The United States has become an international target because of its fundamental policies, former Nebraska Sen. Bob Kerrey said last night at the JFK Library.

The United States has placed itself in a tough predicament because the world blames it for both staying out of issues and getting involved, Kerrey said, making it difficult to please all nations.

‘The French want us to go [to Iraq] with the Security Council, but they want us to go alone in North Korea.’

Although Kerrey said the United Nations is important in allowing international debate, he does not believe it is effective in either preventing or fighting a war.

‘The veto power allows many political and religious objections to interfere with the overall goal of the organization,’ Kerrey said. ‘The best way to avoid war is to make clear you’re going to do it.’

Kerrey said if the United Nations had voted unanimously to attack Iraq, Saddam Hussein may have worked harder to comply with the inspections.

‘Had the Bush administration gone to the U.N. and said, ‘We have this resolution and Iraq’s not going to comply with it,’ their case would have been stronger,’ Kerrey said. ‘Instead, they tied in horribly falsified documents linking Iraq to terrorism, which only weakened their point.’

‘The war on terrorism will be no more successful than the war on drugs,’ Kerrey said.

After Sept. 11, ordinary things such as receiving mail and flying became fearful to Americans, Kerrey said.

‘Now, we’ve got our shorts in a bunch about terrorism,’ he said. ‘We’re afraid of things we shouldn’t be.’

Part of this hype has been caused by the media, Kerrey argued, saying a recent CNN poll showed that over one-half of the American public believed Iraq was responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks.

‘This is not an accident,’ Kerrey said. ‘A lot of subliminal messages get people to conclude that.’

The extensive news coverage of both the war in Iraq and the war on terrorism make it difficult for the public to form opinions separate from those presented by the media.

‘The business side of the news gets in the way of the actual information,’ Kerrey said, ‘but no matter how entertaining it is, I can’t forget what’s going on. Real people are risking their lives.’

When asked how U.S. soldiers are supposed to respond to the Iraqi Republican Army’s use of women and children as human shields, Kerrey did not hesitate in his answer, despite his role in the Thang Phong massacre in Vietnam over 30 years ago.

‘When our kids are over there, I want them to fight according to the rules [set by the Geneva Convention], but if the enemy breaks the rules, I’m not going to judge our kids for defending themselves,’ Kerrey said. ‘I think it’s silly that there’s a ‘right’ way to kill people. Civilized war seems oxymoronical, don’t you think?’

Regarding increased war protests, Kerrey said he was annoyed when students at New School University, of which he is the president, protested outside his office, but in general he supports their actions.

‘Anyone that’s willing to tolerate the consequences is a brave person, and that’s what democracy needs more of,’ Kerrey said.