Nobel Peace Prize 2009: Obama Gets What?

we beat NYT by seven minutes

Agreed.
But one thing he did for peace(or was it for human rights:)) in his favour is that he closed Guantanamo 'torture' bay!

Great reporting temporal!

well that does it the worlds doomed

I was pulling for Greg Mortenson, so I am pissed off. I love Obama, but there are people who've been at this for a lot longer with a lot less resources.

Spot on mate, my thoughts exactly.

The prize is awarded by Norway, not Sweden. Geez... I guess this is the kind of fact checking to expect from someone who partakes in the silly continued effort to always say the president's middle name.

Sending troops to Afghanistan is not such a bad policy. Its to stop the Taliban takeover and also keep Pak in check. Interestingly, he is the first US President that I know of who has insisted on putting conditions on aid to Pakistan that makes some sense in decades. Otherwise, US administrations have let Pak go scott free to a fault. Read Deception by Adrian Levy and other books on the Nuke proliferation by AQ Khan and Pak to know more on the mess that Reagan et al have created over the years.

I think for just THAT he is different enough! He at least knows the right priorities.

Newsflash-Guantanomo bay is not closed and unless you have actually served there, please refrain from propagated the "torture myth" I know good people who served there that were routinely spit and had feces thrown at them by those that defended the killing of 3,000 americans.

John Doe, don't feel bad. You are not the first, nor would you be the last. Even the editorial staff have done it from time to time. Blame the stupid software that runs the site which causes an inordinate delay after hitting the 'Publish' button.

I wonder why this simple matter has not been taken care of even after several years. Aaman, when will we see this getting fixed?

Was expecting Morgan Tsvangirai to get it
He lost his wife in the struggle for democracy
Anyway Obama is a great chap

The Nobel "Peace" Prize is already trash, worth less than toilet paper, and more akin to that bucolic substance toilet paper is designed to clean up. The bunch of gutless Norwegian fools who would award a murdering paedophile as Arafat such a prize cannot sink much lower. Once you get to the level of calling a murderer and terrorist a "peacemaker", Obama is only a step up from the offal - albeit not much of a step up.

Ruvy, your comments are disgusting and over the top. Maybe as a settler you should not be so quick to point the "murder/terrorist" finger at much of anyone.

Words are the sole arbiter and the final survivor.

By the way, Temporal, so you know for next time (in case a Desi scores one of the other more valuable prizes awarded).

Alfred Nobel was a Swedish Jew who used his fortune from inventing TNT to promote peace and good works among mankind. When he was alive, Sweden and Norway were ruled by the same monarch. This situation ended in 1905, and one of the issues of the separation of Norway from Sweden was who would award the Nobel Prizes. The parliaments split up the prizes, and some are awarded in Stockhom, and some in Oslo.

smallsquirrel,

BECAUSE I live beyond the kav téfer (look it up - I'll be damned if I translate any Hebrew for the likes of you), I know what a terrorist and a murderer is far better than you ever will. Keep your ignorance to yourself. It's embarrassing to read the tripe you write.

John Doe:

typo corrected.

thanks for noticing.

you win a prize for two for a weekend cruise with Carnival on the moon

desh:

afghanistan is a lose lose proposition...and as churchil wrote a 'graveyard' for imperialism...the only reason the US is interested in it is because of what pepe escobar coined as Pipelinistan

Interestingly, he is the first US President that I know of who has insisted on putting conditions on aid to Pakistan that makes some sense in decades.

ruvy:

Once you get to the level of calling a murderer and terrorist a "peacemaker"

i think he deseves it, he is one of the most caring, strongest,most dedicated, most good looking, most wanted, i would do anything to help him, i pray for him and his wounderful gueney every day and night, i am willing to do any kinds of work to help his government, and i know he will make it cause god is with him, since he is hunest and hard working. God bless this man and his nation and his familly.

Re: comments 19-26. Someone better sit down with Phil Winn (the resident Geek for Technorati/Blogcritics, and therefore Desicritics) and figure out something that will not cause the poster to feel he has to hit the publish button 7 times or more....

[IRRELEVANT COMMENT EDITED]

Agree with Ruvy and the rest, the site needs technical upgrdations and support that will simplify it's usage.

Temporal, liked the entire write up. Love Obama but don't beleive he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize

RUVY...

didnt those war criminal MFers Rabin and Peres receive this prize with Arafat!?

[EDITED]

An interesting turn of events.

He has done a lot to promote world peace, rid the world of nuclear weapons and to combat global warming. I for one, am happy for news. Now if he would only end Bush's wars.

RUVY,

let me rephrase my deleted comments....when will you cease sharing your verbal diarrhea with us holier folk?

