He says he’s “surprised and humbled” by winning the prize. I’m fairly surprised, myself. I thought you were supposed to actually accomplish something before winning a Nobel prize.
Update: I think Dave Schuler has stumbled on an explanation.
Update 2: With your help, Obama can win the Heisman Trophy next.
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This is simply surreal.
Mind you, the Nobel Prize for Peace is increasingly a laughingstock, as they’ve given it to the most dubious people imaginable. The oppressor of the Palestinian people, Yasser Arafat (also, of course, a terrorist murderer), comes to mind right away. But this is just… it’s a joke, right?
FOR WHAT?!?!?!
For not being Bush, I think.
I actually expected this. I was totally not surprised. In fact if I hadn’t been sick as a pig (heh, swine flu pun) I had planned on a post on my blog predicting it.
They need to rename the prize the “Nobel Anti-Bush Prize” Because that’s the only qualifying prerequisite to win it now.
By the way, the “nuanced” view is that this is a way to pressure Obama to not escalate the war in Afghanistan, and to keep him from using military force against Iran.
That’s the “clever” take.
I tend to go for the “senile, Bush deranged, arrogant idiots” explanation becuase that explains Gore’s win too. I don’t need to be “nuanced” when there’s no reason to be.
His proposal to reduce nuclear weapons is also being floated as an explanation. As if every President since Reagan hasn’t done the same.
Look, anyone who reads me knows, I’m nowhere NEAR as anti-Obama as a lot of other people who are regulars here. But once again, all I can say is:
Whaaaaaa?!?!? Is it a prize for charisma now, or what?
Even my most liberal friends are all WTF over this.
You know I actually even have some sympathy for Obama over this. He’s in a tough spot now. He knows he hasn’t earned this. He knows that accepting it will be taken as a promise from him not to be “Bush-like” in foreign policy, which would effectively handcuff his military options. But he also knows that not accepting it has its own problems.
If he accepts it, he will be accused of overarching hubris.
If he turns it down, he will be accused of overarching hubris.
The Nobel Prize committee reminds me of a self-righteous clique of arrogant reality-challenged, over-privileged zealots. Sort of like a fraternity or sorority pledge committee.
If I were Obama I would refuse, but I would have told them up front not to pick me, because, as I said, I was pretty much expecting this. But he’s definitely in a tough spot now. This will not help him with the growing number of Americans who see him as an arrogant, do-nothing, elitist poseur who reads good teleprompter but can’t make a hard decision to save his soul.
Oh, by far my favorite comment on this so far is “How do you say ‘jumped the shark’ in Norwegian?”
I was half asleep this morning when my kids yelled out “Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize”!
I had to check my calendar, I thought it was April 1st.
Well it is a day for fools, even if it isn’t April.
the announcement was today, I think the vote was in Feb, predating his current proposal to reduce the U.S. nuclear arsenal.
My dear old departed dad did his level best to teach me that respect is a coin hard-earned and easily squandered. I believe the Nobel Prize has now fully and completely squandered their share of this coin.
Of course from my perspective I’ve had nothing but disdain and contempt for that group of self-righteous zealots for most of my adult life, dating at least back to their shameful awarding of their prize to an acknowledged and proud mass murderer.
P Mike, I think the NOMINATION was last February. Theoretically the vote should only have taken into account what was done by February, but that doesn’t mean anything. All that matters is what those senile old fools do behind closed doors to make their political points. Presumably Obama had done nothing by Feb 1 that warranted nomination in the first place. Well, of course from my perspective he’s done nothing YET to warrant nomination or even consideration.
“You know I actually even have some sympathy for Obama over this. He’s in a tough spot now. He knows he hasn’t earned this. He knows that accepting it will be taken as a promise from him not to be “Bush-like” in foreign policy, which would effectively handcuff his military options. But he also knows that not accepting it has its own problems.
If he accepts it, he will be accused of overarching hubris.
If he turns it down, he will be accused of overarching hubris.
The Nobel Prize committee reminds me of a self-righteous clique of arrogant reality-challenged, over-privileged zealots. Sort of like a fraternity or sorority pledge committee.
If I were Obama I would refuse, but I would have told them up front not to pick me, because, as I said, I was pretty much expecting this. But he’s definitely in a tough spot now. This will not help him with the growing number of Americans who see him as an arrogant, do-nothing, elitist poseur who reads good teleprompter but can’t make a hard decision to save his soul.”
Yup. Basically this win is not a good thing for him. People have all these high hopes for him and then when they find out he’s human they are gonna be soooo angry.
