The first Nobel Prize for Affirmative Action?

He had an easy act to follow. Call it the Rebound Nobel.

And he wins the prize for ... uh, being the first black president and ... doing nothing.

It's what he isn't doing that counts. He's not being George Bush.

Look on the bright side: How p.o.'d is Hillary? She'll never get it now.

OBAMA WINS NOBEL PEACE PRIZE TO MIXED REVIEWS REVIEWS...
'EMBARRASSING JOKE'...

This is the Drudge Headline at 5 this morning. Poor bastard's so shook up he can barely write.

The next one will be for economics --weakening the dollar and spreading the wealth.

But what exactly did he do? I would rather have seen the Chinese dissident get it, just because it would piss off the Chinese gov't during their anniversary celebration of murder and oppression.

Maybe Obama will use the prize money to help cover the deficit...

The surprise ranks right up there with Jimmy Carter and Al Gore. The Ford Foundation must be proud.

Call it the Rebound Nobel.

That's exactly what it is. I love Obama and have from the start, but even I think this is way premature. He hasn't done anything yet. And what he has done certainly isn't worthy of the prize. I wish they would have waited.

Oh well, what's done is done. I hope he lives up to it.

I guess the pressure's on now... this award must be for actions to come forth... with the added pressure to act accordingly.

No surge for you, Afghanistan.

And, Israel/Iran ... Please don't put the President in a position where he has to make a decision.

Too funny...I thought the same thing when I saw that he won. Oh boy, we are gonna hear some anguished screaming now boys and girls!

I'll love listening to Rush, Beck, et al. all align with the Taliban in denouncing this selection....

They opposed the US getting the 2016 Olympics. Now they oppose an American getting the Nobel Peace Prize. Does anyone see a pattern here? Obama was born in Norway. Pass it on.

The pundit head explosions are chiefly due to an inability to distinguish between "international diplomacy" and "internal policy".

Oh, and the fact that most people on the planet do not live in America, are not American, and have very little interest in internal American politics.

Sometimes I wonder if Americans really get the idea of how reviled Bush was across the planet.

I hear he's also up for an Oscar, a Pulitzer and a Dundie.

Ecohuman: EXACTLY

Sometimes I wonder if Americans really get the idea of how reviled Bush was across the planet.

Amen to that.

Friends who have done a lot of international travel over the last 6 yrs talk about it all the time. Maybe it should be called Nobel Sigh of Relief Prize?

Don't forget that Obama saved the world from McCain/Palin and it is very grateful.

So what actually we have here is the same old same old left-wing heads continuing to explode over George Bush.

Yes! Taylor 1 and ecohuman!
Does Sarah P even know what a Nobel prize is?

So what actually we have here is the same old same old left-wing heads continuing to explode over George [W]Bush.

He's not worth it. And besides, the stories that have come out (and will come out) of that era from insiders provide much more entertainment than anything we could say.

Does Sarah P even know what a Nobel prize is?

Doesn't that get awarded to the first Iditarod team that reaches Unalakleet?

Peace prize in one hand and the order for a million more dead and wounded in the other.Than there is rendition, big difference from Bush...Hey!

He's not worth it.

Yeah right. Shakespeare nailed the tell on this one: you ladies doth protest too much.

OK! So, let's now prove we can really be a grown up member of the world community by ratifing and joining the International Criminal Court.

Great related comment quoted on the Racialicious blog yesterday:

So… America has its own history, it kidnapped africans and tortured them. Hang on a sec, up until 6 months ago, America as government policy kidnapped people and tortured them, or is that not racist cause it wasnt against african americans, they were just Arabs! Yet America still tries to take the moral high ground and lecture the world on how to behave!! Simply breathtaking! Americans need to stop bombing everyone and lose some weight.

Yeah right. Shakespeare nailed the tell on this one: you ladies doth protest too much.

Quite the gentleman to defend W's honor.

Hate to break it to you dys, but OB has decided to keep the rendition program (and wiretapping.) It would seem it's only evil when Republican do it.

I think Bill Clinton did some behind-the-scenes string-pulling and made this happen. Wouldn't be surprised to learn that he is our shadow prez or at least a de-facto VP...

The prize properly goes to George W. Bush for making Obama electable.

The next one will be for economics --weakening the dollar and spreading the wealth.

No doubt...and the prize money comes from Goldman Sachs.

