BUSH QUIXOTE

Bush’s speeches always inspire me. At the UN yesterday, he declared

we gather at a time of tremendous opportunity for the U.N. and for all peaceful nations. For decades, the circle of liberty and security and development has been expanding in our world. This progress has brought unity to Europe, self-government to Latin America and Asia, and new hope to Africa. Now we have the historic chance to widen the circle even further, to fight radicalism and terror with justice and dignity, to achieve a true peace, founded on human freedom.

The United Nations and my country share the deepest commitments. Both the American Declaration of Independence and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights proclaim the equal value and dignity of every human life. That dignity is honored by the rule of law, limits on the power of the state, respect for women, protection of private property, free speech, equal justice, and religious tolerance. That dignity is dishonored by oppression, corruption, tyranny, bigotry, terrorism and all violence against the innocent. And both of our founding documents affirm that this bright line between justice and injustice -- between right and wrong -- is the same in every age, and every culture, and every nation…

The democratic hopes we see growing in the Middle East are growing everywhere. In the words of the Burmese democracy advocate, Aung San Suu Kyi: "We do not accept the notion that democracy is a Western value. To the contrary; democracy simply means good government rooted in responsibility, transparency, and accountability." Here at the United Nations, you know this to be true. In recent years, this organization has helped create a new democracy in East Timor, and the U.N. has aided other nations in making the transition to self-rule.

And Bush answers Kofi Annan’s statement that the Iraq war was "not in conformity with the UN charter from our point of view, [and so] from the charter point of view, it was illegal,” by reminding the world of what that charter says:

History will honor the high ideals of this organization. The charter states them with clarity: "to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war," "to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights," "to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom."

By emphasizing only the avoidance of the scourge of war, Kofi Annan and those who agree with him render the other points of the charter meaningless. We cannot “reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights” or “promote social progress” as long as we have to recognize regimes like Saddam’s.

Yet did Bush really think he would convince the UN, a chamber half-filled with the representatives of dictators? Most of humanity does not and will not believe in ideals as lofty as Bush's.

Unlike the New York Times editorial page, I admire Bush’s idealism. I’ll vote for it. But while Bush proposes to “fight radicalism,” he himself is the radical. Some will remember him as a great president, in the mold of Jefferson, Lincoln and FDR. But those touched most intimately by his words may see him, in the end, as a tragic figure, whose ideals were too lofty for this world.