@thecommonfate@xanga - Agreed.

my friend put it perfectly.....

"Arguing whether he truly deserved it is like arguing whether OJ Simpson
is innocent or guilty: we are not on the jury and are therefore
unqualified to decide. To say, "I know better than the people appointed
specifically to make this decision" is a little egocentric, if you ask
me."

and...

"People keep asking, "What did he do to deserve it?" and shit, but what
did Woodrow Wilson or Teddy Roosevelt do to deserve it? Wilson was a
failure at public policy, an isolationist, and a huge Limbaugh-sized
racist; T. Roosevelt was a war-monger who said he was sorry."

This is what President Obama stated

Well, this is not how I expected to wake up this morning.

"After I received the news, Malia walked in and said, 'Daddy, you won the Nobel Peace Prize, and it is Bo's birthday!' And then Sasha added, 'Plus, we have a three-day weekend coming up.' So it's good to have kids to keep things in perspective.

"I am both surprised and deeply humbled by the decision of the Nobel Committee. Let me be clear: I do not view it as a recognition of my own accomplishments, but rather as an affirmation of American leadership on behalf of aspirations held by people in all nations.
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"To be honest, I do not feel that I deserve to be in the company of so many of the transformative figures who've been honoured by this prize - men and women who've inspired me and inspired the entire world through their courageous pursuit of peace.

"But I also know that this prize reflects the kind of world that those men and women, and all Americans, want to build - a world that gives life to the promise of our founding documents. And I know that throughout history, the Nobel Peace Prize has not just been used to honour specific achievement; it's also been used as a means to give momentum to a set of causes. And that is why I will accept this award as a call to action -- a call for all nations to confront the common challenges of the 21st century.

"These challenges can't be met by any one leader or any one nation. And that's why my administration has worked to establish a new era of engagement in which all nations must take responsibility for the world we seek. We cannot tolerate a world in which nuclear weapons spread to more nations and in which the terror of a nuclear holocaust endangers more people. And that's why we've begun to take concrete steps to pursue a world without nuclear weapons, because all nations have the right to pursue peaceful nuclear power, but all nations have the responsibility to demonstrate their peaceful intentions.

"We cannot accept the growing threat posed by climate change, which could forever damage the world that we pass on to our children - sowing conflict and famine; destroying coastlines and emptying cities. And that's why all nations must now accept their share of responsibility for transforming the way that we use energy.

"We can't allow the differences between peoples to define the way that we see one another, and that's why we must pursue a new beginning among people of different faiths and races and religions; one based upon mutual interest and mutual respect.

"And we must all do our part to resolve those conflicts that have caused so much pain and hardship over so many years, and that effort must include an unwavering commitment that finally realises that the rights of all Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace and security in nations of their own.

"We can't accept a world in which more people are denied opportunity and dignity that all people yearn for - the ability to get an education and make a decent living; the security that you won't have to live in fear of disease or violence without hope for the future.

"And even as we strive to seek a world in which conflicts are resolved peacefully and prosperity is widely shared, we have to confront the world as we know it today. I am the Commander-in-Chief of a country that's responsible for ending a war and working in another theatre to confront a ruthless adversary that directly threatens the American people and our allies. I'm also aware that we are dealing with the impact of a global economic crisis that has left millions of Americans looking for work. These are concerns that I confront every day on behalf of the American people.

"Some of the work confronting us will not be completed during my presidency. Some, like the elimination of nuclear weapons, may not be completed in my lifetime. But I know these challenges can be met so long as it's recognised that they will not be met by one person or one nation alone. This award is not simply about the efforts of my administration - it's about the courageous efforts of people around the world.

"And that's why this award must be shared with everyone who strives for justice and dignity - for the young woman who marches silently in the streets on behalf of her right to be heard even in the face of beatings and bullets; for the leader imprisoned in her own home because she refuses to abandon her commitment to democracy; for the soldier who sacrificed through tour after tour of duty on behalf of someone half a world away; and for all those men and women across the world who sacrifice their safety and their freedom and sometime their lives for the cause of peace.

"That has always been the cause of America. That's why the world has always looked to America. And that's why I believe America will continue to lead."

President Obama set out to change the direction of the world rhetoric and has already succeeded to a degree in that our allies trust us more again and some of our adversaries are sitting down with us. That in itself is a tremendously important shift in the world. Anwar Sadat was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize because he bravely took steps toward peace with Israel. The fact that peace is still a far cry for the region doesn't diminish Sadat's efforts nor was he proven wrong because a man who didn't want peace assassinated him. Say you throw a block party so that you and all of your neighbors can get to know each other better and hopefully deflate some of the tensions that have developed. You're aware there is mistrust and gossip in the neighborhood. Fences and tall hedges have done nothing to change that and the longer certain neighbors go without actually talking to each other the deeper the mistrust becomes. So you throw the party. People always unite around food and they start talking. Kids play together. You offer to grab a beer for a guy you haven't spoken to and next thing the two of you are talking and you come to find you have something in common, say you're both Packers fans. Someone else in the neighborhood who is annoyed that the guy 3 houses down only mows his lawn every other week finds out the reason is that every other week the guy has to go through a debilitating medical procedure and actually wishes nothing more than to be able to mow his lawn every week.

Now there might well be a neighbor or two who keep to themselves and refuse to be civil with anybody no matter how many block parties you throw but that doesn't mean your block parties are not successful. 

Here's a real life story that just came to mind and a beautiful one at that. I grew up in a nice suburban neighborhood. The father of a girl in the neighborhood 6 houses away and next door to my best friend was however not very nice. We kids were afraid of him because we so often heard him yelling at his wife and 3 kids. He required a wheelchair to get around and rarely left the house. The only times I saw him was when his wife and kids helped him out the side door and into the car and all the kids were grateful to not have to see more of grouch.
Eventually I grew up and moved to Manhattan. One day I decided to take a drive to my old neighborhood. As I drove down Anchor Court I saw one of my friend's father in his front yard. I pulled over to say hi. We talked and he caught me up on how the neighborhood had changed. Who moved out. Who moved in. Who died. Then he suddenly lit up as he started to tell me about the grouchy man and here's what happened. His wife died and with the kids out of the house he had to fend for himself. He actually started walking, at first with a cane and then unassisted. He'd stand in his yard and eventually people started talking to him. He turned out to be the nicest guy and had a great sense of humor. My friend's father told me the grouch was now the life of any party. He said he'd never seen such a transformation in a person. As it turns out it was his wife who kept him thinking he would never get out of the wheelchair. She would remind him regularly how useless he was and how lucky he was she didn't leave him. It almost sounds like the makings for bad comedy but when she died he could suddenly breath. So here was a man we were afraid of while we had no idea what was really going on behind closed doors. 

@WWJDSmile@xanga - Healthcare does not have anything to do with world peace. Also, religion does not factor into the prize, although it is often religious people whose actions bring about actual peace. Attending church isn't necessary to get the award. 

@WWJDSmile@xanga - "The government kept me from getting health
care for 5 1/2 years before I was able to get my disablity after
getting hurt at work."

That's because we don't have socialized health care. Are you seriously using your past inability to get governmental medical help as anti socialized health care?

Furthermore, why does one having God's guidance have anything to do with the nobel peace prize?

It's neither law nor gospel.  It has nothing to do with either.

There is a committee who chose him for this award.  It is not mine to award.  Consequently, he is deserving because those who award it did so. 

Now, whether he would be awarded "my" 'peace prize', that's a different story.