1115.org

Call it “tantrum diplomacy”—the art of just getting up and leaving if things aren’t going our way or if someone says something we disagree with. This is the kind of behavior one expects from a spoiled kid, not the world’s only superpower, yet in the last five years our representatives have gotten quite skilled at this technique. UN debates on Iraq, racism or human rights not proceeding to our satisfaction? Fine. We’ll just leave, you big stupidhead.

The newest example of tantrum diplomacy at work, direct from the recent international global warming talks in Montreal:

The Bush administration was sharply criticized by environmental groups for walking out of a round of informal discussions shortly after midnight that were aimed at finding new ways of curbing gases beyond steps taken so far.

The walkout was widely seen here as the capstone of two weeks of American efforts to prevent any fresh initiatives from being discussed.

So, if I’m reading this right, not only did the US walk out of the talks, but they did it on purpose to make sure that no progress whatsoever could be made. Now that’s maturity! And it makes the following quote by the State Department’s Adam Ereli seem a little less than accurate:

“If you want to talk about global consciousness, I’d say there’s one country that is focused on action, that is focused on dialogue, that is focused on cooperation, and that is focused on helping the developing world, and that’s the United States,” Mr. Ereli said.

It’s kind of difficult to have a dialogue when you’ve already left the room, and kind of hard to cooperate with other nations you won’t talk to. But hey—leaving is technically an action, isn’t it?

(Previously: Maybe We Would Get More Done if our Diplomats Stopped Walking Out of Meetings)