CE Week #7: “Saving The World Takes Time” Oct. 14th
By Chris Jordan
October 14, 2009
“Tell me, Jimmy — what has Obama accomplished to deserve the Nobel Peace Prize? Heck — if he’s qualified, I think I could win it next year!”
Even if your name isn’t Jimmy, you’ve probably heard a version of this argument from friends, family or classmates in the wake of the president’s Nobel victory last Friday.
I agree with the skeptics (including the president himself), who say that Obama has probably not accomplished enough to deserve the prize. It is, however, ridiculous to claim that he’s “accomplished nothing,” or that he has not made great progress on major issues.
Before we start the Jimmy Carter comparisons, let’s not forget the guy is barely a sixth of the way through his first term. And before we judge success, let’s not forget the horrible mess that the last guy left for him to clean up.
Even in the most turbulent region on earth, the Middle East, the new president has made some important strides.
The administration is currently embroiled in an internal debate over the strategy in Afghanistan, with many of Obama’s key advisors split in their policy prescriptions.
The president has rightfully expressed concern over “mission creep,” the gradual shifting of objectives during a military campaign that often results in unwanted, long-term commitments. He’s also stated that the new strategy will focus on winning over civilians and the general population, a move that contributed to the success of the surge in Iraq.
Regardless of whether the Afghanistan strategy shift means more or less troops, we’ve gone from a “shock and awe” approach to genuine recognition that defeating extremists means more than simply killing all the terrorists you can hunt down. It means winning over the people and thus the source of future recruits.
Despite John McCain’s campaign warning that Obama’s Iran approach would be “naïve” and “dangerous,” talks between U.S. and Iranian diplomats began several weeks ago for the first time in 30 years. Aided by the recent revelation of Iran’s secret nuclear facility and strong internal opposition to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, those talks are already beginning to bear fruit.
This is only a first step, and we should be alert that what Iran says and what Iran does might be two entirely different things.
But we’ve gone from merely shouting at Iran and threatening them to engaging in serious diplomatic talks that are, so far, getting results.
And the United States is finally realizing the importance of Pakistan as well. We have been spending $30 in Afghanistan for every $1 we spend in Pakistan, even though the latter has nuclear weapons and is the believed hiding spot of Al-Qaeda.
Congress just recently passed, and the president will soon sign, the Kerry-Lugar Bill, which increases annual economic aid to Pakistan significantly. This bill is an acknowledgment of the strategic centrality of Pakistan and the importance of undercutting conditions, such as poverty, upon which extremism thrives.
The conditional strings attached to this money have caused somewhat of a backlash in Pakistan. Despite the rough public relations rollout, this bill is a strategic step in the right direction for the United States.
We’ve gone from a Pakistan policy focused entirely on former President Musharraf to one that actually invests in the nation’s people and institutions and ties future aid to conditional goals.
So has Obama ended the violence and brought stability to Afghanistan? Has he prevented Iran from getting a nuclear weapon? Has he established a cooperative relationship with Pakistan? Not yet. But he is taking the necessary steps to move us closer to these goals.
Clearly, saving the world takes time.
If nothing else, perhaps every time the president glances up at that Nobel Prize hanging on the wall, he’ll be reminded of the hope so many have placed in him and find some additional will to rise to the challenge.
Reach columnist Chris Jordan at opinion@dailyuw.com.
http://richmanramblings.blogspot.com/2009/10/obamas-first-six-months-accomplishments.html
He forgot these?
I have heard about President Obama getting the Nobel Peace Prize only weeks into office (surprise, surprise) firstly from Saturday Night Live. This article does point out important aspects of why he deserved this though. Dealing with the “horrible mess that the last guy left for him to clean up” does deserve credit. Pointing out the steps to peace he’s made in Iraq and Pakistan, and just the general Middle East is very admirable. And the Kerry-Lugar Bill is willful and unnoticed, which it should be, as made clear in this article. I will address the bill and more facts about it later.
In my opinion, President Obama receiving the Nobel Peace Prize IS ridiculous. Although he has gave a heck of an effort in the Middle East, there is absolutely no recognition for it, and no point to actually prove it’s peace at the moment. Only a “probably”. President Obama probably shouldn’t have won the prize even with these points, at least not yet. Not to be pessimistic, but “hope” isn’t yet “peace”. Out of the record-breaking 205 nominees for the prize, I’d sadly have to say there was most likely a more concrete choice.
