PM for an early step down (which he conceded to do last year and we wait patiently for him to follow through).

They did the right thing. Thanks for having our back.

-We have world police. The US led a vigilante movement. I wish I could be prouder of my own government for not following like a pet dog.

Our vigilante mission just happened to liberate one of the most oppressive societies in the modern world, if not THE most oppressive. Iraq is a whole other issue. Something our countries should have finished 15 years ago. The UN are the worst police ever. They sit on their fat asses eating donuts, yelling at the criminals for doing bad things. Then the criminals look up for a second and say hey, piss off asshole, then the UN says, oh, ok. Someone has to do something, someone has to have some credibility.

-Those that argue the UN doesn't have enough power - it has as much as we give it.

Not sure about the UK's numbers, but the US gives it 23% financially, even without paying our dues. Not to mention the military assistance they get.

-People lose faith in it being able to do something and it
will fail to do it. The more I partake in analysing and aiding its workings (support for crucial UN NGO's, UN youth assembly 2001-2002 - where I saw Kofi Anan himself - and helping train future Youth Assembly members) the more I see it is an idealists solution to an exceedingly conceited and delusional world.

While I think training young people to become good diplomats and useful members of the world society, having the UN teach them how to do it is like having a drug addict teach D.A.R.E.(anti-drug progam in the US taught in grade schools).