Ruvy and Desh appear hell-bent on baiting me (even though they don't know it!), but me not biting!

despite the fact that even henry kissinger has a nobel prize, and that too for "peace" which should have put an end to any illusions, the obama prize is quite surprising indeed.

Ruvy,

smoke a charminar

All you guys do is complain and bitch about Obama this and Obama that, what has he done to you that Bush didn't start, Hello wasn't Bush the one that started the war ? Or wasn't he the reason Gas went sky high, also he's the reason we lost our jobs and our houses are in foreclosure since Obama came in office I was able to afford school, and make something out of my self you people that talk all this nonsense about one's accomplishments are simply selfish ignorant morons who have nothing better to do but throw your tea partys and juice up prejudice if he had been a White man you would be happy and cheering but because he is black you are talking shit and spreading nothing but hate if you even dare claim to be a christian I cast your sorry asses to hell. Because of Obama your un-employed asses are able to log online and talk and spread this hate, I mean think about all the drama in florida with everything going on Republicans did this to our Country not Obama and if you believe everything the press says you are a stupid fuck, Wake up people wake the hell up.

And yes I'm proud to be BLACK

chris:

good insights

you must have run a background check on all the commenters

;)

chris... HAHAHHAH!

Chris:

"And yes I'm proud to be BLACK"

huh? why then is your name "Chris Brown"?

CS thats his name!! Dude! you and I both know that you know better!

Chris, breather!! Dunno what your being Black has got to do with Obama winning the Prize. He is the president of the country who has his work cut out for him, let him finish it and then applaud him.

deepti, just being my usual silly self!

"It would be wonderful if I could think why he won," said Claire Sprague, 82, a retired English professor as she walked her dog in Manhattan's Greenwich Village. "They wanted to give him an honor I guess, but I can't think what for."

Seriously? This is stupid and disgusting. If feckless, and wandering around aimlessly with a good speaking voice = peace, peace is nothing.

uh, people... chris brown is the dude who smacked his girlfriend rihanna around. this guy's name is probably not chris brown. it's a nick.

btw folks

obama did not seek this prize! (yes he could have declined)

any comments on the performance of those (ig)noble committees?

yeah I don't get the animosity TOWARD Obama. He did not ask for this or lobby for it or whatever. I mean, calling it disgusting or whatever, to me is overkill. it's just.. not a good use of an honor that should go to someone who has really tirelessly worked for peace.

SS,

It is disgusting and note that says nothing about Obama but about the act of giving him an award he doesn't deserve.

Is he the first to be undeserving? No. But that doesn't mean we should agree that anyone deserves the award and the $$$ based on nothing. (PACE, US professional athletes)

To list a lack of accomplishments toward deserving this award is factual.

Has anyone given a real reason why he deserves this award; has anyone fought the mental battle that he's done more than any of the other three toward PEACE.

I've brokered more actual peace between people than Obama in the last 7 months.

Yeah and I don't know why I"m quite so upset. It's just this dude President Obama has done NOTHING since he's been in office and I'm getting sick of it. That he keeps on getting lauded for doing nothing, well it's the way things should be.

Obligatory PS, I've never voted for a Republican presidential candidate but I also didn't vote for Obama because I thought he was all talk no balls. That's what we've had since inauguration.

temple... you and I will have to agree to disagree about him doing "nothing"... but we certainly agree that he is not really deserving. my beef is that someone like Mortenson has risked life and limb time and time again, and has worked tirelessly, even before it was his JOB, to bring education to poverty stricken and war-torn regions. undoubtedly his efforts to give these children an alternative to fundamentalist madrassas will help to ensure peace for years to come.

I think that awarding Obama this award now de-legitimizes him in many ways. I think they should have waited, because i have no doubt that in 3 years' time he will have more than earned it.

ladeees and gentleeemen, please welcome the new cartoon character - Kadak Bobama, the Changeman

Here is his theme song

Changeman, Changeman,
Does whatever a changeman can.
Spins a Change, any size,
Catches Change just like flies.
Look out! Here comes the Changeman.
Is he strong? Listen budâ€" He's got radioactive blood.
Can he Change from a thread?
Take a look everywhere.
Hey there! There goes the Changeman .
In the chill of the night, At the scene of the Change, Like a streak of light,
He arrives just in time!
Changeman, Changeman, Friendly neighborhood Changeman.

Wealth and fame, he's ignoredâ€"Action is his reward.
To him, Life is a great big screw-upâ€"Wherever there's a screw-up,You'll find the Changeman!

Do agree. Obama symbolizes a lot of positive change that ought to be happening. Whether he is able to bring about the change or not, is immaterial, but he does symbolize the times.