I would like to know about who else was nominated for the Noble Peace Prize. While I know it isn’t the main topic of this article, I tried looking and could not find any other nominees. And who nominated Obama for it?
As early stated, I have found more information about the Kerry-Lugar Bill at the following site: http://www.johnkerry.com/news/entry/kerry_lugar_bill_passes_unanimously_in_foreign_relations_ctte/
This Bill was set up by Democratic John Kerry (2004 Democratic Nominee) and Republican Richard Lugar, solely focused on economic development in the Middle East. It was passed by the House 238-183 vote.
1. I also heard about Obama earning the Nobel Peace Prize, but I don’t remember from what. Cleaning up what Bush left behind does take a lot of time and is probably a lot of work. Obama should be recognized for that and for the things that he wants to accomplish. The article said that he is concerned with the “mission creep”. Obama said that it will focus on winning over civilians and the general population. Let’s hope it does.
2. I think that it is too soon for Obama to have the Nobel Peace Prize. Although he has done some things, he hasn’t done a lot. He says what he wants to accomplish but so far hasn’t really done anything to accomplish it. There has been no recognition for it and obviously nothing has been changed. Like the problems in Iran and Afghanistan. I know there were many other people who were nominated for the prize, and maybe one of them should have won.
3. When did the Kerry-Lugar Bill get passed? They said it was recent, but how recent? Also, what has Obama actually accomplished? There are a lot of things in the works but what has been done so far with him being president?
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/US-Senate-passes-Kerry-Lugar-Bill-to-triple-aid-to-Pakistan/articleshow/5053865.cms
On this website I found out that the bill was passed on the 15th of October! I also learned that it will triple non-military aid to Pakistan. Is that a good thing?
A. What I already knew was a lot of people were upset or/and confused as to why President Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. They didn’t think he deserved it because he has not done anything to change the country, like he said he would when he was campaigning. There was controversy. Other people thought he well deserved the prize, which is why he got it. Plus, I have heard many people say, “Well, who else would we give the Nobel Peace Prize to? Someone gets it every year, might as well give it to our president for all his work he has done and will do while in office”.
B. I like this article. It points out that our president hasn’t made major changes yet, but he is taking steps toward them. No one can change the world in a day, so why should we expect Obama to be able to do it? Looking back at other presidencies he has made great progress to friendships and agreements with other countries. Last I knew we were arched enemies with the middle east, now we are having conversations that hasn’t happened for over 30 years.
C. If everyone looks at the big picture, do they still really feel like Obama has done nothing for our country yet?
Connections~
The commercials to help kids in 3rd world countries with a food and basic living package for about $30 a month or so. They use images of the children with bloated tummies that live in a dump trying to find whatever they can to survive. Its not a guilt trip, but its purpose is to create emotion among the viewers that watch the commercial to want to help out a child there.
A. What I learned:
I now know that the President has been working in Afghanistan and some of the ways he is working over there. The new strategy in Afghanistan is to win over the civilians and population. President Obama has been working on smoothing over the relations with the Iranian diplomats and “talks” have been taking place over the last few weeks for the first time in 30 years. The United States spends $30 dollars in Afghanistan to every $1 in Pakistan. I learned there is a bill going through Congress that will increase yearly economic aid in Pakistan.
B. What I know:
I had known that President Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize, but was unaware of the reason for the prize, through the article it seems that he won due to his ability to start diplomatic peace talks with Iran. I know that many people feel that Obama does not deserve to win the Nobel Peace Prize, that he is inexperienced.
C. What I want to know: What was the exact reason for Obama winning the Peace Prize? And what is “mission creep”?
D. Extension: the Kerry-Lugar Bill has passed through the Senate and House of Representatives to triple the amount of aid provided by the United States for Pakistan.
A) What I learned…
I already knew that Obama had won a noble peace prize but I didn’t really understand why. I learned that a “mission creep” is the gradual shifting of objectives during a military campaign that often results in unwanted, long-term commitments. I also learned that the Kerry-Lugar Bill will soon be signed by the president. The Kerry-Lugar Bill will increase annual economic aid to Pakistan. There is a new strategy in Afghanistan is to win over the civilians and population.
