President Barack Obama has been awarded the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize. Apparently the Nobel Committee awarded the US President the honor because of “his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and co-operation between peoples.” Not that it really matters, but surely it’s a little premature to be giving President Obama a Nobel Peace Prize?
If you ask me I think that there is another story behind this decision. I think perhaps the judges all got together and had a wild night of strippers and booze then through the heavy haze of a hangover they just came up with the first name of someone ‘important’ that they could think of.
I don’t know about you, but the reason for the award sounds like something of an excuse, not dissimilar to those I used to offer my school teachers when they asked me where my mysteriously absent homework was. “Oh yeah, well you see, I was on my way to school and there was this old lady that had lost her white stick so I rolled up my English homework and gave that to her to use as a white stick.”
I like the President, really I do, but shouldn’t we at least wait for him to produce a little peace in the world before we give him a prize for doing so?
I suspect that Mr Obama himself is probably wishing that the judges had chosen someone else from their list of 205 nominees. The award will undoubtedly lead to a media focus on what the President has actually achieved (or not achieved) so far in his first term.
Such is the state of the modern political machine that any President would struggle to bring about rapid change. This truth is especially harsh for President Obama who used ‘change’ as a key feature of his election campaign.
Could it be that the prize has come from the global sense of relief that President Cheney Bush is no longer the “leader of the free world” (by the way, I absolutely detest that overblown phrase)? Such was the international distaste for that man that I can understand why a committee of international types might want to give the new President a prize, if for no other reason than for having the balls to step into the mess left by eight long years of President Bush.
If that was the case though, could we not have come up with a new award? Something like the ‘International Balls of Steel award’, which could itself lead to a very interesting trophy and acceptance ceremony. Surely such an award would then give us reason to create a similar accolade for the ‘Worlds Biggest Dick‘ whereupon a committee decide who has been the biggest dick of the year. At least awards like these would be a little more entertaining and not feel like saccharine political bullshit.
Perhaps we should just merge the Nobel Peace Prize with the MTV video music awards. At least that way Republicans like Joe Wilson could clamber onto the stage, Kanye West style, and ruin the ‘Barack Stars’ acceptance speech with an awkward ode to a some bemused white Senator sitting in the audience trying not to look mortified.
Maybe I shouldn’t make light of this. The Nobel Peace Prize isn’t supposed to be a prop of showbiz bling. Previous winners have included Nelson Mandela, Mother Theresa, Aung San Suu Kyi, and Martin Luther King, Jr. But at the time of writing this several polls showed that most people feel that President Obama doesn’t deserve the prize, yet.
So, what do you think? Was there someone more deserving of the prize? Does this even matter? Who would you give the award to if you were on the Nobel Committee?
—
The Wizard of Oslo
SNL lampoons President Obama (Video)
In Defense of Obama’s Nobel Peace Prize
The Obameter: Tracking Obama’s Campaign Promises
Thank God that’s over
Wrote the following comment on Oct 9, 2009 at 1:07 pm
What most shocks me is the reaction from the right wing, I can understand people in other countries being unhappy with his selection but for Americans to be angery over what is basically an honor to America is despicable.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 9, 2009 at 6:05 pm
I think that Obama was prematurely given this reward, which is to say that he clearly has the potential to merit it, but he still needs to work the fields, so to speak, so that the seeds he has sown can come to fruition.
Perhaps it is cynical, but it seems to me that he was given this as an affirmation of his multilateral approach to international relations in contrast to Bush’s unilateral (bullying) approach. Implicit in this award is an indictment of Bush’s presidency. Also, even though this may be a stretch, Obama’s demeanor, his progressive cosmopolitan outlook, is expressive of European values, and so the Nobel committee probably just connected with him on that level.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 9, 2009 at 6:13 pm
Oh, and riffing off of the subtext of your title for this piece, just as the best sex is often the sex where there has been extended foreplay that creates a crescendo that heightens the pleasure of climax, so it is with receiving rewards for accomplishments that we have worked long and hard to obtain.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 9, 2009 at 7:54 pm
“Worlds Biggest Dick” Now there’s an award ceremony I would watch!
