And you wonder why I'm a cynic

By Diogenes ( articles ) | Jul 09, 2003

Just read this story from today's CWN offerings. Or, if you're confident that you can stay awake, read the archbishop's full statement on the Vatican web site.

Here it is in a nutshell: The Vatican's top representative at the UN thinks that governments should try to curtail illegal traffic in small-caliber firearms.

Wow.

Look: Even if you like small-caliber firearms, I think we can all readily agree that illegal arms sales should be, well, illegal. And they are. In fact, it makes very little sense to say that governments should oppose these sales. They already oppose them; that's what "illegal" means.

Sure, I realize that some governments could be more diligent in enforcing their laws. Still, I wonder: Why does the Vatican bother adding to the pile of pro forma statements collecting dust in the archives of a do-nothing international agency? Does an archbishop have anything better to do?