B) What I think…
I think that this article makes some very good points. No, Obama has not made any major changes but it takes time to make those changes. Yes, it may have been too soon for Obama to win the noble peace prize but at least Obama has done something rather than nothing. Not a single person in the United States can change the way our world is in a short amount of time so why does everybody expect Obama to do that? Bush left Obama in a huge rut and now he is trying to get us out of that and it is going to take a lot of time. At Ryan Crocker’s lecture at Whitworth he said that we are only at the beginning of the war in Iraq, and we can’t just pull our troops out. We have to keep fighting otherwise they are going to come after us. So, Obama is doing a good job and he is thinking smart.
C) What I want to know…
How much money will we be giving the government of Pakistan? Who set up the Kerry-Lugar Bill?
D) Extension…
I found out that the Kerry-Lugar Bill triples non-military aid to Pakistan to 7.5 billion dollars over five years. I also found out that John Kerry and Richard Lugar were the authors of this bill. John Kerry is a Democrat and Richard Lugar is a Republican.
http://www.johnkerry.com/news/entry/kerry_lugar_bill_passes_unanimously_in_foreign_relations_ctte/
CE Week #7: “Saving The World Takes Time” Oct. 14th
I have not really realized what kind of position Obama was placed in once George W. Bush left office. I do not read or watch the news that much so I do not know what is going on in our world today. I never realized exactly what Obama has done, and what he is planning to do. He has taken steps forward on topics including nuclear weapons in Iran, the Afghanistan and Iraq problem and our economy. He is on the road to maybe making some peace in The Middle East.
I do not believe that he deserved the Noble Peace Prize at all. He didn’t do anything yet; he has just made steps towards what he will be doing in the future, if he even does what he says he will. People give Obama way too much credit and praise for things he hasn’t done yet, or for things he says he will do. Even though he is on the right path so far, he obviously did not deserve that award. Out of the numerous candidates, there had to have been a way better choice, because to me Obama didn’t do anything.
Who were some other candidates?
What did Obama do with his money he won?
Extension: There were 205 candidates in this year’s Noble Peace Prize. 205 beat the 2005 nomination of 199 candidates. So 205 is the new record. France’s president Nicolas Sarkozy was a big name behind Obama in the Nominations. Other candidates included: Denis Mukwege: (Doctor dedicated to helping victims), Sima Samar: (Working for Afghan families), Greg Mortenson: (Mountaineer fighting Islamic extremism with education), and Piedad Córdoba: (Colombia’s woman of peace). Obama is going to donate all the money to charity. The charity is his own charity The Obama Foundation for World Peace.
A. I know that Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize, and I know that his win confused and angered many people. It didn’t really anger me, but it did confuse me. I know about most of his foreign policy that was discussed in the article, I didn’t think any of it deserved an award that has gone to the likes of Martin Luther King, Jr., Nelson Mandela, and the Red Cross. I think that Tsvangirai needed it more and that he and others were more deserving.
B. Before I read this article I didn’t know of the Kerry-Lugar Act. I am glad to hear that Obama has changed the focus of our economic aid in Pakistan to a much more meaningful purpose. However, I also learned that we still spend 30 times as much money in Afghanistan. I think that we should redirect more money to Pakistan, which is not only home to the Taliban and a fairly unstable government, but nuclear weapons.
C. I would like to know the exact reasons, given by the Nobel Peace Prize judges, for choosing Obama to receive the award. Was it really his moderate changes in foreign policy or future aspirations?
Connection/Extension:
I looked at the list of Nobel Peace Prize laureates, and noticed that there were some years when the Prize was not awarded. I think the committee had plenty of choices this year, but if Obama seemed like the best one to them, maybe they should have just not awarded it this year.
In response to Katie Bates:
“Due to the statutes of the Nobel Foundation, lists of nominations are held for 50 years, so the official list of the Nobel Peace Prize Nominees for 2009 will not be available until at least 2059.” (http://www.nowpublic.com/world/nobel-peace-prize-nominees-2009-list-not-available-till-2059)
Many people may have nominated him. Here are the guidelines for nominating: (http://nobelprize.org/nomination/peace/nominators.html)
In response to Jessica Levy-
I also did not know why Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize and I think that this article gave me some ideas on how he did win it. It seems that, from this article, Obama won it because of his efforts in trying to fix things and get us out of the rut that Bush left us in.