Simon, I think you’re onto something with that. You could start a whole Saturday night TV show too. ‘The Dick Factor,’ ‘Britain’s got dick’ etc.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 9, 2009 at 8:40 pm
The Great Leftist Conspiracy also includes the Nobel Prize Committee.
No surprise there – but this fake prize means nothing in the real world.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 9, 2009 at 9:48 pm
One true American, is that because the prize is European? The oscars are cool though, right?
Wrote the following comment on Oct 9, 2009 at 10:54 pm
I don’t begrudge him the prize, but he doesn’t deserve it!
If it goes to a political leader, then it should be for ACTION above and beyond the call of duty…not just for TALKING about peace!
For instance, has he kept his promise and closed down Guantanamo? No.
Has he pulled us out of Iraq and ended the senseless killings? No.
Has he ended the war in Afghanistan? No.
In fact, he’s considering SENDING 40-50,000 more soldiers there, acts of WAR and VIOLENCE, not PEACE! I could mention other things, but you get my point!
In sum, he ‘talks the talk, but he doesn’t walk the walk!’
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 12:01 am
Republicans are all bitching about this not because he doesn’t yet deserve it (which I happen to think is actually the case) but because they are just sore over the fact that not a single republican has ever won the nobel peace prize. Oh sure, they’ll say it’s a leftist crock of shit, but if one of their won such an accolade do you think they would return it and say thanks but no thanks?
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 1:05 am
Obama said “to be honest, I do not feel I deserve to be in the company” of previous winners, “transformative figures who’ve been honored by this prize, men and women who’ve inspired me and inspired the entire world through their courageous pursuit of peace.”
That’s the first thing this chump has ever said that I can agree with.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 2:07 am
What a great effort by the Nobel Committee to award the Peace Prize to President Obama. In the few months he has been in office he has shown the world and the United States that he is serious about doing something concrete about the pressing problems we face in modern society. My unwavering support for his programs will continue. God Bless America and this great President!
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 2:41 am
“Barack Star” LOL!!
Clever play on words, I like it.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 4:27 am
Maybe Obama doesn’t deserve the prize, but now he will try to deserve it =) That can be seen as a way of trying to conditioning him. If so, it was a great idea!
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 4:35 am
In fairness Stan, he never said he was going to pull out of Afghanistan, he always maintained that the real threat was Afghanistan and not Iraq.
He can’t just pull out of Iraq can he? That would be as irresponsible as starting the war in the first place. Same goes for Guantanamo, that’s another big legal mess brought about by the previous administration.
Give the guy a break, you can’t undo 8 years of mess in a year!
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 4:41 am
Susan Boyle…by happenstance, not design…did more to bring peace to a hate filled world than Obama and she would hardly have been a candidate for the prize. At least with her, for fleeting moments people from virtually every country put down their thoughts of hate…and just listened to an ordinary person rise above the short deck of cards she was given. Her skin color didn’t matter. Nor her sex. Nor her religious or political beliefs. No one even asked where she stood on an issue. She was just a human being like all of us. Obama is hardly in that league.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 5:10 am
@ chaseangus – LOL! Go back to watching TV. You intellect is more suited to commercials and prime time tripe.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 5:19 am
Candy Kaine, I think you meant “Your (notice the “r”) intellect is more suited to commercials and prime time tripe.”
You might want to have a secure grip on proper grammar before insulting someone’s intelligence.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 5:54 am
Well that surely has to be the first time that President Obama has been comparred to Susan Boyle. Susan Boyle! LOL. Genius, pure genius!
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 6:10 am
Look, the President is fostering world peace. But the reasons I voted for him I still have not seen any results on. What happened to bring our boys home from Iraq, ending torture, closing Gitmo, regulation on the banking industry and wall street for mismanagement of funds and tax payers dollars, the repeal of don’t ask don’t tell… I still hold out hope that real change will take place and I know that some of this issues we are talking about are extremely complicated and can’t be resolved in one day, but some of these should have already been enacted. I am starting to lose faith thinking it is just business as usual. Let us all put aside partisanship and do what is best for WE THE PEOPLE after all that is why we formed this Union.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 7:59 am
Come on atexasdelite, Rome wasn’t built in a day! This President hasn’t even been in office a year yet. It always takes longer to fix something that’s broke than the time it took to break it.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 12:45 pm
I couldn’t agree with you more, Simon.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 4:14 pm
I agree Simon. He needs to do something to deserve this award. What has he done??
