Eyes on the Prize...

This morning, President Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. After making a very modest acceptance speech, the President announced that he would donate the accompanying cash prize ($1.4 million… chump change it ain’t) to charity. Among the expected partisan shit-storm surrounding this great honor, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele was quoted as saying, “What has President Obama actually accomplished?” Even a staunch conservative named Pat Buchanan called Steele's comments "a Kanye West moment". Let me spell some of it out for ya, Mickey…

First and foremost, Obama ended the eight year era of “cowboy diplomacy” and unilateralism that was propagated by the Bush administration. Instead of “Yee-haw, I’m goin’ in… Cover me!” President Obama relied more on “Speak softly and carry a big stick.” Wasn’t that quote attributed to one of the other sitting U.S. Presidents to win the Peace Prize? Teddy Roosevelt, I believe it was. Rather than “stay the course no matter what changes” our President engages other nations, friend and foe, to achieve a mutually satisfactory conclusion. Didn’t we have a sitting President that won the Peace Prize for that, too? If you answered Woodrow Wilson, you win today’s no-prize!

Then there’s the whole issue of climate change. Instead of ignorance, denial, repudiation, lies and outright stupidity towards the whole concept of man-made climate change, Obama has acknowledged that this is one of the most important and difficult issues we face as a planet today and has started us down the long road of moving to cleaner and more renewable energy sources. That’s more that any President before Obama has been able to accomplish. Didn’t we have a former Vice-President that got the Peace Prize for his work battling climate change? Al Gore, wasn’t it?

Finally we come to the vast improvement in the world’s view of America. Instead of rampaging through situations trying to hammer every problem into the administration’s image, our diplomatic corps is trying, at the direction of the President, to find peaceful solutions to the world’s conflicts. Using the carrot and keeping the stick in reserve. Didn’t we have a former President that won the Peace Prize for helping do just that? President Carter, as I recall. I haven’t even started on nuclear non-proliferation. Hell, Bush couldn’t even pronounce it! Have I also mentioned working tirelessly to undo the clusterfuck that was left by Mr. Bush and his administration?

Does President Obama have a long record of successful conclusions? Not yet. "I do not feel that I deserve to be in the company of so many transformative figures that have been honored by this prize," he said. "I will accept this award as a call to action, a call for all nations to confront the challenges of the 21st century." Some of us feel that, while a bit premature, that if President Obama’s reach does not exceed his grasp, he could wind up wining this august prize again. Chairman Steele, stick to being the poorly trained lapdog to the intellectually deficient and the morally bankrupt. It is, after all, what you do best.