Max Votey
Opinion Editor
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the greatest symbols of compassion and achievement that an individual can receive. Nobel Peace Prize laureates have included greats like Martin Luther King Jr, Woodrow Wilson and Mother Teresa.
The selection of President Obama this year will leave a blot on the credibility of this honor. Obama has done nothing substantial to further world peace, and his selection shows the political bias of the Nobel committee.
This is not the first time the Nobel committee’s nominee was based on politics. They gave the 1994 award to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who spent the previous 30 years leading the Palestinian Liberation Army. The 14th Dalai Lama also won the award in 1989, politicizing and validating Tibet’s struggle against China.
However, both of these men had done something to bring about peace. Arafat decided to come to the peace table in Oslo, and the Dalai Lama opposed violence in the freeing of Tibet. Both men took action to bring about some form of peace. The same cannot be said of President Barrack Obama.
The committee’s current selection has tarnished the gleam of the Nobel Peace Prize. The award was not because of Obama’s action in office, as his selection was made by the Nobel Prize committee two weeks after Obama was sworn in. Obama had not done anything significant to promote world peace during the first two weeks of his presidency.
Obama recieved the award because the European community was relieved to be rid of Bush. The non-existent achievements of Obama have nothing to do with it.
The committee claims that the Nobel Prize will inspire President Obama to make achieving peace a priority. This claim was used to conceal the true political message of the award.
People win awards because of the merits of their achievements or actions. Obama’s selection is equitable to giving an aspiring gymnast an Olympic medal in hopes that he or she will become worthy of it.
The Nobel committee should have given the award to someone who has actually done something great for mankind, not someone who might.
President Obama has not shown any signs that his main priority is world peace, despite what his supporters claim.
There has been little change in many areas of foreign policy, and in some areas, America is getting more involved. Guantanamo Bay still remains open, terrorizing suspected terrorists, despite Obama’s promise to close it. More troops are being deployed to Afghanistan, despite his election promise to the end of the conflict.
World peace has not been a priority for Obama during his months in office so far.
An award gains its meaning by symbolizing something. The recognition for the effort is taken to reach an achievement. An award without meaning is nothing more than a piece of paper or a shiny medal.
This year’s Nobel Peace Prize is exactly that. It was given without substantial meaning to achieve the political goals of a partisan European community. It is a shame that the integrity of such a prestigious award has fallen so low.
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