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 5:44 pm
Barack Obama got elected with the slogan “YES WE CAN” and thanks to the absolute obstruction of the Republicans and racists we’ve shown the world that the slogan should have actually read “NO WE FUCKING CAN’T!”
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 8:05 pm
Paige, call me a cynical old git but I am not quite sure that he would have swept to victory in the election with the slogan “NO WE FUCKING CAN’T!”
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 8:40 pm
I also hate that expression “leader of the free world.” It stinks of pompous self important bullshit! I’ve been to America a few times and while I like the place I don’t see it as being the shimmering beacon of freedom that it likes to have everyone believe it is.
Does Obama deserve the prize? Well heck, I don’t know. Probably not yet, but one things for sure, Bush and his like certainly don’t!
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 9:41 pm
Kanye West 2012! Come on, you know you want to watch a Presidential debate between that pillock and Sarah Palin.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 10, 2009 at 10:35 pm
What a joke this guy hasn’t done anything right, he is a liar, and a theif, he works for the global elite bankers and corporations. He didn’t prosecute the bush administration for torture. He didn’t look into 911, he keeps pushing the global warming crap. What a joke, i guess everyone is corrupt now huh. Spit Spit Spit
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 12:09 am
This really is a joke. I have seen this type of rewarding the empty suits before in aviation. But this is really sad. The US is in really huge trouble, huge inflation, end of dollar as global standard, and foreign reserve are just around the corner. Obama is increasing spending just as it becomes clear that VERY soon the US government will have to renege on the promises of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. What is going on? This is not adult behavior. Prepare for very hard times.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 2:00 am
I am excited for President Barack Obama. It is rare that with so much hate from the Republicans and people of hate in the U.S., that President Obama still determines to accomplish what he promised for the American People. Despite the fight, he has created new laws for Credit Cards, given rebates, given back a little extra in the average American’s paycheck. For 8 years we were ignored. What we thought and desired did not matter. Our taxes were raised while Corporate taxes and taxes on the rich were lowered. While Wall Street got greedy and almost took down the US, the average American was the one hurt the most. Losing a job and having no money trumps losing millions in the stock market if you have millions left.
Losing your home and you families being on the street was not something that was thought about and considered when relaxing or eliminating regulations, but here we are. I say “Thank you Nobel Peace Prize Committee” for selecting our President. What we can do is support him and be proud that our President will fight to help even those that oppose him. That is a blessing and incredible pressure, but we can also support him. He said with our help we will change. Yes We Can, takes “WE” together.
Help Him. Don’t Hate On Him. I am Proud of Him. I am Proud of Us as Americans. Because We As A Country Demanded Change, Got Change And Will Continue To Fight Beside President Obama Until We Continue Manifestation Of Change. GOD Bless America. The Hatters Can’t Stop, What The People Demanded. CHANGE. YES WE WILL !!!!
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 4:16 am
CONGRATULATIONS PRESIDENT OBAMA. Maybe a little early in your administration to be receiving such a prize but I, as an American am happy for you and our country. The GOP, birthers, and teabaggers, must be miserable today. But the rest of America is extremely proud.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 4:43 am
zionist!!!!
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 4:44 am
This is funny. People, Obama has a purpose. This isn’t about politics. Obama has the favor of God on his life. I knew this when he was running as a candidate. All I heard was he has no experience. Now we hear the same thing again, he has done nothing. If he had done nothing, the republicans and his opposition would not be in such an up roar about him EVERY day. Every move he makes is criticized daily. To me him doing Nothing means things would be as if Bush was still the President. So he has done something to have his haters attempting to discredit him and block everything he wants to do.
