When...

When the stars align crazy things happen, like the Tigers winning two straight games in Oakland. To all you sports reporters who thought it couldn't be done... yeah well... it could!

When the UN nominates someone from South Korea (Ban-Ki Moon) as their next secretary general, you might expect someone who would take action against nuclear proliferation. Perhaps, dare I even say it, take a "hard-line" against rogue states. Apparently, from the looks of things, that is the farthest thing from the truth...

• Ban will not use the word "genocide" to refer to the situation in Darfur. While Darfur may not have reached Rawandan-like proportions, it is fast getting there. His sadness over the "overwhelming human suffering" is really quite meaningless. Actions always speak louder than words.


• One of Ban's most prominent roles was as negotiator in the six-party talks involving North Korea's nuclear program. In his opinion the North Korean and Iranian situation are different because North Korea "promised to give up all nuclear weapons and programs in return for economic and security assistance from the other five participating countries". Umm. Right. That's why North Korea tested their nuclear weapons earlier this week.

As a side note, I understand that the US, Russia, UK, and France (though slightly questionable here depending on your belief in the strength of the Resistance) gave them self veto rights in the UN. After winning WWII, they probably felt justified. But how on earth did China secure themselves veto power? I can almost guarantee, China is one of the countries casting a vote against Shashi Tharoor for the secretary-general position, just as they block India's entry into the Security Council.