In the wee hours of this morning, I am remembering the Scripture that Barack Obama quoted at the end of his Democratic Nomination acceptance speech on 8/28/2009:
"Hold firmly, without wavering,
to the hope that we confess."
to the hope that we confess."
I haven't forgotten that. By choosing him, the Nobel Prize Committee hasn't either.
Yes. The idea of "hope," Obama's promise of that, doesn't HAVE to be as empty as his critics say it is.
ReplyDeleteI like that he acknowledged that his accomplishments so far don't make him deserving of the Prize, and that he's taking it instead as a call to action. The Prize committee mostly seemed to put it that way (though they did also provide a list of accomplishments that Obama's achieved already, accomplishments the right prefers to ignore, in their claims that prizes are for things you've done, and that he just hasn't had time to do enough to earn this one). I have serious doubts about just how "peaceful" many of Obama's presidential actions have been so far -- he hasn't done much yet to curtail the American empire's rapacious, war-mongering ways, and indeed is ramping them up in some respects -- but I'm reservedly okay with the Prize committee's apparent effort to applaud and encourage the direction he may well be moving in, towards greater "Peace." Also, I do not agree with those who say he got it just for not being George Bush.
A good quote for all of us to remember.
ReplyDeleteMore than achievement, this award is about approach: about utilizing diplomacy over confrontation in dealing with multiple crises in the world. Jacob Heilbrum over at the Huffington Post really laid down the essence of the award yesterday, when he said:
"It would be hard to think of a more electrifying and deserved recipient of this year's Nobel Peace prize than President Obama... Obviously, the award is based on the hope that Obama will achieve real progress in advancing diplomacy rather than confrontation around the globe. To some degree, he already has."
I wish that more people would be proud of this honor rather than picking on him for the prize. Most who are doing the attacking don't seem to realize that there have been many people awarded the prize who were in the process of their peace work. The prize is really one not just for achievement, but for the effort needed to meet the goals.
ReplyDeletePresident Obama is a fine winner and should be honored and the country should be overjoyed that we have a leader who is actually striving to not be hated by the world, who is striving to promote peace, who is striving to help the people in the nation, who is striving to better the budget deficit that we have incurred over the years.
Congratulations President!
Obama undoubtedly deserves this prestigious honor. Granted, I understand how some may feel that his Nobel Prize is premature, but what people need to understand is that the Nobel award does not just recognize accomplishments only.
ReplyDeleteAlready, President Obama has committed enourmous amounts of effort towards healing and strengthening our international relations. That alone should count for something.
And Kit, it's good to hear from you! I haven't updated my blog in a while because of 9-to-5 duties, but I still have some essays I plan to work on. I'm also not planning to see Chris Rock's "Good Hair" flick, mainly because I feel that it won't tell me anything that I haven't already learned about its subject matter.
I was just over at Very Smart Brothers, and I loved the Panama Jackson said it: "It ain't like he gave it to himself."
ReplyDelete