President Obama's Disgraceful Nobel Prize Speech

President Obama managed to find 24 hours to get away from the White House in order to swing by Norway and pick up his Nobel Peace Prize. To Obama’s credit, he acknowledged that there were others who had been awarded the prize who had done more to earn it:

Compared to some of the giants of history who’ve received this prize — Schweitzer and King; Marshall and Mandela — my accomplishments are slight.

But aside from that slight bit of truth, much of his speech was in the Twilight Zone of reality such as when he spoke of the Iraqi War only by mentioning the conflict in Afghanistan:

One of these wars is winding down. The other is a conflict that America did not seek; one in which we are joined by 42 other countries — including Norway — in an effort to defend ourselves and all nations from further attacks.

President Obama “forgets” that the war in Iraq was and still is an endeavor of many nations, not simply the United States. He also “forgets” that a dictator was removed from power and that President’s successful Surge helped that country to right itself and, one hopes, to continue to have more freedom than it did under Saddam Hussein. Most importantly, President Obama “forgets” that despite what many in his party wanted, the United States is not leaving Iraq with its tail between its legs in utter defeat.

President Obama then sought the Liberal’s Refuge – the “international” organization as the panecea for all that ails mankind:

In the wake of such destruction, and with the advent of the nuclear age, it became clear to victor and vanquished alike that the world needed institutions to prevent another world war. America led the world in constructing an architecture to keep the peace: a Marshall Plan and a United Nations, mechanisms to govern the waging of war, treaties to protect human rights, prevent genocide, restrict the most dangerous weapons.

In yet another dash of Twilight Zone thinking, President Obama again “forgets” that the Marshall Plan was not an “institution” but rather an American plan to fight Communism by assisting Europe in re-building itself. There were not endless speeches by dignitaries and diplomats at some large building in New York City but, rather, the decisive actions of a few men from the United States.

President Obama’s mention of the United Nations as a way to “protect human rights” is laughable if you look at all of the ways the UN has failed to protect anybody whether we are talking about Darfur or Tibet or Bosnians.

President Obama seems to feel that these “international” institutions have prevented a Third World War:

In many ways, these efforts succeeded. Yes, terrible wars have been fought, and atrocities committed. But there has been no Third World War.

Again, President Obama “forgets” that there has been no Third World War because of the theory of MAD (Mutual Assured Destruction) and the commitment of American leaders to back their words with actions (think Kennedy during the Cuban Missile Crisis or Reagan putting MX missiles in Europe over Soviet objections). “International” institutions have not kept the world safe, the strong, steady hand of American leadership has.

President Obama, even though he quotes the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, seems to miss the essence of what he was trying to say:

I make this statement mindful of what Martin Luther King Jr. said in this same ceremony years ago: “Violence never brings permanent peace. It solves no social problem: it merely creates new and more complicated ones.”

Violence itself does not solve any problems however violence can lead to the overthrow of tyrants, oppressors, and others who do not have their people’s best interests at heart. The French Revolution comes to mind here. Rejecting violence for violence’s sake is foolish and typical of Liberals… rejecting violence, like most things in life, depends upon the context of the actions themselves. Liberals always miss this point and thus their constant need to talk and not do only creates more problems in the long run.

President Obama then moves on to the next Liberal favorite: bashing former President George W. Bush:

I believe the United States of America must remain a standard bearer in the conduct of war. That is what makes us different from those whom we fight. That is a source of our strength. That is why I prohibited torture. That is why I ordered the prison at Guantanamo Bay closed. And that is why I have reaffirmed America’s commitment to abide by the Geneva Conventions. We lose ourselves when we compromise the very ideals that we fight to defend.

President Obama “forgets” that Guantanamo Bay is not closed now and won’t be closed anytime soon. He “forgets” that terrorists are not covered by the Geneva Conventions because they do not fight for any nation, and he also “forgets” that, in fact, he did not “prohibit torture” as the order he signed allows for him to make any exception he needs to in order to extract information from a suspect. But in the process he did tarnish the name and character of the United States – and was lying at the same time, a dishonorable thing for a U.S. president to do.

Indeed, throughout his entire speech we heard everything from hyperbole to flawed arguments and false statements. It was a disgraceful speech to have given and, by his own admission, he has done little to earn it.

It would have been better for everybody had President Obama simply turned down the award and stayed home to work on all of the problems he has created in the U.S. economy since he became president in January.

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