Obama wins 2009 Nobel Peace Prize

[watkins]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33237202/ns ... ?GT1=43001

[theholycow]

I wasn't aware that he had actually done anything yet.

[watkins]

Fostering hope, improving international relations, not being Bush, etc.

[FDSpirit]

I was pretty surprised when I heard about this this morning. I had checked the news before I went to work and they said nothing of it. I checked around 8:30ish. Either way, congrats Mr. Obama. That's quite an accomplishment.

[theholycow]

On closer reading, I found that he had to have been nominated within the first two weeks of taking office (that's when the nomination deadline was). Really? What did he do to change the world in that time?

I always just took for granted that the Nobel Peace Price was something prestigious that is awarded based on accomplishments, not a bullcrap award given to push a political agenda. Who knew I still had some childish innocence left in me? I'll no longer have any faith in the NPP if you can get it merely by being elected President as a liberal after a controversial conservative previously had office.

Forget two weeks, even looking at right now, has he changed my life? No. Has he pulled the US military out of the middle east? No. Has he actually accomplished anything that would increase peace? No.

Fostering hope, improving international relations, not being Bush, etc.

Can you tell me in more concrete terms what he's done to accomplish those laudable goals? I don't think "not being Bush" is an accomplishment; hell, even I managed that one the day I was born. What changes has he made that fostered hope or improved international relations?

[watkins]

If you were to read the full article, you would see the reasoning.

Also see this:
http://nobelpeaceprize.org/en_GB/home/announce-2009/


The "not being Bush" is just because Ive read several things that made a point about the fact that Bush won nothing and Obama has made major changes to the way the world sees the US after Bush ruined our global status.

[94Corolla5Speed]

Truthfully, I could give a shit less. Still think this was prematurely ejaculated by the Nobel committee. He shouldn't have gotten it.

[theholycow]

paul34 is on the ball.

[FDSpirit]

See. That's why this whole thing came as a surprise. Sure, things may be better, but they aren't to the way they should be. I congratulate him, but like paul34 said, there has to be better people who would easily qualify for this award. I don't really watch much in the world of politics and such, so I wouldn't really know any other people who would fit into that category.

[watkins]

So far, there has been pretty much zero "change." Zero. Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

The point the committee was focusing on is that there is a more positive global attitude, and there is a real belief that there will be change. People the world over have faith that Obama will actually accomplish something. There hasnt been this kind of overall positive sentiment in a decade.


I will agree that there was probably a better choice out there, but unlike whiny conservatives who hate Obama just for the sake of hating him, I can actually understand where the committee was coming from. There is no doubt that Obama has improved international relations, has brought a new perspective on how to deal with our never-ending conflicts, has begun the procedure for minimizing nuclear stockpiles, etc.

If this encourages further faster action, the more the better. If not, Obama gets a tarnished reputation and a prize was wasted. There really isnt a losing option for the world in this situation.

[IMBoring25]

I have no doubt that there were those at the time who said that Neville Chamberlain had, "Improved international relations [and] brought a new perspective on how to deal with our never-ending conflicts," too...

[RITmusic2k]

I agree with Watkins and with Paul34 equally.

[.insane]

I still don't understand what he did. I'm sure many other truly deserving candidates got passed over for what, his celebrity status?

He "improved" relations by being someone who is NOT Bush. That doesn't make sense. The peace prize isn't supposed to be for ideas and speeches, it's supposed to be for concrete action that made a significant difference in the world towards peace and human rights. It's not about to be that you like this boss better than the last boss.

Domestically, we have the same shit as Bush, Clinton, Bush Sr., all the way back to FDR. Internationally, we are still running two wars, and maintaining our overbloating world empire presence while sending our dedicated young men and women on a war that no longer is about the US, but about a people who really don't care about us and ultimately don't need us or want us.... Read More

So far, there has been pretty much zero "change." Zero. Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

What could he do to change shit?
*Lead the charge to eliminate the Federal Reserve
*Bring the troops home not just from Afghanistan, but to drastically wind down our presence in places like Japan, South Korea, the Middle East, Germany (most of Europe, really), etc (you'll find both liberals AND conservatives agree on this).
*Chop down useless and unconstitutional Federal entities and restore Americanism back to the Federal government.
*Stop stealing tax dollars from decent Americans and rerouting it to Union and corporate interests, something that Bush was guilty of as well - something that should have "changed," but only got 10x worse
*Abolish ALL Federal legislation criminalizing marijuana. Don't just "decriminalize" it by failing to enforce the law, but completely legalize it. We must stop pouring money and blood into this drug war which we have never won and never will. We should also consider legalizing other types of drugs as well. The states can choose to further regulate substances if they wish; the Federal govt has no Constitutional permission to regulate such substances at all.
*Stop interfering in the market. More regulation isn't what is needed; naive regulation and laws, and the Fed, is exactly what got us into this mess in the first place. Using more of what broke our economy to fix it makes no sense whatsoever.
*Take the Federal government completely out of the discussion about gay marriage and abortion. Fact is, the Federal government has no Constitutional permission to regulate or even put in their $.02 about these issues at all. It shouldn't even BE an issue for the Federal government to approve/disapprove. They simply have no legal jurisdiction over such things. The only things the Federal government is allowed to do is what is explicitly enumerated in the Constitution. The Constitution is a specific list of permissions and restrictions on the Federal government, not some inconvenient restrictions whereas the Federal government can do EVERYTHING ELSE except what's banned in the bill of rights. Nope. It's the other way around, the fed govt can only do what is in the BoR, nothing else.

So, about peace:
* Iran hates us more now
* We are running TWO wars
* North Korea's situation hasn't improved
* Russia doesn't like/respect us
* The level of violence on the border has increased drastically, and nothing is being done to address the WAR on our Southern border. Give the Southwestern states the resources they need to fight this war, because that's exactly what it is.

+1

obama won the nobel prize right, tell me the last 2 nobel winners from memory.

see no one cares.

[jmr]

+1

obama won the nobel prize right, tell me the last 2 nobel winners from memory.

see no one cares.

Al Gore?

The peace prize has no meaning.

[Warner]

I still don't understand what he did. I'm sure many other truly deserving candidates got passed over for what, his celebrity status?

He "improved" relations by being someone who is NOT Bush. That doesn't make sense. The peace prize isn't supposed to be for ideas and speeches, it's supposed to be for concrete action that made a significant difference in the world towards peace and human rights. It's not about to be that you like this boss better than the last boss.

Domestically, we have the same shit as Bush, Clinton, Bush Sr., all the way back to FDR. Internationally, we are still running two wars, and maintaining our overbloating world empire presence while sending our dedicated young men and women on a war that no longer is about the US, but about a people who really don't care about us and ultimately don't need us or want us.... Read More

So far, there has been pretty much zero "change." Zero. Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

[...]

copy/paste? Either way, +1

I think giving the Nobel Prize to Obama, who really hasn't done much yet, completely devalues all the other Nobel Peace Prizes they've given out to deserving people. Even if they're giving it to him because they "believe" he will promote peace, they're supposed to wait until he actually does it!