To all you who have no idea of what favor from God means, please look it up. God placed Obama in his position and it is that favor which NO MAN can take from him. So you all can spend all day questioning why and jumping up and down in protest, but it will not do any good.
Obama has a purpose and he will mend bridges across the nations that have been torn down. Obama is a child of God and your words, actions, hatred, nothing will prosper against him. So, you may as well support your president and relish in his accomplishments because that is also Americas Accomplishments. God has placed this man in his position and until he accomplishes what God intends for him to do, he will stand and he will succeed.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 5:36 am
I think it’s obvious that the prize is awarded as much for potential than it is for accomplishment. Al Gore didn’t solve global warming; Jimmy Carter didn’t bring peace to the middle east.
How dangerous did the world seem in late October 2008, compared to Jan 21, 2009? I think the pride a lot of us felt in electing Obama, coupled with the relief that Bush was finally on the way out is similar to what the NPP committee is trying to express.
All that said, it seems a bit premature to me, too.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 6:08 am
I agree with you Simon! I think they meant to give him an Oscar. There are so many awards these days its easy to confuse them. This award ceremony would be an ideal place for Kanye West to make his comeback; “Yeah B, good job an Imma let you finish… but Taylor Swift did more for peace in 2009 than anybody, yo.”
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 11:02 am
I find it interesting how vicious and underhand the Republicans get when they are not in power, just look at how they went after Clinton.
I also find it interesting that the Republicans, many of whom are very religious, seem to display little of the values that Jesus preached about. It all seems to be about prosperity teaching and little about showing love, grace and compassion. How can any Christian think social healthcare is a bad thing for example?
The more I learn about America, the more I’m glad I don’t live there, the attitude seems to be, if you’re down on your luck, tough.
I think its the leader of the selfish and greedy world.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 11:03 am
and now with his recent comments about gays in the military, Republicans will be foaming at the mouth :-)
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 12:21 pm
@ Hadenough09. Which god are you talking about hadenough09 because my god said he didn’t promise Obama anything, and that the CFR and the Bilderbergs made there promise to Obama not god.
You must be talking about the god that said we should kill iraqi’s. Or the god that said we should torture. Or the god from the synagogue of satan. Hmmm……
Now i will pray for you, and your savior Obama.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 2:02 pm
Nobel Peace Prize for what? For not being George W Bush?
Whatever happened to awarding for deeds actually done??
Nobel Peace Prize has turned into a joke. The prize is now cheapened
Hamad
Orlando, FL
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 2:49 pm
The Nobel committee is charged with finding the person who has done the most to advance the cause of peace. That person is Obama, not for anything he’s done, but for what he represents to the rest of the world. Of course, this is in the context of 8 years of Bush: ‘anyone but Bush’ had a fighting chance to win this years peace prize. To the rest of the world, Obama’s election represented a ground-shift, the hope that the worlds overwhelming nuclear power wasn’t hopelessly as backward ethically as the double elections of Bush had doomed people into fearing. To us here in America, it seems stupid. But this is clearly in the context of the rest of the world, to the power the POTUS holds to destroy the world if he/she wants, and to the helplessness THEY feel when we fill that position with someone as backward as Bush.
To take one example: Bush promoted missile defense in Eastern Europe to protect Europe from Iranian missiles. This fooled no one and by Bush’s last year Russia was vocally and militarily flexing its considerable muscle to get those batteries removed. In essence, Bush was taking us all willingly toward a nuclear war with Russia, which Bush and Company expected America to survive (thanks to our missile defense). Of course, Russia would die and due to nuclear fallout, so would most of China, most of Japan, and most of the Koreas. But, these are the people who were leading America, at the time. The ELECTION of Obama ended that fear, and Obama is removing those batteries, and Russia has indicated a newfound friendliness toward America. For THIS ISSUE ALONE, the Nobel Prize committee would be remiss in not at least nominating Obama for a Peace Prize (or, in fact, ‘anyone but Bush’). For THIS ISSUE ALONE, Obama may well have done more to forward the cause of PEACE in the world than anyone else alive. Strange, but true, because as so many have indicated, he’s done nothing to deserve it, and is still killing people in Afghanistan.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 8:08 pm
prez obama is a fucker and fuckers deserve to get fucked up!!!! hell get fucked soon enough!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wrote the following comment on Oct 11, 2009 at 9:02 pm
J1985, you appear to be an idiot.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 12, 2009 at 4:11 am
I agreed with you… I still kinda agree with you. Has Obama done enough> NOt sure. But, this helps explain why he was nominated for it And I think it makes a fialry good point and I can understand it MORE than I did.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMJuEOaF84o&feature=player_embedded#
Wrote the following comment on Oct 12, 2009 at 5:40 am
I didn’t vote for Mr Obama and I don’t really agree with him on much of anything, but it makes me sad that people are critisizing him for getting this prize that he didn’t seek.
