By Scott Tibbs, October 16, 2009
After learning of the utterly laughable decision to give the Nobel Peace Price to President Barack Obama, I have to wonder if the people making the decision have been indoctrinated to sing the same song praising the President that a group of children were instructed to sing by a government school in February. To review, part of the lyrics are as follows:
He said that all must lend a hand
To make this country strong again
Mmm, mmm, mmm!
Barack Hussein Obama
He said we must be fair today
Equal work means equal pay
Mmm, mmm, mmm!
Barack Hussein Obama
So what exactly has President Obama done to deserve the Peace Prize? Nominations were closed two weeks after he was inaugurated, certainly not enough time for him (or any President) to accomplish a great deal toward peace. But even in the months since then, what has he accomplished? He has not gotten us out of Iraq, which was a focus of his campaign. The situation in Afghanistan has not improved. Tensions in the Middle East have escalated, especially regarding Iran's ambitions to have a nuclear weapons program.
So why did Obama get the Nobel peace Prize? Most likely, Obama won because he is not George W. Bush. Make no mistake about it: this was a direct slap at Bush, who is despised by many world leaders for his foreign policy - especially for the war in Iraq. This was a way to get one final slap at Bush, by awarding it to a man who has done nothing to deserve it but is a political opponent of Bush and has pledged to reverse many Bush policies.
Does the Nobel Peace prize have any credibility at this point? In the 1990's, the Peace Prize was awarded to a terrorist, mass murderer and war criminal named Yasser Arafat. Al Gore won the prize a few years ago not for resolving or preventing military conflict, but for his environmental activism. What should be a way to recognize genuine achievements for peace has instead become a way to place a political stamp of approval on those anointed by the committee, or in this case, to take a political swipe at a hated former U.S. President.
