The San Francisco Conference: Egypt signs the UN Charter. A facsimile copy of the Charter is superimposed on the photo. (Courtesy UN.org)
Seventy-two years ago today, the United Nations was born. It was the world's second major attempt at a worldwide diplomatic organization -- the previous League of Nations didn't fare too well.
But world leaders, in the immediate, bloody aftermath of the Second World War, were confident that the new organization was more necessary than ever. Then-U.S. President Harry S. Truman said the charter was "a solid structure upon which we can build a better world. History will honor you [delegates] for it. Between the victory in Europe and the final victory, in this most destructive of all wars, you have won a victory against war itself. . . . With this Charter the world can begin to look forward to the time when all worthy human beings may be permitted to live decently as free people."
And for some reason, someone decided to honor the U.N. charter, which gained its first signatures months before at a conference in San Francisco, by having legendary British actor Sir Laurence Olivier read the charter's Preamble. Code and Dagger will not argue with that curious sentiment, but will happily provide the audio for an anniversary re-listening, courtesy of the United Nations:
[Do you have a tip or question for Code and Dagger? Reach us at CodeAndDagger@protonmail.com. And if you like what you read and want to help keep the site running (kind of) smoothly, click here to learn how you can lend your support. ]