Sir, - Kevin Myers chose to extend my rather extended pedagogical metaphor (An Irishman's Diary, April 10th). I call his attention to Tom Lehrer, eminent mathematician and satirical songwriter. Lehrer is "teacher" in German, as I'm sure a polyglot like Mr Myers will know. In response to his fear that escalation of American nuclear weapons production could result in a global crisis, Lehrer said in one of his songs: "The MLF will scare Brezhnev. I hope he is half as scared as I." In terms of this NATO situation, I'm scared, Mr Myers.
NATO has bombed a television centre in Belgrade. The irony of murdering a make-up artist and calling it "collateral damage" as part of a so-called humanitarian concern for ethnic Albanians is not wasted on Mr Myers, I hope. NATO has decided to cut off Serbia's oil supply. In doing so, it runs the risk of a possible confrontation with Russian shipping.
Has NATO gone mad? Does it think it is playing a board game that will have no concrete consequences? It is playing a direct role in an arena that is none of its concern. It is obvious to anyone with a modicum of political education that the trials and tribulations in Serbia and Kosovo are the concern of the UN, yet we all know that the UN is in no financial position to be able to participate in the conflict in any real and meaningful way.
The UN is now on the brink of bankruptcy. It was owed $2 billion dollars in 1995. Most Western European countries, including Ireland, pay their regular and peacekeeping dues promptly. The UN host country, America, owes over a billion dollars. This situation pertains because the US refuses to contribute financially to the UN unless every other member accepts whatever unilateral demands it makes to change UN policies (Erskine B. Childers, Open Mind lecture, RTE, December 12th, 1995). Childers also said: "The real problem is that [the] power elites have not yet shaken off the deep ingrained subconscious notions that the white Christian North is somehow destined to rule the world. Politicians, educators, spiritual leaders and non-governmental organisations must give this apartheid of the mind so far more serious attention lest it contribute to a global convulsion." - Yours, etc.,
Mary Ryan, Malahide, Co Dublin.