Obama's Nobel Prize Is Really a Tribute to American Voters

President Obama's Nobel Peace Prize is more than anything else a tribute to America's voters. In making the award, the Nobel Committee said, "The question we have to ask is, who has done the most in the previous year to enhance peace in the world, and who has done more than Barack Obama?"

Of course the most important thing Obama did to enhance peace in the world, was to win the election - and once elected, to chart a course for American foreign policy that is fundamentally different, in both substance and tone, from that of the Bush-Cheney years.

Obama greeted the news of the award by saying it was a "call to action," and there is no doubt that it creates an even higher expectation for him to live up to in the years ahead. But more than anything else, this award celebrates the fact that American voters chose a President committed to progressive values - committed to strengthening international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples instead of pre-emptive war and the Neo-Con theories of unilateral action.

In its statement, the Committee said he had "created a new climate in international politics. ... Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world's attention and given its people hope for a better future." It continued, "His diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world's population." That is, in other words, a true commitment to democracy.

To fully appreciate the importance of Obama's election to the prospects of peace in the world, return with me to the thrilling days of yesteryear when Bush and Cheney still stalked the political earth. Think of the damage that they did in eight short years - to world peace, and to the respect and power of the United States.

• A disastrous pre-emptive war in Iraq that destroyed America's reputation, drained our treasure, cost the lives and limbs of tens of thousands of young Americans, resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi's, displaced millions more, and strengthened Iran.
• Neglect for the economic, political and military needs of the struggle in Afghanistan - leaving us with no truly good options there eight years after 9/11.
• Demonization of the United Nations that went so far that they appointed a U.N. Ambassador more interested in destroying the institution than using it for diplomacy.
• Virtual neglect of the festering problem of peace between Israel and the Palestinians.
• Abandoning the Clinton policy of engagement with North Korea that had prevented that country's development of nuclear weapons. That worked so well that North Korea got those weapons on the Bush-Cheney watch.
• Abandoning the Geneva Conventions, due process of law and the shared values of the civilized world, and instead embracing torture, rendition, the debasement of prisoners at Abu Ghraib, and detention without trial.
• For all of their tough talk about strengthening our military, they stretched it to the breaking point, so it became more difficult for America to take military action if it really were needed to maintain world peace.
• And for those who love America, one of their worst sins was that Bush and Cheney turned our country into one that polls showed - rightly or wrongly - many people in the world believed was the "greatest threat to world peace." Astounding.

The Nobel Committee gave the prize to Barack Obama because he gave the world hope that its most powerful, wealthy nation would once again provide humankind with inspiration and leadership that can be trusted and admired.

Since his election, President Obama has launched a worldwide campaign to eliminate all nuclear weapons - recognizing that controlling the proliferation of nuclear weapons is a practical impossibility unless we work to eliminate them from the globe. He has rededicated America to cope with the massive threat of climate change. He has reset our relationship with the Muslim world. He has rededicated America to the world's international institutions. And, he has begun to use all of the tools available to our country - including diplomacy - to create a more just and peaceful planet.

All of this is just the beginning of a long journey. But at least we have once again begun that journey down the right road. In and of itself that has made America safer, restored our respect in the world, and has begun to build a foundation for peace in the world over the long term.

Americans may not fully appreciate how completely they changed our relations to the rest of the world when they voted to elect Barack Obama last November. The rest of the world does. We should consider Barack Obama's Nobel peace prize as a giant gesture of gratitude.

Robert Creamer is a long time political organizer and strategist, and author of the recent book: Stand Up Straight: How Progressives Can Win, available on Amazon.com.

 

 

Comments

[Alembic]

Noble Peace Prizes for that hard to get someone this Christmas. Hurry while supplies last!!! Only $19.95 plus shipping

[Annespeaks]

Does anyone else think it's prescient that President Obama will accept the Peace Prize in Oslo the same day the new international climate treaty is to be decided?

[MaxChampion]

Spot on.

[SimJack]

Awarding the prize because the voters clearly, although not as clearly as makes me comfortable, rejected BushCheney doctrine would be enough on it's own merits (Hooray for Not BushCheney, America!) but there also may be a modicum of appreciation associated with the committee's choice extended towards us for not saddling the world with the 'John and Sarah Show' (Hooray for Not McCainPalin too, America!).