I’m a republican, and while I would have preferred to see John McCain in the White House, I am pleased to see an American being awarded such a great honor. I only hope that he will earn it in the coming years, heaven knows we need a good leader and as the majority elected him as our President then I hope and pray that he becomes one of the true great leaders worthy of the phrase that Simon so hates.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 13, 2009 at 2:48 am
obama is easily the worst ever President this country has had. you wouldn’t understand that though because your a brit and so you are far away and not able to see the truth. obama is a radical who hides the fact he hates white folk. we already know he is a muslim and now I see on your BBC that he is also trying to promote a gay agenda which will put this nations children at risk from the gays and child molesters. his whole presidency is a lie and is shrouded in propeganda. democrats like to call themselfs progressive but a vote for a dem is a vote for the disolvement of marriage, gay rights, the extermination of children, the unfair promotion of blacks and mexicans, the relaxing of border controls. i felt safe when president bush was out there taking action to protect us. sure he wasn’t popular but bravery against corruption is often met with resistance. read your bible and the stories of jesus!!! true americans won’t put up with obamas crap for long.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 13, 2009 at 8:45 am
Simon, I think you should be considered for the worlds biggest dick award, though perhaps you didn’t quite mean it like that. ;-)
Wrote the following comment on Oct 13, 2009 at 4:39 pm
Jeff, the rubbish you anti Obama people come out with is amazing.
Obama is not a Muslim, I can’t believe you guys are still perpetuating this myth, you just think if someone has a Muslim name, that somehow makes them a Muslim, your ignorance is shocking. What evidence do you have that he is a muslim?
He hates white people, please provide your evidence.
Please explain how being gay makes you a child molester, take a look at the stats and you’ll see that the majority of child abuse is perpetrated by heterosexual men.
You felt safe when Bush was in power because he was as ignorant as you, the irony is Bush made the world a less safe place by his actions, there was no threat of terrorism from Irag before he invaded it, they had no weapons of mass destruction.
Us Brits have had to deal with terrorism for a lot longer than you, and some of your countrymen even supported the Irish “freedom fighters” financially. We learnt you can’t beat terrorism with force, at some point you need to have a dialogue and reach an understanding.
I suggest you go and get an education, and stop regurgitating the propaganda Fox News feeds you, your inane and ill informed rambling is embarrassing to anyone with half a brain .
I find it ironic that people like you are so anti Muslim, anti Arab when you’re legalism and morals are so similar, your views are really not too far apart. More and more the world looks at you, not as the leaders of the free world but the young upstarts who is throwing a tantrum, grow up.
The rest of the world rejoiced when Obama was elected, you and those like you are just too stupid to understand what he’s trying to do.
Wrote the following comment on Oct 15, 2009 at 3:23 pm
I like Mrs Obama! One day to be like her would yes please!!!
Wrote the following comment on Oct 31, 2009 at 6:24 pm
I feel ya, Simon. It was disheartening to hear so many fellow Americans joke about how he did not deserve the prize. Even though it was shocking to everyone, I’m sure that Obama himself felt the shock most of all and probably did not want the added pressure of performing up to Nobel standards when he has such a long road ahead of him. But instead of at least being grateful that some of the international community is happy with our president, too many Americans complained about how it was political.