President Obama does not deserve the Nobel Peace Prize
President Barack Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday despite accomplishing nothing worthy of winning it.
There are more deserving people in the world of the award that, in previous years, was bestowed upon Mother Theresa, former President Jimmy Carter and Desmond Tutu.
The prize was given to Obama “for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples.” Feb. 1 was the deadline for consideration of the Nobel Peace Prize, less than two weeks after his Jan. 20 inauguration. He accomplished nothing in the that brief amount of time to earn him the prize. Obama was given the award on the basis that he is capable of doing great things, despite not having time to accomplish anything.
There are many other people who are far more qualified and worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize. For example, Wei Jingsheng has been fighting more than a decade for human rights and criticizing communism in China. Mordechai Vanunu exposed Iran’s nuclear program, potentially stopping the building of weapons of mass destruction.
President Obama should not have accepted the prize. He was every bit as shocked as everyone else when he won the award. Despite accepting the award with humility, Obama knows he does not deserve it.
If anything, accepting the award puts a lot of pressure on Obama. There are a few global issues he must face, including the war in Afghanistan and Iran’s nuclear activity, where the outcomes are uncertain. There are other issues, such as the genocide in Darfur, that Obama has yet to address. If he fails to live up to the world’s expectations, his winning of the Nobel Peace Prize will seem even worse.
On the college front
Obama was the candidate of choice for most college students during the 2008 presidential election. He spoke directly to young adults, calling upon them to seek education and contribute to their country. Students should be critical of their president on what he can do for them, not what he can do for the rest of the world. Despite gaining so much international praise, there is still much to do within our own borders. The national unemployment rate is at a record high, with Michigan’s own at more than 15 percent. Obama’s health care plan still needs to be thoroughly discussed.
There is much hope that Obama comes close to his goal of creating better relations around the world for America. There is little doubt that he won’t try his best.
Praise should be given for someone’s actions, not their intentions, especially in matters of peace.
