- The first point is obvious -- even if he were to ever deserve such a "prestigious" prize, it's way to early to tell. His administration has barely begun and it's absurd to give it to him now.
- In the president's defense, I would say this -- even with his awfully thin resume, President Obama does deserve the prize more than Rigoberta Menchu, Le Duc Tho or Yasser Arafat did.
- And when you consider that list of previous honorees, and also recall that Al Gore and Jimmy Carter have won as well, you begin to understand that the Nobel committee jumped the shark years ago.
- And you know who's really gotta be angry right now? Bill Clinton. Clinton pretty much spent the last year of his presidency trying to do something, anything to help bring about a peace agreement in the Middle East. He didn't even get a sniff from the Nobel cabal. Obama makes a few speeches and he gets the prize. I tell ya, no respect.
Friday, October 09, 2009
In related news, the Tennessee Titans were declared the winners of Super Bowl XLIV today
Barack Obama wins the Nobel Peace Prize. A few thoughts:
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12 comments:
at first, i thought it was a joke.
I still think so, Gino.
It's like the world's gone mad. Is he going to be this year's American Idol too? Maybe Playmate of the Year?
Mark,
I agree. Obama may warrant one of these some day, but this is ridiculous. The Nobel Committee just did a great disserviceto this award.
However, I would quibble with your disparaging remark about Jimmy Carter. I am on record saying he was a pretty horrible President, but he does deserve some credit for Camp David and the 30+ year peace that has existed between Israel and Egypt. Furthermore, the work he has done out of office, promoting free and fair elections in strife ridden countries, and the work promoting Habitat for Humanity has been pretty exemplary. I also know Carter has been guilty of breeches of ex-Presidential protocol, but his Nobel came long before those breeches, and was well deserved.
Rich
Jimmy Carter is almost single handedly responsible for giving the radical islam movement a foot-hold in the Middle East. He is arguably the most failed president in the last 100 years, though Obama is already challenging that.
The Nobel prize in many categories has become a pathetic parody as has Jimmy the Meek.
RH,
can you qualify that a bit. That is an awful lot to layoff on one man. Also, I clearly stated that he wasn't a good President. The Nobel isn't about domestic policy, or someone's success as a head of state.
Rich
Rich,
I don't have time to discuss Carter in detail at the moment, but suffice it to say his legacy is pretty complicated. And the longer he tries to cling to a place on the world stage, the worse it gets. He's been a disgrace in recent years.
Mark,
I don't disagree, and I thought I made that clear. But that doesn't change the fact that he was instrumental in Camp David, burgeoning democracy, especially in Latin America, and in turning Habitat into a great humanitarian agency with an international impact.
Many Nobel Peace Prize winners have checkered histories. Kissinger can't travel to some countries because he might be arrested for war crimes. But to ignore all of his accomplishments for political expediency is, in my opinion, wrong.
Rich
I take your point Rich. They didn't kick O. J. Simpson out of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, either. I keed, I keed.
The prestige of the Nobel Prize got greatly cheapened. To aware the prize to someone who's works have just begun is laughable. It's kind of like giving Matthew Stafford the MVP award on Draft Day. Albert Nobel should be rolling around in his grave.
Obama was inaugurated less than two weeks before the deadline for the award.
I think Obama might aspire to follow Arafat's achievements. Arafat "won" the Nobel prize. Arafat was a terrorist.
Osama and Obama both had friends that attacked the pentegon.
Bill Clinton was more interested in the "piece" prize anyway.
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