The American Spectator

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Should Obama Turn Down the Nobel Peace Prize?

By Joseph Lawler on 10.9.09 @ 10:16AM

No. Absolutely not.

Many commentators, left and right, are saying that he should indeed turn it down so as to acknowledge his lack of accomplishments and avoid advancing his narcissistic image.

But the implicit premise in those arguments is that the Nobel Peace prize is an honor that President Obama doesn't deserve. The committee's decision to award Barack Obama the prize clearly shows that it is not an honor but a partisan joke. The prize has gone to some dubious characters in the past. But to award it to Obama...

Think of it this way: what would you do if you had woken up this morning to discover on the news that they'd given the prize to you? It's not that far-fetched a scenario, because most people have done on net as much as Obama to foster peace -- after all, he is prosecuting two wars and in fact bombing the moon. If I had won it, I wouldn't reject it. I would thank the committee and put it right next to (but below) my 1994 Oakdale School basketball championship trophy on my trophy stand.

UPDATE: ...and as a commenter suggests, I'd also cash the check. Their money is good even if their mental health is not.

UPDATE II: Another commenter suggests: "Hey, they really hurt his feelings with that Olympics business. This is the just the euros' way of cheering him up." Funny, that was almost the exact reason I was awarded the 1994 Oakdale basketball championship trophy after we were so crushed by losing to the Red Team. Except instead of "euros" they were parents.