Why Obama Should Not Have Received the Peace Prize — Yet

President Obama's only real diplomatic accomplishment so far has been to change the direction and tone of American foreign policy from unilateral bullying to multilateral listening and cooperating. That's important, to be sure, but not nearly enough. The Prize is really more of Booby Prize for Obama's predecessor. Had the world not suffered eight years of George W. Bush, Obama would not be receiving the Prize. He's prizeworthy and praiseworthy only by comparison.

-Robert Reich

This is an odd award. You'd expect it to come later in Obama's presidency and tied to some particular event or accomplishment. But the unmistakable message of the award is one of the consequences of a period in which the most powerful country in the world, the 'hyper-power' as the French have it, became the focus of destabilization and in real if limited ways lawlessness. A harsh judgment, yes. But a dark period. And Obama has begun, if fitfully and very imperfectly to many of his supporters, to steer the ship of state in a different direction. If that seems like a meager accomplishment to many of the usual Washington types it's a profound reflection of their own enablement of the Bush era and how compromised they are by it, how much they perpetuated the belief that it was 'normal history' rather than dark aberration.

-Josh Marshall

This is soooo awkward. This is like when someone gives you a $400 vacuum cleaner that you can't return. Actually? Worse. This is a horrible, misguided, not-bright idea by THOSE MEDDLING SWEDES that has just entirely disrupted our political conversations and plans for most of the next month.

-Choire Sicha

One thing is certain - President Obama won't be receiving any awards from Americans for job creation, fiscal responsibility, or backing up rhetoric with concrete action.

-Michael Steele (this guy should make Republicans wish Bush & Rove were still around - what an idiot!)

The Nobel Prize fallout will be the tipping point for Obama to start plowing through cigs again. Lock it down.

-Bill Simmons

Well, in that case, let's just give Matt Wieters the 2009 MVP award!

-Keith Law

So, the internet is exploding this morning with the news that President Obama has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The President says he's "humbled," some pundits say he should turn it down, everyone's got an opinion. What's yours?

How arrogant of anyone to see this from a U.S. perspective, it is just proof of how desperate the Bush/Cheney junta made the rest of the world.

It's not Obama's prize. This prize is for the people of the United States for showing the world how a cosmopolitan and multi-ethnic democracy can work.

I'm a big supporter of the President, but along the prestige continuum, the Nobel just moved away from the Congressional-Medal-of-Honor type award and a lot closer to the Mira-Sorvino-Winning-an-Oscar end of things.

I think the popular media meme is missing the point. Is Obama being awarded for his accomplishments as President? Or is he being awarded for changing the international climate? Obama did not start gathering the world's attention on January 20, 2009. As the first serious African American presidential candidate, the first presidential nominee of a major American political party, and during his campaign, he was a voice of reason, a supporter of peace. Let's not buy into the ridiculous idea that his eligibility for this award started on Jan. 20.

-Andrew Golis first, then Open Thread Contributors. Also follow TPM's live reaction wire.

I’m really excited that the Birfers, Becks, Oxycontin abusers, and pseudo-plumbers in Wingnuttia will now give me enough material to post on Cyn-C for the next few months. Put your ponchos on Cynics, the spittle is about to fly.

-Cynical C

President Obama is gambling that America is now mature enough to understand that machismo is not foreign policy, and that grandstanding on the global stage just won't succeed. In a new world, with other countries more powerful and confident, America's success — its security, its prosperity — depends on working with others. It's a big, bold gambit. The Nobel committee wanted to encourage this sentiment. I hope Americans will see that and encourage the path President Obama is taking

-Fareed Zakaria (This "article" is simply a transcript of Zakaria's talking head appearance - pathetic.)

What's with all these Kanye-Taylor Swift-President Obama jokes?

-Paolo Lim (amen)

The French have got all kinds of wild descriptions for eggs cooked to various degrees of doneness, but in American culinary terms, in the ideal soft-boiled egg, the white should be completely opaque, but not to the point of rubberiness (somewhere in the range of 155 to 180 degrees), and the yolk should be completely liquid (no hotter than 158 degrees). In this way, with each spoonful, you get tender bites of soft, velvety-smooth white, bathed in a sauce of glorious, bright golden, rich, flavorful yolk. These are the type of soft boiled eggs that'll get you laid.

-Serious Eats: How to cook the perfect egg (this is important!)

Comments

[Mark Simmons]

I'm in agreement with the insightful observation of Mr. Bill Simmons.

Thanks for the article research.

[David Jacobs]

Is he your brother?

[kimmi8]

Thanks for sharing. I must reblog.

[Paolo]

hey thanks for quoting me! maybe now kanye should travel to oslo and sit in the front row.

[Xris Ernest Hall]

I'm only following this meme via twitter and TypePad (because those count as work, and reading the NY Times, etc. doesn't) and my question is: who deserved it more than Obama? And I'm not asking that rhetorically, I'm sure must be some person or group who does, I just can't think of one off the top of my head.

[Account Deleted]

The President of the 'hyper-power' received the Peace Prize. So if he got the ultimate peace price and is at the top of the hyper power it mean the hyper power is going to be a peaceful one!

[Alaina]

It is important.

[David Jacobs]

Maybe? I think it means that we're doubling down on hope, and that Obama is the tortoise, not the hare.

[Rahul Ganjoo]

Partial list here: http://bit.ly/3Dmgu

[Xris Ernest Hall]

Denis Mukwege seems like the person who should have won--there's nothing more fucked up in the whole world that anyone is dealing with than what he is.