My Favorite Menace
By GAIL COLLINS
New York Times
The Law of the Sea Treaty has become a hot-button item in the Republican presidential race.
Say what?
“One of the defining issues of our time,” declared Mike Huckabee, who is leading an anti-treaty charge.
People, what do you think of when you hear “defining issues of our time?” Middle East? Global warming? Did it ever occur to you there are Americans who would say: “Law of the Sea Treaty?” Americans who are running for president of the United States? Americans who are rapidly moving up in the Iowa polls? This is close to “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” territory.
The treaty has been theoretically under consideration in Washington for a quarter of a century. Some might regard it nostalgically, like a 202-page lava lamp. It was approved by the United Nations in 1982, after endless negotiation during which attending Law of the Sea debates was named one of the Ten Most Boring Things To Do in New York. Its intent was to clarify rules for navigation and mining in international waters and set up a system for settling disputes. When it got to Washington, Britney Spears was still a toddler and Rudy Giuliani had a full head of hair. Ronald Reagan rejected it because he was worried about deep sea mining rights — manganese module mining to be exact.
Happily, that’s no longer an issue because:
a) The United Nations fixed the part Reagan had a problem with.
(Continued here.)
New York Times
The Law of the Sea Treaty has become a hot-button item in the Republican presidential race.
Say what?
“One of the defining issues of our time,” declared Mike Huckabee, who is leading an anti-treaty charge.
People, what do you think of when you hear “defining issues of our time?” Middle East? Global warming? Did it ever occur to you there are Americans who would say: “Law of the Sea Treaty?” Americans who are running for president of the United States? Americans who are rapidly moving up in the Iowa polls? This is close to “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” territory.
The treaty has been theoretically under consideration in Washington for a quarter of a century. Some might regard it nostalgically, like a 202-page lava lamp. It was approved by the United Nations in 1982, after endless negotiation during which attending Law of the Sea debates was named one of the Ten Most Boring Things To Do in New York. Its intent was to clarify rules for navigation and mining in international waters and set up a system for settling disputes. When it got to Washington, Britney Spears was still a toddler and Rudy Giuliani had a full head of hair. Ronald Reagan rejected it because he was worried about deep sea mining rights — manganese module mining to be exact.
Happily, that’s no longer an issue because:
a) The United Nations fixed the part Reagan had a problem with.
(Continued here.)
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