Obama is being honored (primarily) because he is not George W. Bush! And it’s debatable whether he or Bush should be more insulted by this. Not to mention the insult to all of the truly accomplished people (like Nelson Mandela) who took such pride in being awarded this prize.
But I’m sure Obama will be gracious, and will humbly accept his prize for what it is.
[Obama awarded (affirmative action) Nobel Peace Prize, TIJ, October 10, 2009]
When George W. Bush declared that he had to wage war to make peace he was roundly criticized. It was more than a little ironic therefore to see Barack Obama being roundly applauded today when he said essentially the same thing during his acceptance speech for the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize.
I can only assume it was thus because – using the rhetorical skills that won him this hallowed prize – Obama spoke so aspirationally about reconciling Ghandi’s philosophy of nonviolence with Clausewitz’s categorical imperative of waging war as diplomacy by other means.
But his speech was also distinguished by a robust defense of America’s exceptional history of expending blood and treasure in defense of freedom and democracy around the world that can be fairly described as, well, Bush light….
Frankly, this inconsistency is such that only a wanton suspension of disbelief could possibly explain awarding this prize to Obama – who is not only waging two wars but deploying tactics as commander in chief that were condemned as violations of international law when Bush deployed them.
Of course, it is a testament to his character and good sense that nobody is more mindful of this inconsistency than he.
I receive this honor with deep gratitude and great humility. It is an award that speaks to our highest aspirations… I am at the beginning, and not the end, of my labors on the world stage. Compared to some of the giants of history who’ve received this prize – Schweitzer and King; Marshall and Mandela – my accomplishments are slight…
I cannot argue with those who find [others] to be far more deserving of this honor than I.
Yet it’s an indication of how fickle admiration for Obama can be that Norwegians are reportedly expressing shock and dismay that he jetted all the way to their country to accept this prize but refused to attend some of the other traditional events associated with it, including a television interview, a children’s event promoting peace, a music concert and an exhibition in his honor at the Nobel peace center.
But nothing has incurred their jingoistic wrath in this respect quite like his decision to decline an invitation to lunch with Norwegian King Harald V, an event every prize winner invariably attends with due deference.
The American president is acting like an elephant in a porcelain shop. In Norwegian culture, it’s very important to keep an agreement. We’re religious about that, and Obama’s actions have been clumsy. You just don’t say no to an invitation from a European king. Maybe Obama’s advisers are not very educated about European culture, but he is coming off as rude, even if he doesn’t mean to.
(Norwegian public-relations expert Rune Morck-Wergeland)
Indeed, the irony can’t be lost on any Norwegian that this is the kind of arrogant behavior they would have expected from Bush….
So much for change they can believe in, eh?
I just hope Obama’s spinmeisters are prepared to counter the Muslim-related inferences right-wing nutjobs back home are bound to propagate about him bowing down before the King of Saudi Arabia but refusing to lunch with the King of Norway.
Never mind that if he attended all of the other leisurely events these same nutjobs would criticize him for hanging out with royalty while American soldiers are dying in Iraq and Afghanistan….
Finally, many people are still wondering what that mysterious light hovering over Norway was on the night before he arrived. But, despite claims that it was generated by a UFO or the failed test lunch of a Russian missile, die-hard believers (like me) will tell you that it was just a celestial sign heralding the Nobel coming of Barack Obama….
Meanwhile over in Copenhagen:
With all due respect to the Norwegians, their shock and dismay pale in comparison to the existential indignation being hurled at Obama by leaders of developing nations attending the summit on climate change in Copenhagen.
For they are accusing this Nobel peace laureate of nothing short of rank hypocrisy for, on the one hand, delivering lofty rhetoric about responsible global leadership in his acceptance speech; whilst on the other, trying to ram through a climate change treaty to save the planet that requires little sacrifice by the United States but burdens developing nations with unfair and unjust commitments.
Nevertheless, I do not think it is wise for (already marginalized) African and Caribbean leaders to risk undermining what little regard Obama has for them over this issue. After all, given that virtually none of the countries that ratified the Kyoto Protocol honored the commitments they made to reduce CO2 emissions, chances are very good that commitments made pursuant to a Copenhagen treaty will suffer a similar fate.
Not to mention that fallout from those hacked emails and irreconcilable differences between the US and China will probably render all of their indignation irrelevant, if not moot.
Related commentaries:
Obama awarded … Nobel…
Emails expose scientific doubts about climate change
* This commentary was originally published yesterday morning and updated last night
Obama Nobel Prize says
So what if the President had decided to send 40,000 troops to Afghanistan? Think that would have been a harder sell to the Nobel Prize Committee?
I’m thinking that 30K was the number that kept the Peace Prize from being rescinded. It is just not right to win the Nobel Peace Prize and take the advice of a 5 star general on conducting a war. If he would have gone with the 40K they would have pulled the award and, well, its double jeopardy with those Nobel Prizes – once they pull the first one for too many troops they never give another one even when you retire and have nothing better to do.
That’s our President – he knows how to work the ropes.