Green Energy
When a man from Idaho sees a story about potato-heads, watch out!
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National Post Published: Saturday, July 15, 2006
A United Nations designation of an "international year" once actually meant something. The International Women's Year in 1975 produced a World Plan of Action to improve women's health, education and employment opportunities, and led to the creation of the UN Development Fund for Women. The International Year of the Child in 1979 resulted in the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child by the General Assembly. The International Year of the World's Indigenous People in 1994 led to the draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. But what to make of the UN's designation of 2008 as International Year of the Potato?
It has been clear for some time that the world body has run short on subjects that merit a year of their own. There have already been international years of tolerance, human rights, older persons, disabled persons, youth, health, peace, literacy, volunteers, sports, space, deserts, mountains, oceans, freshwater, refugees, heritage, microcredit, physics and "dialogue among civilizations." Yet that has not stopped the UN. To the contrary, where the General Assembly would formerly declare an international year only every few years, it now designates several international years at once. For example, 2008 is not only the International Year of the Potato, but the International Year of Planet Earth, which will force people to make some hard choices.
In approving the International Year of the Potato, a UN declaration described it as a "major event." Indeed it is. Vegetables rarely get the recognition they deserve. There has never been an International Year of the Parsnip, for example. And as the UN declaration states, it "will present many opportunities to raise the profile of the potato among civil society." Yes, but will the UN designation do for potatoes what it once did for women? Will the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), which is organizing the international year "in collaboration with governments, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), other United Nations bodies (UNB) and non-governmental organizations (NGOs)," produce, in conjunction with the Idaho Potato Commission (IPC) and the Alliston Potato Festival (APF), a Declaration of the Rights of Potatoes and other Starchy Edible Tubulars?
That at least would explain the silly grin on Mr. Potato Head's face.
© National Post 2006
UN Potato Heads
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- Unicef Photo Of The Year
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- Mohammed Dog Cartoon Creator Speaks Out
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Green Energy
UN Potato Heads
When a man from Idaho sees a story about potato-heads, watch out!****
National Post Published: Saturday, July 15, 2006
A United Nations designation of an "international year" once actually meant something. The International Women's Year in 1975 produced a World Plan of Action to improve women's health, education and employment opportunities, and led to the creation of the UN Development Fund for Women. The International Year of the Child in 1979 resulted in the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child by the General Assembly. The International Year of the World's Indigenous People in 1994 led to the draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. But what to make of the UN's designation of 2008 as International Year of the Potato?
It has been clear for some time that the world body has run short on subjects that merit a year of their own. There have already been international years of tolerance, human rights, older persons, disabled persons, youth, health, peace, literacy, volunteers, sports, space, deserts, mountains, oceans, freshwater, refugees, heritage, microcredit, physics and "dialogue among civilizations." Yet that has not stopped the UN. To the contrary, where the General Assembly would formerly declare an international year only every few years, it now designates several international years at once. For example, 2008 is not only the International Year of the Potato, but the International Year of Planet Earth, which will force people to make some hard choices.
In approving the International Year of the Potato, a UN declaration described it as a "major event." Indeed it is. Vegetables rarely get the recognition they deserve. There has never been an International Year of the Parsnip, for example. And as the UN declaration states, it "will present many opportunities to raise the profile of the potato among civil society." Yes, but will the UN designation do for potatoes what it once did for women? Will the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), which is organizing the international year "in collaboration with governments, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), other United Nations bodies (UNB) and non-governmental organizations (NGOs)," produce, in conjunction with the Idaho Potato Commission (IPC) and the Alliston Potato Festival (APF), a Declaration of the Rights of Potatoes and other Starchy Edible Tubulars?
That at least would explain the silly grin on Mr. Potato Head's face.
© National Post 2006
UN Potato Heads
****
-
Amnesty International Official Says "Defensive Jihad" Doesn't Violate Human RightsFrom Weasel Zippers: (CNSNews.com) – A simmering dispute over collaboration between Amnesty International and a former Guantanamo Bay detainee with Taliban...
- Maldives To Run For Seat In Un Council
Foreign minister Dr Ahmed Shaheed travelled to Geneva on Thursday to announce the Maldives’ intention to run for a place on the United Nations Human Rights Council in elections this May.Shaheed has said the human rights reforms which have taken place...
- Unicef Photo Of The Year
From Der Spiegel: The image is startling -- a 40-year-old groom sitting beside his 11-year-old future bride. Photographer Stephanie Sinclair, who took the photo last year in Afghanistan, asked the pre-teenage bride what she felt on the day of her engagement....
- Mohammed Dog Cartoon Creator Speaks Out
Infidel of the Week, Lars Vilk, the artist who drew the cartoon here on the left speaks out and Gates of Vienna has the story. He says we needed a "hot potato" to spur discussion: Artist Lars Vilks has spoken out about the controversy surrounding...
- From Egypt - Why The World Should Take Ahmadinejad Seriously
Amir Taheri Right from the start of the current crisis over Iran’s nuclear program, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s administration has pursued three main objectives. The first of these is to prevent the formation of a unified international front...