Pres BHO is a shoo-in for a Dundie Award
http://www.hulu.com/search?query=+dundies

I hear his teleprompter is up for a Pulitzer. And Obama is a finalist for a Razzie.

I am a conservative and I find President Obama's Nobel perfectly apt.

Rarely have popular feelings and thoughts been projected so clearly as they have been with this award. We all owe the Nobel committee a thank you for this perfect rendering.

This is a forward-looking prize coming in large part from a sense of relief. It could prove distracting for Mr Obama in its effort to affirm a commitment to negotiation.

He is, after all, on the verge of deciding whether to greatly expand the eight-year-old war in Afghanistan. If he does not, then he risks undoing whatever gains have been made against AlQ and for the ordinary people of that beleaguered country. Neither the Taliban -- who have already condemned the Nobel Committee for its selection -- nor AlQ has given any indication of welcoming negotiation.

Earlier this week, the NYT's ethicist offered this rumination on Nobel Prizes, which attracted many comments, a large number of which are worth perusing:
http://ethicist.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/06/taking-back-nobel-prizes/?apage=1#comments

One commenter, an American living in Norway, relates that he visited the Nobel Museum and discovered that Kissinger actually attempted to return his Peace Prize but was rebuffed: the Committee will accept a refusal, not a return.

Now, don't all we "Progressives" feel good about ourselves?

I suspend judgment of the Prize Committee's decision until I see the full transcript of the announcement in the newspaper. HA!, as if.

For now, Bush butchery has peaked at level and arrested Dumbo's tantrum of terror, and war crimes tapering off is a first step to peace -- good enough for me. Plus, I can understand the standard english sentences Obama speaks. (Brain-damaged Bush had that teleprompter thingie, too, but he's inarticulate. besides illiterate.)

The most reason I'm glad Obama got a Prize is so I can hear the rightwackos collective head explode. The more they talk, the more people hate Republicans. Cluck it up, moremoreMORE hatetalk you fearsick public enemies, louderlouderLOUDER -- it helps law enforcement draw a bead on you. Hate talk gets to perp walk.

- -

LIARS today blubbered about Nobel dignitaries stirring an influence in normal and decent America -- YEAH, it's a PEACE invasion.
LIARS, LIARS, losers, criers.

Hey portland native, do you even know what Nobel is famous for inventing (without googling it)

A beer for the first person who can name the 2008 Nobel peace laureate without looking it up.

A beer for the first person who would feel the same way if Obama were a Republican.

Ecohuman, please. If John McCain had won the election and was awarded the prize for, essentially, not being George W. Bush, it would be just as ridiculous.

Obama has done nothing -- NOTHING -- to merit this prize. Not because he's a democrat, but because he's not been a player on the world stage long enough to have had "the most impact" (I believe that's one of the criteria for the prize) on world peace. Never mind that he hasn't actually acted to further world peace in the time he's been in office. He's given a few well-received speeches, but hasn't actually done anything. But then, that's his M.O. generally, isn't it?

In fact, I'm hard pressed to identify any aspect of Obama's foreign policy that would differ significantly from what we'd expect of McCain had he been elected. Domestic policy, sure, but as for how we relate to the rest of the world... not so much.

So he's not even "not Dubya" enough to warrant the prize on that basis.

I for one don't hold it against Obama that he won... not his fault, after all... though the classy move would have been to graciously decline the prize.

But the peace prize itself has now jumped the shark and simply can't be taken seriously any longer. Whatever relevance it may once have had is now gone.

If John McCain had won the election and was awarded the prize for, essentially, not being George W. Bush, it would be just as ridiculous.

If you really think that's why he won a Nobel Prize, I can't help you. If you don't realize that the vast majority of humans aren't American, I can't help you there, either.

In fact, I'm hard pressed to identify any aspect of Obama's foreign policy that would differ significantly from what we'd expect of McCain had he been elected.

So, you're also thinking he got a prize for "not being Mccain"?

And surely, McCain would never make such as statement as Obama did, about striving to make the world "nuclear weapon free".

though the classy move would have been to graciously decline the prize.

No, the classy move would've been to not condemn him for being a hypocrite of some sort. You want to debate who "deserves" the Nobel Peace Prize? A thousand people. It's like an Academy Award--are you really going to be able to rank the "most deserving"?

But the peace prize itself has now jumped the shark and simply can't be taken seriously any longer. Whatever relevance it may once have had is now gone.

