Obama Wins Nobel Peace Prize

[Wino]

This win for Obama was a real surprise to me. Seems he has been all talk and no real deeds. I hope I am wrong. Let's hope he is on his way to world peace. Here is part of the article and the link, http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091009/ap_on_re_eu/eu_nobel_peace

By KARL RITTER and MATT MOORE, Associated Press Writers Karl Ritter And Matt Moore, Associated Press Writers

OSLO – President Barack Obama won the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for "his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples," the Norwegian Nobel Committee said, citing his outreach to the Muslim world and attempts to curb nuclear proliferation.

[smoker]

I love Obama but I'm not sure how you earn a peace prize when you are running two huge unwinnable wars and considering sending extra troops in.

[Wino]

I love Obama but I'm not sure how you earn a peace prize when you are running two huge unwinnable wars and considering sending extra troops in.

Good point. Seems he is all talk and no action. Let's bring the troops home.

[CrazyExpat]

I am happy he won. But, very surprised and I wonder if this was too premature. He has done little so far other than speak words. I think it was a sign from the community to keep fighting the goof fight. I just really didn't think he had any deeds that deserved the award yet. I am still in shock from the announcement so perhaps more will come to light in the coming days. But, I still congratulate him.

[Wino]

I am happy he won. But, very surprised and I wonder if this was too premature. He has done little so far other than speak words. I think it was a sign from the community to keep fighting the goof fight. I just really didn't think he had any deeds that deserved the award yet. I am still in shock from the announcement so perhaps more will come to light in the coming days. But, I still congratulate him.

I am happy he won, too. Bush really left him with a mess. The economic crisis has taken up much of his time. I think he likes to proceed slowly and think about all the possible scenarios. Maybe we will see more his second term?

[CrazyExpat]

I am happy he won, too. Bush really left him with a mess. The economic crisis has taken up much of his time. I think he likes to proceed slowly and think about all the possible scenarios. Maybe we will see more his second term?

I'd like to see more balls on this first term.

[rucus7]

This win for Obama was a real surprise to me.

I was hoping to get the nod this year . . . . oh well there is next year.

[Wino]

This win for Obama was a real surprise to me.

I was hoping to get the nod this year . . . . oh well there is next year.

Keep your chin up. Since you have been promoting peace and love for years, I am sure the committee will eventually come around to you.

[smoker]

It's completely unfair.

He got the award because his name isn't "George W. Bush."

But you know what, my name isn't George Bush either - where's my fucking Nobel?

[Wino]

where's my fucking Nobel?

It is in the mail. What are those other two classic lies? I love you and I won't come in your .....

[lvdkeyes]

There is another classic lie - "I was just going to call you."

[Bob]

I am happy he won. But, very surprised and I wonder if this was too premature. He has done little so far other than speak words. I think it was a sign from the community to keep fighting the goof fight. I just really didn't think he had any deeds that deserved the award yet. I am still in shock from the announcement so perhaps more will come to light in the coming days. But, I still congratulate him.

Ditto....and I'm a big Obama fan. But maybe (hopefully) this will be one case where he earns the award after he's already gotten it.

[lvdkeyes]

In his defense, I will say that he has made a significant effort to smooth the ruffled feathers of most of the world regarding their attitude toward the US.

[Wino]

In his defense, I will say that he has made a significant effort to smooth the ruffled feathers of most of the world regarding their attitude toward the US.

Smoothed some ruffled feathers? Just lip service in my book. Let's have some real peace. Get out of Iraq and Afghanistan, now.

[smoker]

Also they voted on this 14 days after he was sworn into office.

[Wino]

Also they voted on this 14 days after he was sworn into office.

And did he do anything noble? Live up to a campaign pledge?

[Bob]

Also they voted on this 14 days after he was sworn into office.

I could be wrong but I think he was only nominated then. But, same difference - it remains perplexing to my why he was either nominated or actually given the award.

[Wino]

I was wondering who Obama beat for the Nobel Peace Prize. According to this website http://www.benjaminbradley.com/politics/who-did-obama-beat-to-win-his-nobel-prize/, here is the answer:

Sima Samar, women’s rights activist in Afghanistan: “With dogged persistence and at great personal risk, she kept her schools and clinics open in Afghanistan even during the most repressive days of the Taliban regime, whose laws prohibited the education of girls past the age of eight. When the Taliban fell, Samar returned to Kabul and accepted the post of Minister for Women’s Affairs.â€

Ingrid Betancourt: French-Colombian ex-hostage held for six years.

Dr. Denis Mukwege: Doctor, founder and head of Panzi Hospital in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo. He has dedicated his life to helping Congolese women and girls who are victims of gang rape and brutal sexual violence.