[Kevins]

Very good article--especially the reminder that the US was recently considered by the world to be the world's greatest threat to peace.... Astounding real change Obama brings.

No one has ever "achieved world peace"--not even Christ would win the Nobel Peace Prize if it were for "accomplishing" peace, an end to wars, the elimination of conflict....

What Obama did, from the morning he entered the White House, was change the environment for the whole world regarding the prospects for peace, regarding peaceful diplomatic resolutions, regarding respecting world treaties and agreements, regarding respecting the peoples of the world, regarding what had til then been the hooligan use of weapons.

Obama did EXACTLY what is the mission of a Nobel Peace Prize laureate: he made straight the path toward peace.

[JEP57]

".....this award celebrates the fact that American voters chose a President committed to progressive values - committed to strengthening international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples instead of pre-emptive war and the Neo-Con theories of unilateral action."


Can someone explain to me what's necessarily wrong with pre-emptive action or acting unilaterally?
Would Israel be justified in taking out Iran's nuclear capability to stop its president's stated goal of eliminating Israel off the map. If we were ever in that same predicament, we might have to do something similar and not worry about other people's opinion or cooperation. You can't always worry about being liked.

[LeftisBetter]

Beat those war drums again.... What a crock of sh*t

[TheBlackCat]

You need to read "Against all Enemies" by former terrorism czar Richard Clarke if you really believe the people who decided to invade Iraq honestly thought Iraq was a threat and weren't just looking to turn a profit.

[alima]

Very good article Mr. Creamer. However, I think there's an addidtional point. A majority of Americans who were disillusioned after the awful eight years of Bushco needed an inspiring candidate to lead the way in the opposite direction. They made the right choice because of the content of Obama's character.

Obama offered a long-standing track record of opposing the Iraq war and of working for the less privileged in our horribly unequal society, a finely articulated vision of civil, geopolitical and environmental peace and justice, and great intelligence, eloquence and charm. For all these reasons he was able to crystallize the aspirations of the majority and therefore he is certainly a deserving recipient.

By the way to all the unthinking naysayers, the Nobel Committee has frequently used the award to rewards aspirations and effort, rather than achievements. Think of Archbishop Desmond Tutu and others whose efforts didn't produce results for a decade later or of Aung San Suu Lyi and Jimmy Carter and others whose efforts still have not borne fruit.

[VTya]

Pres. Obama accepted the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of every American voter who told the world last year "YES WE CAN" !! ... and voted for the nation's first African-American president.

The world watched as AMERICAN PEOPLE POWER threw ruthless dictators out of our White House. Pres. Obama showed us it was possible to regain the respect of the world.

HE EARNED IT WITH OUR HELP! Ignore the haters and celebrate!!!

[rflctammt]

Excellent article, thank you.

[december30]

This headline says it all.

[Kevins]

And now, Obama wins the Pulitzer Prize for his acceptance speech....

[ErnestineBass]

"...Americans voters chose a President commited to progressive values -."

Hardly. Had that been the case, we would have elected Dennis Kucinich.

[Tim303]

Nice one. My mum in London was kind of stunned by the whole "he only won it because he's the un-Bush" thing. I mean come on. To have been elected President of a country still reeling from its history is huge, in and of itself.

[Hannalee]

I agree entirely that this is an award of gratitude to the American people for contributing to solving the draconian problems in the world today, with a leader sophisticated enough to know we are all in this together. We could have elected someone else again more like Bush. And what would have happened then to our world and our planet...

[LeonBNJ]

If the nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize had to be initially made only a few weeks after Pres. Obama took office, than one has to think that perhaps his just being elected and the history as the first person of African herritage to be President was why he was nominated. As the months passed until the process of the selection of finalists and the final choice was made as to Obama, that initially then as more came out as to the great change he would be from the GWB administration and probalby for those voters, is probably why they made that decision.

[student21218]

Excellent article Mr. Creamer. When I heard the news; that was exactly what I thought. For all of the misery and misinformation that this country has put out about its non-white citizens, the US decided it needed to take a different direction. I believe that the Nobel committee members were giving US citizens a collective sigh of relief and the best way that they could say that they support us for the direction they we have taken. However any of this turns out; at least the world knows that we wanted to correct the madness of the last eight years.