Obama's Prize

My wonderful and beautiful niece suggested the topic of my next blog post and, of course, it has to be about Obama's winning the Nobel Peace Prize. I'd already made a quick response to her on Facebook with the intent of fleshing out those statements over here but in thinking of what I had to say and how I was going to say it, I see that Peggy Noonan has pretty much done all of the heavy lifting for me:

It is absurd and it is embarrassing. It would even be infuriating if it were not such a declaration of emptiness.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee has embarrassed itself and cheapened a great award that had real meaning.

Neither Noonan or I blame Obama for this clunky move by the Nobel committee; he has no say in what they will or won't do. But you should read Noon's whole column, of course, because she makes all of the points I'd like to make only she does it a whole lot better.

One difference: I think Obama should've taken the high road and declined the award - it's too late now, he's already said he'd go to Oslo to accept it - but Noonan thinks Obama should use the occasion to deliver a speech building up America rather than his usual speech of apologizing for America:

Mr. Obama should get the spotlight off himself and put it on the great thing that yielded him up and made him possible. America is misunderstood these days, and he could perform a public service by helping people understand it better.

Love, after all, never harms the world, and as an added practical bonus such a speech would obscurely embarrass the committee, which won't be able to criticize the thoughts of its hero. That would be pleasurable for Americans, and therefore helpful to Mr. Obama.

This might to some degree redeem this wicked and ignorant award, this mischievous honor.

Couldn't've said it better myself.