ABSTRACT
As we see in the Introduction, the UN is a fully engaged international organization, plying its trade globally as it prepares to commemorate its seventy-fifth birthday in 2020. That remarkable fact alone makes the organization unique in world history. No other multinational political arrangement has ever lasted so long. Still, however extraordinary, the truth of endurance does not necessarily bring equally extraordinary commendation. This text is intended neither as a glorification of the United Nations, nor as a reproof of its ineffectiveness or potential menace. Rather, we describe what the United Nations is and what it does. This is not a simple task. Students who have examined their own national government often find themselves faced with a baffling array of institutions, bureaucracies, personalities, and long-term practices that make full understanding difficult. The United Nations, having existed and changed for almost three-quarters of a century, presents a similar dilemma. The challenge is daunting in that the United Nations, although having almost every nation-state in the world as a member, is an international organization, not a national, sovereign government.
