When I heard that President Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize, I wondered the same thing a lot of people did: What has he accomplished? I’m not exactly a fan considering how little he has actually done regarding LGBT issues. His recent speech at the Human Rights Campaign dinner was nice, but he reiterated his campaign promises–the same promises he removed from the White House web site a few months after his inauguration.
After reading the criteria for the Nobel Peace Prize, though, I understand why they gave it to him. He has worked “for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses” I’m sure there were other qualified peacemakers; there always are. Maybe someone else should have won (he seems to think so). But it’s not as if they gave it to Khadafi.
I do think the choice was unwise, or at least poorly timed. Prez is just getting started in what will hopefully be a first term. Receiving this prestigious award raises expectations and reduces his margin of error. He’s boxed in to two choices: #perfection or #fail. And although the Nobel committee is taking some heat for the decision, he’s being scrutinized as if the decision were his. He was surprised, and whether or not he accepted the honor, he is considered presumptuous.
Many of the critics of this decision are otherwise strong Obama supporters. It’s interesting to consider that they trusted him with all the power that comes with running the United States despite the limited experience he had. Meanwhile, they’re freaking out about him winning an award that would only cause harm if it fell off his mantle onto someone’s foot. Why would supporters so strongly oppose his win? I didn’t support him until after the primary, and as I already stated, I’m not exactly happy with his performance thus far, but even I can see that he’s not completely undeserving.
He’s experienced a meteoric rise, and dealt with the pressure quite well. People tend not to like someone whose life is so charmed. Even his supporters might soon start feeling the desire to see him fail.
Filed under: celebrity, peace, politics | Tagged: barack obama, Nobel Peace Prize
