Of course you've all hear the news by now that Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize for 2009. And what you, and pretty much everyone else in the world, have figured out by now is what a joke the prize has become.
Just what ARE the qualifications for this thing anymore? A pulse? Good (liberal) intentions? Narcissism? Bashing your own country (if it's America)? The ability to read from a tele-prompter? Sheesh...
On the brighter side, the good folks from the prize committee in Norway have given conservatives a running joke to hurl at "The One" for the rest of his time in office.
And it plays right into what has been a running joke about Obama pretty much since he became a national candidate. You know, the whole "god like", everything-to-everybody, cult phenom that he (and the press) constructed...that conservatives poked fun at somewhat successfully for about a month during the campaign, (the ad showing the Red Sea parting after some inspiration words from Obama was especially nice).
And last week the folks at Saturday Night Live finally came down off of their Obama Kook-Aid high and discovered they could make fun of him for having nothing to show in terms of achievements in spite of his image, (so effectively in fact that CNN felt the need to "fact check" the skit).
And now the good folks at the prize committee in Norway have infused a life-time of energy into the joke, ("he can win a Nobel Prize, but he can't __________________").
It seems Obama, despite his ego, is well aware of that fact. So much so that he felt the need to send out an email today (yes, I'm on his list) giving his response to the award. It's subject line is "A Call to Action".
Please. Anyway, here's the text....
Friend --
This morning, Michelle and I awoke to some surprising and humbling news. At 6 a.m., we received word that I'd been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2009.
To be honest, I do not feel that I deserve to be in the company of so many of the 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.
But I also know that throughout history the Nobel Peace Prize has not just been used to honor specific achievement; it's also been used as a means to give momentum to a set of causes.
That is why I've said that I will accept this award as a call to action, a call for all nations and all peoples to confront the common challenges of the 21st century. These challenges won't all be met during my presidency, or even my lifetime. But I know these challenges can be met so long as it's recognized that they will not be met by one person or one nation alone.
This award -- and the call to action that comes with it -- does not belong simply to me or my administration; it belongs to all people around the world who have fought for justice and for peace. And most of all, it belongs to you, the men and women of America, who have dared to hope and have worked so hard to make our world a little better.
So today we humbly recommit to the important work that we've begun together. I'm grateful that you've stood with me thus far, and I'm honored to continue our vital work in the years to come.
Thank you,
President Barack Obama
In other words, they realize this is a potential PR problem here at home, so they're going to try and spin a whole campaign around it.
And what fluff. "A call to all nations and all peoples to confront the common challenges..."
It's not a call to action for anything other than pretty much writing off the Nobel Prize as having evolved into being little more than a tool used by a bunch of Euro-trash to push a political agenda.
Obama was President for a sum total of eleven days when the Nobel Committee's nominations process was closed. Which means someone nominated him before he managed to finish moving his clothes into the White House. And then the Committee voted for him after less than eight months on the job.
Tell me that's not agenda driven.
And then there's the whole "It's not about me..." bit. Please. Everything this guy does is about him.
Oh, and maybe it's just me, but using a formal title in an email to a "supporter" seems a bit pretentious, (especially after over a year of emails (asking for money) signed "Barack".
Which just seems to underline his problem.
