Peace Prize to President Obama

[Pamela Moberg]

Dont know where to put this, but it certainly is an event of great magnitude

It was just announced ten minutes ago (local time here) that President Obama has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Congratulations to all Americans..

Just a brief comment on the different Nobel Prizes here: The prizes for achievement in science and literature are awarded by Sweden, whereas the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded by Norway.

There are some differences, but also some similarities. All prizes are presented by the King and in the presence of the Royal families, but the Norwegian ceremony is much simpler. No evening wear, no tiaras, no banquet. The event takes place in the daytime and is followed by a lunch hosted by the King and

Queen.

[atm711]

I am so proud Congratulations and thank you, Mr.President.

[Mel Johnson]

Perhaps surprising at this stage of his administration, but a welcome and pleasant surprise nonetheless. First sitting US President to be awarded the Peace Prize since Theodore Roosevelt.

[SanderO]

I don't think he deserves a prize for peace. As far as I can tell he is mostly rhetoric. He's commander and chief of two wars of aggression / occupation at the moment and has indicated that he will not withdraw from Afghanistan. The military has begun using drones which have been associated with many civilian deaths. But it should be noted that innocent women and children are MOST of the victims of war.

We are seeing packpeddling on closing Gitmo and he refuses to release a 15 yr old (Canadian) who has been held for some 7 years in Gitmo claiming that they need time to prepare for trial. Ha?

I forgot, they denied appropriations for an idiotic useless fighter jet which I suppose he agreed to.

His rhetoric sounds good, but he simply does not walk the talk.

We are/were very hopeful based on his campaign rhetoric. But sadly he has not delivered on his promises. Same story, different actors.

[perky]

Perhaps surprising at this stage of his administration, but a welcome and pleasant surprise nonetheless. First sitting US President to be awarded the Peace Prize since Theodore Roosevelt.

I have a soft spot for Teddy Roosevelt so President Obama is in good company indeed!

[Mel Johnson]

I forgot, they denied appropriations for an idiotic useless fighter jet which I suppose he agreed to.

No, he hadn't. Please do not suppose those things which you do not know for a certainty. An error like this weakens all your other arguments. The F-22 Raptor, basically a good fighter-bomber, was left over from R&D done during the FIRST Bush administration, and had been multiply surpassed in all parameters by the F-35 Lightning II, the concept for which, a Joint Strike Fighter, goes all the way back to the Kennedy administration.

[Mashinka]

Very unexpected as Morgan Tsvangirai was hotly tipped to receive it and I'm rather disappointed that he did not.

[SanderO]

I forgot, they denied appropriations for an idiotic useless fighter jet which I suppose he agreed to.

No, he hadn't. Please do not suppose those things which you do not know for a certainty. An error like this weakens all your other arguments. The F-22 Raptor, basically a good fighter-bomber, was left over from R&D done during the FIRST Bush administration, and had been multiply surpassed in all parameters by the F-35 Lightning II, the concept for which, a Joint Strike Fighter, goes all the way back to the Kennedy administration.

I apologize for getting confused about weapons systems we hardly need in my opinion.

I still believe that the jury is out on Obama and his accomplishments for peace. From my perspective he is not doing much that he presumably could. I certainly wouldn't call him a warmonger.

Glen Greenwald and I agree:

"Through no fault of his own, Obama presides over a massive war-making state that spends on its military close to what the rest of the world spends combined. The U.S. accounts for almost 70% of worldwide arms sales. We're currently occupying and waging wars in two separate Muslim countries and making clear we reserve the "right" to attack a third. Someone who made meaningful changes to those realities would truly be a man of peace. It's unreasonable to expect that Obama would magically transform all of this in nine months, and he certainly hasn't. Instead, he presides over it and is continuing much of it. One can reasonably debate how much blame he merits for all of that, but there are simply no meaningful "peace" accomplishment in his record -- at least not yet -- and there's plenty of the opposite. That's what makes this Prize so painfully and self-evidently ludicrous."

Perhaps this will inspire him to move toward peace in his future actions?

[Mel Johnson]

I certainly must agree with you at the suddenness with which this prize was awarded. It may indeed be premature. It strikes me that the Nobels are sometimes given with the intent of steering the recipient(s) toward the general goal. I eagerly await the end of the need for the preparation for war, but human nature being what it is, expressed by state or non-state entities, I am somewhat resigned to waiting for "the fullness of time".

(PS. A further apology to the board for a factual error on my part. Woodrow Wilson was awarded the Peace Prize in 1919.)

[carbro]

To me, too, it seems premature, and as for the motivational value, I don't see how receiving the Peace Prize can be a stronger motivation than the actual pursuit of peace.

Still, my fervent congratulations to Mr. O, and my hopes that in the future, the prize committee can look back on what turns out to be its prescient choice with pride and satisfaction.

[dirac]

Thank you for posting, Pamela.

My first response: Ludicrous. My second: Perhaps eventually he'll do something to earn it.

[bart]

I suspect that there's just a LITTLE bit of pie-in-the-face aimed at the former Bush-Cheyney administration, given its almost universally condemned (and, some might say, disastrous) approach to foreign policy.

[richard53dog]

I suspect that there's just a LITTLE bit of pie-in-the-face aimed at the former Bush-Cheyney administration, given its almost universally condemned (and, some might say, disastrous) approach to foreign policy.

When I first read of the award I had some thoughts along the same lines. I suspect there is something to what you said.

[dirac]

Bart's right, I'm sure. It's the WE HATED BUSH award, following up on the prize to Gore.

Or maybe the committee was impressed by Obama's groundbreaking efforts at the Beer Summit.

