The little UN that could(n’t)

Help me understand this: We’re blamed for causing the failure of the UN because we failed to obtain Security Council approval for the War in Iraq. But where was this blame when the Russians roll tanks through Georgia? For Israeli tanks in the Palestinian refugee camps? The list of UN resolutions that are ignored is long enough to fill a phone book [PDF].

And if the UN is so valuable, why does it seem likely that states that call for respect of the Security Council also seem to violate the Council’s ban on arms sales to Iraq?

I don’t think we can be cavalier in our foreign policy, but it’s certainly not fair to hold us to a standard that other members don’t bother to adhere to. If that’s how it’s going to be, then the UN was doomed before all this began.