As far as growing number of Americans that see him as an arrogant do-nothing, let me know when his popularity falls below 22%. Now, are there a lot of people who think he is going to be ineffective? I am sure that number is growing.
The Nobel Peace Prize has been a popularity contest for awhile. A lot of people like to say that the award is given as a motivator to continue doing behavior they find acceptable (Gorbachev) or occasionally for people who accomplish something. It in fact isn’t used to acclaim any achievement. It has been given to some interesting characters over it’s history and if anything it is simply a popularity contest award.
If anything, this merely proves that Obama is indeed quite popular.
Breaking News:
Nobel “Peace” Prize to be renamed – now the “Nobel at-least-you’re-not-George-W.-Bush Prize”
You’re not a freeper are you?
jrogge:
For Obama’s approval ratings to drop below 50% would be remarkable considering all the advantages he has.
The main thing is that Obama doesn’t have to worry about the entire mainstream news and media organizations making it their top priority EVERY SINGLE DAY to run his ass into the ground on the slightest of pretexts.
For example, how many CNN specials did you see on the ‘bloodiest day in Afghanistan” last week? How many body counts do you see posted on CBS, CNN, etc?
If Obama’s approval gets below 50% with the news and media industry hauling his ass around in a sling every day, that’s far more revealing to me than how they ran Bush into the ground as a matter of principle.
Oh… and jrogge, you continue to confuse “respect” with “popularity.”
Besides, if I am right, this isn’t about Obama being Obama or Obama having “charisma”, this is about Obama being NOT-Bush. In fact Daffy Duck would probably have won the award if he were President and went around apologizing and insulting the United States of America.
Don’t confuse hatred of Bush with love of Obama. Too many people are already doing that.
I’m sorry did I use the word “respect” instead of “popular” Mr. Strawman?
I am guessing by your logic that you are confusing “hatred” with “respect” then, no?
To all those Beauty Pageant contestants who WISH for world peace…there could be a Nobel Peace Prize in YOUR future…
jrogge:
lol, do you even know what a “strawman” argument is?
Apparently not.
You keep harping on how popular Obama is when nobody is disagreeing with you. All of us anti-Obama folks are well aware how beloved the toy poodle is. But it’s not “love” we are talking about jrogge, it’s respect.
Next I hear Barack is up for an Oscar for Best Lead actor in a Comedy.
Sadly, I think the Nobel committee unintentionally summed up Barack’s life so far. He’s not one who accomplished anything other than winning the next prize/office up. Unless the Vatican gives him sainthood he’s played out.
… the most decorated, least accomplished man in existence…..
And I doubt he even realizes it.
It would quite literally shame me to be in his shoes. But not him.
Where’s Kanye West when we really need him?
Hey –
I’m not Bush,
I have good intentions,
I haven’t done much, and
I could REALLY use between 1E6 and 2E6 USD.
How about a nomination?
When it comes to actually doing something – or even saying something – that has the actual effect of reducing violence, relative to what it would be without said person acting and talking, it would be hard to beat (despite necessary misgivings due to some unfortunate religiously induced opinions) Sistani of Iraq.
Heh, you know who has to be really pissed about Obama winning the peace prize?
John Kerry. After all, Kerry ran against Bush in 2004. He’s a known, proven serial liar. He routinely lambasts Bush and America in overseas speeches. Obama is really only a recent player on that stage, Kerry has been a prevaricating, anti-American, Europe-loving, pansy-waist zealot for 40 YEARS!!!
I imagine yesterday morning in the Kerry household the question of the day was: “Jesus H. Christ! What’s a man have to do to win one of these things!?”
(yeah, I know the proper term is “panty-waist” but for some reason for Kerry “pansy-waist” just seemed to flow better.)
Actually CC I do. It’s when you argue against something you made up. You put words in someone’s mouth (like respect) and then argue against that. That’s what you did, and continue to do, Mr. Strawman.
If he is that popular and beloved then someone probably respects him out there. I can’t believe the butthurt I see from you people.
“John Kerry. After all, Kerry ran against Bush in 2004. He’s a known, proven serial liar. He routinely lambasts Bush and America in overseas speeches. Obama is really only a recent player on that stage, Kerry has been a prevaricating, anti-American, Europe-loving, pansy-waist zealot for 40 YEARS!!!”
Then according to your own conclusion, being a Europe-Loving, pansy-waist zealot is not the criteria for receiving such an award. In fact, I would have to say knowing the criteria for this award is almost impossible seeing as it is arbitrarily given these days.
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