"Asked why the prize had been awarded to Mr Obama less than a year after he took office, Nobel Committee head Thorbjoern Jagland said: "It was because we would like to support what he is trying to achieve". "It is a clear signal that we want to advocate the same as he has done," he said. He specifically mentioned Mr Obama's work to strengthen international institutions and work towards a world free of nuclear arms." - Steven Perez from Bookmarklet

Upon hearing the news this morning, that's exactly what I thought it was: an encouragement. This lets Obama know that if he goes the right direction he will be backed up, if he doesn't he will get the same cold shoulder treatment Bush has been getting from most European countries. - Rene, Pro Button Pusher

To be honest, I have always thought the Peace Prize was a farce to begin with, because there never has been peace on earth. - Rene, Pro Button Pusher

The Prize is never about the level of peace now; it's awarded to people who work to make peace possible. "The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish, Danish and Norwegian: Nobels fredspris) is one of five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel. According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize should be awarded "to the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses."" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki... - Steven Perez

But that's an abstract concept much too complicated to be grasped by wingnuts and the like :P - Rene, Pro Button Pusher

Just a little. :D - Steven Perez

Maybe you should explain, for the wingnuts, what Obama has done to abolish or reduce standing armies, or to hold or promote a peace congress... - Joel Bennett

"Asked why the prize had been awarded to Mr Obama less than a year after he took office, Nobel Committee head Thorbjoern Jagland said: "It was because we would like to support what he is trying to achieve". "It is a clear signal that we want to advocate the same as he has done," he said. He specifically mentioned Mr Obama's work to strengthen international institutions and work towards a world free of nuclear arms." - Steven Perez

"Mohamed ElBaradei, the head of the UN's nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, said he could not of anyone more deserving of the award. "In less than a year in office, he has transformed the way we look at ourselves and the world we live in and rekindled hope for a world at peace with itself," Mr ElBaradei said." - Steven Perez

""It is an award that speaks to the promise of President Obama's message of hope," said Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa, a former winner. French President Nicolas Sarkozy said the award confirmed "America's return to the hearts of the people of the world". The statement from the Nobel Committee said Mr Obama had "created a new climate in international politics". "Multilateral diplomacy has regained a central position, with emphasis on the role that the United Nations and other international institutions can play," it said. The committee added that the US was now playing a more constructive role in meeting "the great climatic challenges" facing the world, and that democracy and human rights would be strengthened." - Steven Perez