Article

2008-11-26 International-UN-NGOs

Chiefs of World Bank and International Monetary Fund to Miss United Nations Forum

Archived material is restricted to Rantburg regulars and members. If you need access email fred.pruitt=at=gmail.com with your nick to be added to the members list. There is no charge to join Rantburg as a member.

Posted by Fred 2008-11-26 00:00|| || Front Page|| [2 views ] Top

#1 Even Chiefs of World Bank and International Monetary Fund had enough of UN?

Posted by g(r)omgoru 2008-11-26 09:12|| 2008-11-26 09:12|| Front Page Top

#2 Miss United Nations? I'll bet she wants "world peace"...

Posted by tu3031 2008-11-26 11:11|| 2008-11-26 11:11|| Front Page Top

#3 Maybe they're pissed off about this...

The U.N.'s Palace of Nations is falling apart. The Palais des Nations is the U.N.'s European headquarters, flanked by the Swiss Alps to the west and Lake Geneva to the east. Peacocks roam freely on the grounds of the pristine, 111-acre Ariana Park that surrounds it.

But on the inside, the onetime home to the League of Nations is plagued by 70-year-old wiring, fire hazards and miles of rusty pipes that have flooded the archives repeatedly. Asbestos lines some of the walls, and the roof is in danger of caving in. The palace is in need of a major facelift. The tab: one billion dollars, says Director General Sergei Ordzhonikidze, who heads the U.N. Office at Geneva.

Or this...

The U.N. Human Rights Council, frequently accused of coddling some of the world's most repressive governments, threw itself a party in Geneva Tuesday that featured the unveiling of a $23 million mural paid for in part with foreign aid funds.

In a ceremony attended by U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, Spanish artist Miquel Barcelo told the press that his 16,000-square-foot ceiling artwork reminded him of "an image of the world dripping toward the sky" but it reminded critics of money slipping out of relief coffers.

"In Spain there's a controversy because they took money out of the foreign aid budget took money from starving children in Africa and spent it on colorful stalactites," said Hillel Neuer, executive director of U.N. Watch.

Or maybe this...

U.N. Renovation Costs Balloon

Meanwhile, the six-year renovation project began with much fanfare in May. Originally projected to cost $1.8 billion, it now is more than $200 million beyond its expected costs, and the overruns are likely to get much worse.

Recently, the U.N. was hit with an unanticipated bill "exceeding $10 million," says one U.N. veteran.

Ah, yes. Ye Olde "Unanticipated Bill". NYC contractors musta had to carry drool buckets around when they first heard about this job.

The contractor, Skanska USA, was forced to install fireproof doors temporarily throughout U.N. headquarters during renovation work. The New York Fire Department reportedly insisted on the measure as a precaution during the reconstruction.

The U.N. thought the bill would be no more than $2 million, but the final tab was more than five times greater, a U.N. official said.

Grease a fire inspector with a coupla grand and that one coulda "went away".

Posted by tu3031 2008-11-26 14:01|| 2008-11-26 14:01|| Front Page Top

#4 Another wise move.

Posted by newc">newc 2008-11-26 18:46|| 2008-11-26 18:46|| Front Page Top

23:55 djh_usmc
23:48 phil_b
23:47 g(r)omgoru
23:25 Whiskey Mike
23:16 crosspatch
23:09 ed
23:04 Anonymoose
23:03 Fester Creanter3194
23:02 Frank G
22:53 crosspatch
22:44 KBK
22:40 crosspatch
22:39 phil_b
22:36 crosspatch
22:30 Seafarious
22:23 Seafarious
22:08 linker
22:01 phil_b
21:53 Linker
21:53 Verlaine
21:48 tipper
21:47 Linker
21:40 DarthVader
21:37 Old Patriot