To answer your question, a “mission creep” is the gradual shifting of objectives during a military campaign that often results in unwanted, long-term commitments.
In Response to Drew Williams:
Here are some of the people who were nominated fore the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize. Obama donated his prize winning to charity, but no one is sure where.
Sima Samar, women’s rights activist in Afghanistan: “With dogged persistence and at great personal risk, she kept her schools and clinics open in Afghanistan even during the most repressive days of the Taliban regime, whose laws prohibited the education of girls past the age of eight. When the Taliban fell, Samar returned to Kabul and accepted the post of Minister for Women’s Affairs.”
Ingrid Betancourt: French-Colombian ex-hostage held for six years.
“Dr. Denis Mukwege: Doctor, founder and head of Panzi Hospital in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo. He has dedicated his life to helping Congolese women and girls who are victims of gang and brutal sexual violence.”
Handicap International and Cluster Munition Coalition: “These organizations are recognized for their consistently serious efforts to clean up cluster bombs, also known as land mines. Innocent civilians are regularly killed worldwide because the unseen bombs explode when stepped upon.”
“Hu Jia, a human rights activist and an outspoken critic of the Chinese government, who was sentenced last year to a three-and-a-half-year prison term for ‘inciting subversion of state power.’”
“Wei Jingsheng, who spent 17 years in Chinese prisons for urging reforms of China’s communist system. He now lives in the United States.”
http://www.weeklystandard.com/weblogs/TWSFP/2009/10/meet_the_people_who_were_passe.asp
To Kristina Nielsen:
Maybe Obama did deserve the Nobel Peace Prize. I mean he has made some very good plans for our country and worked hard to try and establish peace with foreign nations. I think he deserved this award. However, now he has to live up to that and that could prove difficult for him. But I think, when compared to other people who have been given the honor of the Nobel Peace Prize, Obama has done just as much asd them, if not more.
In response to Dillon Fischer:
You commented that we should be re-directing our spending so there is more money spent in Pakistan, and I agree that we should have a more equal spending between the two countries. But if we suddenly stop or greatly diminish spending in one country then the reaction may be disastrous. There is always the possibility of retaliation, if we do increase spending in Pakistan we need to consider the effects that it would have on the nation.
In Response to Dillon Fischer:
You said “[Obama being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize] didn’t really anger me, but it did confuse me.” Let me clear it up for you. I see how people don’t understand how someone could be awarded a Nobel before they actually accomplish anything, and how Obama receiving such a prestigious award is a slap in the face for so many Obama adversaries (not saying you are one bud), but can we just stop and look at Obama in his present state, and what he represents? Throughout the whole campaign Obama was that figure that literally said “Yes We Can,” and thanks to his media staff his image was one of hope, one of peace. What Obama is, and represents in this country far outweighs his actual accomplishments with regards to this award. You cannot deny that for once, in too long, this country is actually going somewhere good, and a black man is leading us there. That is peace.
In Response to Dillon Fischer:
Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize for his steps toward stopping countries from getting and using nuclear weapons. He banned extreme interrogation techniques for terrorists. He has pushed for new efforts to make peace between the Israelis and Palestinians. His administration is talking to U.S. foes, like Iran, North Korea and Cuba. He pledged to take the lead against climate change. President Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday because the judges found his promise of disarmament and diplomacy too good to ignore. He himself didn’t believe he should have won the award either.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091009/ap_on_re_eu/eu_nobel_peace
In response to Katie Bates:
There were 205 other nominations for the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize, which is a record amount that broke the previous high of 199 nominations in 2005. Of the nominations, 172 were individuals and 33 were organizations. I could not find a lot of information on the other nominations, but a few of the rumored nominees include French President Nicholas Sarkozy, Macedonian humanitarian and artist Zivko Popovski-Cvetin, Austrian children’s charity SOS-Kinderdorf International, Greg Mortenson for his Asian school building charity, and Vietnamese religious leader Thich Quang Do. That was about all I could find. Also, Obama’s nomination was actually put forward by an unidentified nominator.
Sources: http://peacekeeping.suite101.com/