You actually don't understand how the Peace Prize works, do you? Let me simplify it for you: the prize is not given for the kind of person you are. it's given for a specific effort or efforts you have made to promote or obtain peace on the planet.

In other words, it has *nothing* to do with (a)your political stance, (b)time in office or position, (c)popularity, or (d)whether or not your countrymen think you deserve it.

But something tells me that distinction will be lost on you.

Tell me: do you think Jimmy Carter deserved the prize? Yes, or no?

Eco said: "You want to debate who "deserves" the Nobel Peace Prize? A thousand people."

Yeah, and Obama ranks 1,001th at best. Other than saying he wants to stop nuclear proliferation (wow, what a bold stance), he hasn't done anything in nine months, let alone the two weeks he was president before the nominations ended.

To be fair, McCain or any other current American politician would be 1,002th. Still doesn't make it right.

Ecohuman:

I do not believe Obama got the prize for "not being McCain". I believe he got the prize for "not being Bush". Why you keep harping on the idea that those who don't see the validity of this award must not realize that most of the world is not American, is beyond me. It has nothing to do with being American.

You offered a beer for the first person who would feel the same way if Obama was a Republican. I would in fact feel the same way if Obama was a Republican (or, as I expressed it, if the Republican alternative to Obama had won the prize). In other words, McCain also is "not Bush", and that also would not qualify him for the prize.

I fully understand how the Peace Prize works. I don't think Obama is undeserving because of any of the things you mentioned (what kind of person he is, popularity, etc.) I think he is undeserving precisely because he has not undertaken sufficient "specific effort or efforts to promote or obtain peace on the planet."

As I have seen referenced is several places, Nobel specified that the Peace prize should be awarded "to the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses."

See, it says "most or best". So inherent in the prize is the idea that it is supposed to rank the "most deserving".

So you tell me, which effort or efforts do YOU think Obama has made which make him "most deserving" for the prize?

Jimmy Carter brokered an actual peace agreement between Israel and Egypt which is still in force to this day. He didn't just talk about it, he actually helped make it happen. See, that qualifies as an effort worthy of the prize. Beyond that, he has contributed significantly to democracy around the world, as well as helping to ameliorate poverty worldwide through his work with Habitat for Humanity and other organizations.

So, yes, absolutely Jimmy Carter deserved the prize. And absolutely Obama did not. That's not to say that he won't deserve it at some point in the future. But right now, not a chance.

Rather than dissect what you've written, David, I'll point out what the prize committee itself said:

They lauded the change in global mood wrought by Obama's calls for peace and cooperation, and praised his pledges to reduce the world stock of nuclear arms, ease U.S. conflicts with Muslim nations and strengthen its role in combating climate change.

I'd give him the prize based solely on lowering the level of insanity (and potential insanity) in the Middle East alone. How has he done that? Simply by being President and practicing diplomacy. By reaching out and *practicing diplomacy aimed at peace*.

You're *still* misunderstanding what diplomacy is, David. A single sentence by a person as powerful as a President can change the course of a war. It can also ignite one--like, say, saying "This crusade, this war on terrorism" (Bush). It isn't about "hey, which policies did he implement?". It's more subtle than that, and requires a bit more big picture thinking than most are willing to experience. They want a bullet list.

But you're dancing near part of the reason by saying it's because he's not Bush. A better way to say it might be: He's reversing much of Bush's diplomatic rhetoric--like the "missile defense" lunacy. There's a lot there, in fact, that he's done to dial down the rhetoric and make it possible to actually *have* some diplomacy and dialogue. Just by reaching out to Arab states and Muslims he's done something that no other leader in the world can do right now.

Is it a subjective assessment? Absolutely--and that's the point.

Good to see Tensky (did I mention he went to Harvard?) in full apoplectic mode, showing his true Progressive colors (law enforcement drawing a bead on folks for alleged 'hate speech'? This from one of the most entertainingly hate-filled folks around... clinically interesting.) Boil on!

The Nobel Committee offers its own commentary -- a rather unusual gesture:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091013/ap_on_re_eu/eu_nobel_peace_obama;_ylt=AosD1O2xECz5o7nT1PsQxqBbbBAF;_ylu=X3oDMTJuODBtamRtBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMDkxMDEzL2V1X25vYmVsX3BlYWNlX29iYW1hBGNwb3MDMgRwb3MDMgRzZWMDeW5fdG9wX3N0b3JpZXMEc2xrA2lucmFyZXB1YmxpYw--