Handicap International and Cluster Munition Coalition: “These organizations are recognized for their consistently serious efforts to clean up cluster bombs, also known as land mines. Innocent civilians are regularly killed worldwide because the unseen bombs explode when stepped upon.â€

Hu Jia, a human rights activist and an outspoken critic of the Chinese government, who was sentenced last year to a three-and-a-half-year prison term for ‘inciting subversion of state power.’

Wei Jingsheng, who spent 17 years in Chinese prisons for urging reforms of China’s communist system. He now lives in the United States.

[WannaGo]

On the one hand, I think this was a big mistake for the committee and cheapens the prize in general and Obama's win in particular. If only they had waited another year, to give some of his diplomacy time to pay off and for him to start making some decisions in Afghanistan that, hopefully, improve the situation there.

A year from now, giving him the prize would have had some legitimacy. This is one of those situations when people try to help, but only end up hurting.

On the other hand, I think I understand why the committee did it, and David Ignatius summed it up perfectly in the Washington Post:

That’s what he’s being honored for, really: reconnecting America to the world and making us popular again. If you want to understand the sentiments behind the prize, look at the numbers in the Transatlantic Trends report released last month by the German Marshall Fund. Obama’s approval rating in Germany: 92 percent compared to 12 percent for George Bush. His approval in the Netherlands: 90 percent compared to 18 percent for Bush. His favorability rating in Europe overall (77 percent) was much higher than in America (57 percent)...

...The Nobel committee is expressing a collective sigh of relief that America has rejoined the global consensus.

By the way Wino, I have to disagree about calling for troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan. They are two very different situations.

Afghanistan was a righteous war to begin with -- even if the previous administration totally fucked up the execution of it -- and is now one of those, 'you broke it, you bought it' deals. We have to stay in Afghanistan, help secure and rebuild the country and deny al-Qaeda a base from which to stage future attacks on the US and other nations. This isn't 'he has WMDs' bullshit...if we allow al-Qaeda and the Taliban to regain Afghanistan, then we will pay for it. IMHO.

[Wino]

I don't understand the "you broke it, you bought it theory." We broke Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as Vietnam. Did we not learn anything from Vietnam? In my opinion, the US can not and should not be the policeman of the world and try to impose its might and will on other countries.

[Wino]

In his defense, I will say that he has made a significant effort to smooth the ruffled feathers of most of the world regarding their attitude toward the US.

Apparrently the Nobel committee members agree with you. "Three of the (members) rejected the notion that Obama hadn't accomplished anything to deserve the award, while the fourth declined to answer that question. A fifth member didn't answer calls seeking comment. Jagland singled out Obama's efforts to heal the divide between the West and the Muslim world and scale down a Bush-era proposal for an anti-missile shield in Europe."

Read more at http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091013/ap_on_re_eu/eu_nobel_peace_obama

[WannaGo]

I don't understand the "you broke it, you bought it theory." We broke Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as Vietnam. Did we not learn anything from Vietnam? In my opinion, the US can not and should not be the policeman of the world and try to impose its might and will on other countries.

The differences between Afghanistan and Vietnam are enormous, as are the differences between Afghanistan and Iraq. The US is not trying to be the 'world's policeman' in Afghanistan. The invasion of Afghanistan, unlike either Vietnam or Iraq, was necessary to seek justice for an attack and to disrupt an enemy that was certain to attack again. That's why there was global support for the war in Afghanistan. Had the US stayed there, the situation would be much improved over what it is today, and world sentiment would not have turned against us the way it did for much of the Bush administration.

And 'you broke it, you bought it,' is both a moral and a practical position. If we topple your government and destroy your infrastructure, we are morally obligated to help return conditions in your country to something approaching normalcy. And if we simply invade, causing widespread destruction and disruption of a society, then leave, we are setting ourselves up for even further trouble.

Go get a glass of water and stick your finger in it. Now pull your finger out. Water rushes in to fill the hole left by your finger, right? Do some reading on the Afghan situation. You'll see that the problems we are facing now have their roots in our assistance to the mujahideen in the 80s, when they were fighting the Russians. In that case, we encouraged them to fight and supplied them, then offered them nothing when the Russians left. And, in our absence, the extremists rushed in to fill that hole. If we abandon Afghanistan now, the same thing will happen. It will become an even stronger base of terrorist operations than it ever has been, funded by massive opium production.

[patong]

I think it diminishes the value of the Nobel Prize. The fact of the matter is that there are plenty of other deserving people/groups who have actually moved World peace forward. Obama just has not been in the job long enough to make a real impact.Yes I know it's all about his potential, but surely it would have enhanced everyone's reputation (Nobel & Obama)it they had waited a year or 2 into his presidency. Just my 2 satangs worth, not really makes any difference to my daily life.

[Beer Chang]

I'm a big Obama fan but it's absurd that he won the prize.

[Wino]

Obama with his silver tongue sure seems to be living a story-book life. Who would have thought he could unseat Hillary as the leading front runner, who would have thought he could win the White House, who would have thought he could win the Nobel Peace Prize. He has a charmed life so far.