Nobel intentions

Editorials

Guest Book

October 19, 2009

ARMAND NARDI Register Publisher The Daily Register Mon Oct 19, 2009, 10:51 AM CDT

The reaction to President Barack Obama's selection as the 2009 winner of the Nobel Peace Prize was predictable. Conservative Republicans declared utter contempt, while Democratic liberal counterparts hailed the decision as a fitting tribute to a new order.

Mostly cited was the Euro-intelligentsia’s overly exuberant love of all things Barack Obama. Let’s give him the Peace Prize, they seem to be saying, because he has such great potential and because he’s not George W. Bush.

Many praised it as the recognition of America's return to the stage of multinational leadership.

But universally across the swinging pendulum of ideology and conventional wisdom there was one common reaction over the choice by the Swedish Academy that administers the awards named in memory of the man who invented dynamite.

Complete surprise.

Even Obama voiced bewilderment over his elevation to the heights of Mother Teresa, Henry Kissinger, Theodore Roosevelt and Martin Luther King - after only nine months in the White House and less than one term in the U.S. Senate.

Was it deserved at this stage of the new president's career?

Of course not.

Could the decision be justified by a lengthy record of achievement in seeking peace? At a time when he is managing two wars and in angst over whether to send more troops to Afghanistan?

The same answer applies.

So in reality, President Obama was handed the Nobel Peace Prize for achievements not yet registered - awarded for just heading in the right direction.

Former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton has said the president should refuse the prize politely and ask the Nobel committee to reconsider him at the end of a full term. Obama said he would accept it; leaving Le Duc Tho the North Vietnamese negotiator in peace talks the only person who has ever rejected it.

To his credit, President Obama said he didn’t deserve the recognition and that he would be donating the $1.4 million cash award to charity - But couldn’t resist the opportunity for political sermonizing: “I do not view it as recognition of my own accomplishments, but rather as an affirmation of American leadership on behalf of aspirations held by people in all nations.”

Nobel laureate Lech Walesa, who received the prize in 1983 for putting his life in danger fighting to end Poland’s communist dictatorship stated, “So soon? Too early. He has no contributions so far. He is only beginning to act.”

So with the establishment of a new precedent - good intentions - as criteria in administering the world's most prestigious awards, I would like to submit my name to the Norwegian committee for consideration.

I’ve been paving the road for 46 years.

Armand Nardi is publisher of the Gainesville Daily Register. He can be contacted at: anardi@ntin.net.

Text Only

Editorials

Pub.Pen 5-13
Did you know that exactly 100 years ago the term Mother’s Day was
officially named and celebrated on the second Sunday in May?

May 16, 2012
Space Shuttle Launch was a Sight to Behold
The mood was relaxed and the attentive crowd was watching the horizon
for a signal.

May 8, 2012
PUB PEN 4-22
We're missing a very special day. There's not even a reminder on the
calendar anymore. Like Mother's Day, Father's Day and birthdays, it's
a day we need to remember but so often can forget.

April 24, 2012
PUB PEN 4-15
Earth Day is next Sunday. That’s not a big deal for most of us but it probably should be. After all, we only have one Earth.

April 16, 2012
Pub Pen 3-11
Authorities arrested a man in Austin late Monday afternoon for threatening to shoot up and bomb random schools across the country.

April 16, 2012
Pub Pen 3-4
First, I just want to say “thank you” to all of our readers who chipped in to help Baby Brandon. Register reporter Heather Pilkington wrote about nine-month-old Brandon in Friday’s edition.

April 16, 2012
Pub Pen 4-8
This week is Medal of Honor week in Gainesville. We have the privilege to welcome fifteen of our country’s Medal of Honor recipients and roll out the red carpet for them.

April 9, 2012
Publisher's Pen: Let's say something good about Gainesville
This week some cheerleading went on about this great place we call Gainesville.

February 19, 2012
Edit 2-13
What a wonderful weekend it was for the arts in Gainesville. Art shows, live theater, and arts benefits filled the past two days and evenings — right here in our city.

February 13, 2012
Publisher's Pen
Plato was credited for saying, "When there is an income tax, the just man will pay more than the unjust man on the same amount of income."

February 12, 2012
More Editorials Headlines

Who do you think will win the Republican nomination for President?

Editorials

Search Results

Guest Book

Nobel intentions

Who do you think will win the Republican nomination for President?

Site Map

Contact Us