[leonid17]

I think President Obama has given hope to many in the world following his election and his speeches distinguish him from a good number of Presidents I have heard in my lifetime.

This Nobel Peace Prize may seem premature to some, but he has given hope to millions who have not always understood the policies and merits of recent Presidents and look forward to an era when a real effort for peace in the world begins to become a reality.

We in England get a lot of TV coverage of the American political scene from various viewpoints and of course some of us have various American newspapers delivered daily to our email in box. The rest of the world watches America in a way that never existted in the past and that is due to the impact of President Obama. He had been in our homes talking to us all across the world not just to the American people and I am sure the months of his and others electioneering were watched over here more avidly than at any other US Presidential election.

He has brought much of the rest of the world closer to America than it has been for many years. That’s what President Obama achieved and that’s why I support his receiving the Nobel Peace prize.

[volcanohunter]

Has April Fools' Day arrived early this year?

[dirac]

Apparently that was the actual reaction of some White House aides upon receiving the news, volcanohunter. Several observers have recommended that he decline it but I doubt he will do so and question whether it would improve matters if he did.

[SanderO]

It is my belief that the prize is given for tangible achievements and a record of action/effort and in this case those tangible acheivements and record is rather thin.

Of course the world is more hopeful based on his rhetoric and willingness to negotiate with counterparties. It's wrong of the committee to use this prize to influence his behavior, although it is a noble objective (pun intended).

Having received and accepted the prize should certainly temper any attempts at militarism. Yet I heard his speech this monring where he refers to the enemy of the US and its allies in Afghanistan and his determination to prevail in that conflict. Last I heard he approach to that one is a military one and not a call for negotiations.

Perhaps guilt will move him more quickly onto the true path of peace. If he needs some advice, I suggest he invites Dehli Lama for some soul searching conversation.

[bart]

It's nice -- I mean REALLY nice -- to hear people outside the U.S. talking about "hope" in this context. Thank you Pamela, leonid, and others for putting this story in an international perspective.

Oddly, the cynicism on this event seems to be coming from the U.S. primarily, even from those of us who are deeply relieved that Obama is President. Maybe this says more about the suspicious and toxic nature of so much U.S. political discourse in the past 10 years or so.

Speaking only for myself, I intend to (a) drop the cynicism about this and (b) focus on the hope. We've had too much of the "politics of fear" in recent years. Maybe it IS time for a renewed "politics of hope."

[papeetepatrick]

This is FABULOUS! He should get for NOT withdrawing from Afghanistan and Pakistan alone (alhtough he deserves it for much more), as that's where the War on Terror was supposed to be fought to begin with, and where Al Qaeda has re-strengthened itself. A 'Peace Prize' does not mean giving it to a 'peacenik'. Bravo, Prez! I just heard it over a Juliusburger and had had no idea. This is a great day. Everybody knows that Pakistan and the Afghan border are where the terrorists got re-entrenched while the pervious admin. did their Iraqi adventure.

[Estelle]

I'm afraid my main reaction when hearing about that news was (besides being a bit surprised) snickering when imagining President Sarkozy feeling jealous

[dirac]

Sarkozy must be livid.

Oddly, the cynicism on this event seems to be coming from the U.S. primarily, even from those of us who are deeply relieved that Obama is President. Maybe this says more about the suspicious and toxic nature of so much U.S. political discourse in the past 10 years or so.

Some of the suggestions that Obama decline the award are even coming from people who generally support Obama. Even the White House seems somewhat embarrassed by it.

He should get for NOT withdrawing from Afghanistan and Pakistan alone

Patrick, I love it. Getting the Peace Prize for ramping up Af-Pak. It’s so Orwell.

[kfw]

Some of the suggestions that Obama decline the award are even coming from people who generally support Obama. Even the White House seems somewhat embarrassed by it.

The best line I've heard so far came from David Brooks, who before saying that Obama should have declined the prize, said he should have won them all this year, having spoken on physics, economics and biology as well. (What about literature?)

I'm one of those people who, as Bart put it, are "deeply relieved" that Obama is President, but I think the Nobel Committee made itself look silly this morning. Still, yes, the hope he won for is a refreshing sign!

[leonid17]

It's nice -- I mean REALLY nice -- to hear people outside the U.S. talking about "hope" in this context. Thank you Pamela, leonid, and others for putting this story in an international perspective.

Oddly, the cynicism on this event seems to be coming from the U.S. primarily, even from those of us who are deeply relieved that Obama is President. Maybe this says more about the suspicious and toxic nature of so much U.S. political discourse in the past 10 years or so.

Speaking only for myself, I intend to (a) drop the cynicism about this and (b) focus on the hope. We've had too much of the "politics of fear" in recent years. Maybe it IS time for a renewed "politics of hope."

Thank you bart for all of your comments,.

To me at a distance there is more than U.S. cynicism involved and I suspect that will be the feeling in other countries is that they can detect not just anti- Democratic Party feelings

against him receiving the Prize, but a sense of President Obama’s racial heritage being taken in to account by those making heavily biased comments in some of the U.S. press.

As regards Afghanistan the Americans did not start destabilisng the region. President Obama inherited a war in which experts had guided himself and the former President to pursue. If there are complaints about the Afghan war you cannot know why the Presidents advisers have told him to continue to proceed in military matters in that arena. The answers have been fully covered in the press over the years.

You have in the U.S. a President who is a man education, erudition an effective speaker and defender of America and its policies abroad and a promoter of America in a most positive way.

PS He also wrote two good books

[kfw]

He has indeed done all those good things, Leonid, but he has not yet brought peace anywhere.