U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. John Bolton's most frequently quoted statement, made before he rejoined the administration probably was "The Secretariat building in New York has 38 stories. If it lost ten stories, it wouldn't make a bit of difference." He's wrong. I think even if Turtle Bay disappears altogether, it wouldn't make a bit of difference.

For a failed organization like the U.N., it doesn't really matter who becomes its next Secretary General, especially when the world body seems to have adopted affirmative action in selecting the candidate. Ban Ki Moon, South Korea's foreign minister and the forerunner, should ask himself: Am I the favorite because I'm good or simply because I'm Asian?

Among all the factors contributing to the UN as a failed organization, China is a key obstacle. And as long as China remains one of the five permanent members with veto power at the Security Council, the UN has no hope of becoming a more decent body. One example: When China finally invades Taiwan, do you expect the Security Council will be able to discuss this "domestic affair" before the eyes of Beijing?

When China's U.N. ambassador, Wang Guangya, was interviewed by the New York Times Magazine recently in the U.N.'s Delegates Lounge, the reporter noted that Mr. Wang, a chain smoker, "blithely violated the no-smoking rules." Nothing captures the nature of the U.N. better than this.