Pedro Martínez: Promoting international diplomacy and Nuclear disarmament . He must have been doing something right.... Both the Taliban and Fox News are slamming the award. The Taliban are calling him a murderer basically, Fox News are saying it's because the Nobel people have a thing about not liking ex President Bush.

(V): It's a spit in the face of those who have actually been fighting for peace and democracy. The Chinese dissenters, Havel, Betancourt, … Nobel must be rolling in his grave with Arafat, Gore and Obama having won the Peace Prize.

Pedro Martínez:  I totally agree with you on this one.  It makes no sense to me.  Neither did giving it to Gore make sense.  There are more deserving candidates.  Obama has yet to prove himself.  He was an unknown last year and hasn't been in office long enough to make a significant difference in the world. 

Artful Dodger: Unknown??? He's not Harold Saxon is he??

.... aka the master!!

(V):  He was in office 12 days when he was nominated.  The nominations closed on Feb 1.  He did nothing to even deserve a nomination let alone win.  It's a meaningless prize.

Artful Dodger: When nominated.... but the prize has just been awarded... Slight difference in time scale

(V):  I know the math.  He did nothing to get nominated and he's done nothing to deserve such an award.  It makes a mockery of the true meaning of the award.  It has been made meaningless.  In his first 12 days, Obama basically went to a party, went to a few meetings, skipped church twice, release federal funding to pay for abortions in foreign countries, partied some more.  Oh yeah, that deserves a nomination for sure.

Artful Dodger: Loads of people got nominated.... If you know the math then you'll know it's 7 months since the nominations... and I kinda guess they have looked at the time since the nomination.

As for Obama not doing much in his first 12 days.. well that's nothing unusual. I believe Bush spent most of his time on holiday before 9/11 A great example of Republican dedication to the job. zzzzzzzz

(V):The point, which it seems so easily missed your grasp (once again) is that he was nominated when he was virtually a nobody, hadn't done anything worthy even of consideration.  So why would someone nominate him in the first place?  May as well nominate Mickey Mouse.

Artful Dodger: The President of the United States of America is a nobody!!

That's not exactly patriotic thinking is it?

Artful Dodger: Skipped church twice and still was nominated????? There can only be one explanation: Obama does not exist!

Artful Dodger:  As a supporter of Obama generally, I agree he should not have been voted a nobel peace prize 1 month into his 1st term.  Having said that, however, I hope he gets more support for his multilateral approach to diplomacy..

Here is an article covering both sides of this issue.

http://www.goupstate.com/article/20091009/ARTICLES/910099987/1083/ARTICLES?Title=President-Barack-Obama-wins-Nobel-Peace-Prize-

Pedro Martínez: Why? He's lowered tensions that had been set up by Bush, he's working to lower atomics, which are an expensive waste of space and only encourages others to want to have such a playground toy.

Ok, he might not haver been on the world stage much (as Art mentions)... but he's reversing bad mistakes by the previous Republican admin and the CIA, who as such have made the world an unsafer place by their apparent total lack of rational thinking.

As for Nobel.. I don't think the man who invented Nitro glycerine (sp) would moan... 205 nominations and they choose him.. must have had some reason!!

(V):  Where has he lowered tensions?

(V): How on Earth is he reversing Bush's mistakes?

Pedro Martínez: Stopping thee CIA torture business is one aspect. Things that make the USA and Western world hated rather then respected.

Ya know... the Islamic extremists use such things as recruitment propaganda.

(V): It makes one wonder if you're really that dumb or if you're just sitting there and having a blast over us …

Pedro Martínez: In what way am I being dumb? Can you please explain how!!

(V): I can explain. It's the psychological effect of the comassionless somehow satisfied two third whose brain switches to "ok everythings fine-mode". The left third works and struggles hard.

gogul: Sounds like a baroque version of the Minbari grey council from Babylon 5... The military and religious casts quite happy to fight.. but it's the working cast who suffer.

it's the working cast who suffer.

(V): Yes

Pedro Martínez:

Pedro Martínez: Well he's promised to close Guantonimo...well, that's on hold now.  Likely it won't close as planned.  According to CNN, "President-elect Barack Obama plans to order the closing of the U.S.
military prison at Guantanamo Bay as early as his first week in office
to show a break from the Bush administration's approach to the war on
terror, according to two officials close to the transition."

Well? 

Most world leaders see Obama as a wimp. 

Artful Dodger: Can you say which world leaders think Obama is a wimp?

And maybe if the USA had not vetoed so many resolutions, the Palestinians wouldn't be so miffed... The missile shield trade off to get a country with still much clout on side sorta makes Iran see that it's a united front. The bay... it'll happen, it's well known that in such matters hickups always happen. At least he HAD a plan The bay is a good recruitment system for terrorists, they can PROVE that the USA are nasty people.

And so... The USA military suffers by having more enemies trying to kill them. You see, a similar situation happened in the Northern Ireland war of terror... it's called martyrdom.

(V):For one, President Sarkozy thinks he's a wimp. 

Artful Dodger: ... last I heard you were slamming the French, now their opinion matters!!! I'm confused by the change in heart that you'd choose a president of a country you dislike over your own?