Sudan President Omar Hassan Ahmed Bashir, bowing to pressure from Chine, the United States and the United Nations is allowing 3,000 international peacekeepers into Sudan in an effort to stop the slaughter. An estimated 200,000 people have been massacred since 2003 and an additional 2 million have been displaced.

The initial 3,000 is considered a precursor of a force that may reach 20,000. Bshir was forced to accept this action because of threats of U.N. sanctions; sanctions that would further devastate an already devastated country.

I applaud the effort and hope and pray that the United Nations is successful. However, I have to wonder, in light of the fact that Saddam Hussein’s regime massacred far more people during his reign than have so far been killed here, what is the difference? Why is the U.N. willing to step up now, with support from so many counties, when they would do nothing to stop Saddam? It would seem that either we step in to stop internal slaughter, or we don’t. Where are the outraged counties, decrying this attack on Sudan’s sovereignty? Where is the U.N. policy and where is the consistency?