But that does not mean he deserves the Nobel. He has been elected because the electorate is needing and wanting a change ... he still has to show his mettle and it is not going to be easy. Too much expectations.

Weeell, weelll Gandhi might not have won the Nobel, but he did get the 'consolation prize' - the pen !!! The Swiss and the Norwegians are really going for the 'symbols' huh, this time???

This Nobel is going to put pressure on his administration to stop India from conducting more nuclear tests, more than ever.

I think that, no matter what, we should go ahead with them. Let's not worry about the Indo-US nuclear deal. The sooner we do it, the lesser the impact in the form of sanctions.

this piece by Garry Wills, professor of history at Northwestern University, in recent issue of the NY Review of Books, was timed perfectly to coincide with the Prize:

http://www.nybooks.com/articles/23110

excerpt:

"in the early days of Barack Obama's presidency... At his confirmation hearing to be head of the CIA, Leon Panetta said that "extraordinary rendition"â€"the practice of sending prisoners to foreign countriesâ€"was a tool he meant to retain.[1] Obama's nominee for solicitor general, Elena Kagan, told Congress that she agreed with John Yoo's claim that a terrorist captured anywhere should be subject to "battlefield law."[2] On the first opportunity to abort trial proceedings by invoking "state secrets"â€"the policy based on the faulty Reynolds caseâ€"Obama's attorney gen- eral, Eric Holder, did so.[3] Obama refused to release photographs of "enhanced interrogation." The CIA had earlier (illegally) destroyed ninety-two videotapes of such interrogationsâ€"and Obama refused to release documents describing the tapes.[4]

The President said that past official crimes would not be investigatedâ€"certainly not for prosecution, and not even by an impartial "truth commission" just trying to establish a record. He said, on the contrary, that detainees might be tried in "military tribunals." When the British government, trying a terrorist suspect, decided to use some American documents shared with the British government, Obama's attorney general pressured it not to do so. Most important, perhaps, was the new president's desire to end the nation-building in Iraq while substituting a long-term nation-building effort in Afghanistan, run by a government corrupted by drug trafficking and not susceptible to our remolding.

Even in areas outside national security, the Obama administration quickly came to resemble Bush's. Gay military personnel, including those with valuable Arabic-language skills, were being dismissed at the same rate as before. Even more egregiously, the Obama administration continued the defiance of the Constitution's "full faith and credit" clause, which requires states to recognize laws passed by other states, when it defended the Defense of Marriage Act, which lets states refuse to recognize gay marriages legally obtained in another state. Many objected when Dick Cheney would not name energy executives who came to the White House in 2002, though Hillary Clinton, as First Lady, had been forced to reveal which health advisers had visited her. Yet the Obama team, in June 2009, refused to release logs of those who come to the White House."

Why Obama? Why not zardari? He holds the most unenviable post in the world and is trying to do an amazing balancing act.

The Nobel Committee deliberating 2009 Nobel for Peace has just announced the winner: Presiden Barak Hussain Obama. Here is the full citation.

Your really need to do basic spellcheck stufff on your work, in addition to the basic fact checks.... "editor"

Ruvy:

"...in addition to the basic fact checks.... "editor":

the DC world hereby humbly acknowledges the amazing fact that Ruvy is indeed not just an editor but a superior editor whose editing nets him "basic fat checks".

I pause
for the
Applause

The Bouquets (spell check?)
You pricks
Hold the
Bricks

Your comments do not matter, CS. They are neither witty nor funny. What matters is that the author (and Desicritics editor) has not bothered to correct his obvious error. But hey, it's no skin off my nose! Purposely leaving mistakes like that to spite disliked commenters only makes the site look bad.

Ruvy:

"Your comments do not matter, CS."

Yes, they do! "Fact check" (or "fat check") if my comments did not MATTER, you would find them IMMATERIAL and totally ignore them. But they do, and hopefully they take you away from Palestinian hate and self-hate, even if for a few seconds. And that's my good deed of the day.

It appears you have all the time in the world to split hairs (pulling your non-existing hair out too)over a missing "s" (or was it a "t") in "President". I suppose you are not doing too much of the kind of "fact checks" that in the end produces "fat checks". If you weren't of Ukrainian heritage, pretending to be an Israeli, the term "fat Czech" would have come in handy too, but hey, I don't begrudge you your descent in the manner you begrudge Palestinians.

get the picture mate? now pull your non-existent hair out of your existent head please.

Ruvy,

some ukrainians were actually czechs.

so my formula applies to you:

fact check = fat checks = fat czech

bravo for the living up to the time honored tradition of tooting your own horn. don't get too horny though.

how many facts would a fat czech check if a fat czech could check facts for a fat check.

typo fixed

thanks