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The Nobel Committeeâs decision to award a rather, er, premature Peace Prize to Barack Obama has been greeted with skepticism on the left and scorn on the right.
But this decision was, by all appearances, motivated by the desire of a group of elite Europeans to give their stamp of approval to Obama and his agenda. Soâwhile responses from the Middle East, Afghanistan and Pakistan are probably more significantâhow is the announcement being received in Europe?
Unsuprisingly, the official sources are expressing official approval. The English-language version of the German publication Spiegel has a round-up of responses from national leaders and other important muckety-mucks, who generally offer congratulations to Obama and, in some cases, explicit endorsement to the selectionâthough Spiegel notes that âofficials also acted with surprise — and statements from leaders came much later than would usually be expected.â And there was a bit of on-the-record grumbling, or at least eyebrow-raising. In a widely-reported comment, the Polish anti-communist leader Lech Walesaâwhoâs been critical of Obama beforeâsaid, âWho, Obama? So fast? Too fast — he hasn’t had the time to do anything yet.â Danish foreign minister Per Stig Møller called the move an âunusual choice,â reports The Copenhagen Post. And in Norway, home of the Nobel, while prime minister Jens Stoltenberg praised the announcement, opposition leader Siv Jensen
said it came too early: âIt is [results] that counts, not visions.â
The European press itself, of course, is not known for its reluctance to express an opinion, and response there tracked fairly closely to what weâre seeing in America: conservative disbelief, liberal dismay. âNo joke, despite appearances,â said a commentator for the conservative Spanish publication ABC. The Times of Londonâs Michael Binyon goes farther: the headline on his column reads, âAbsurd decision on Obama makes a mockery of the Nobel peace prize.â On the other side of the spectrum, the Guardianâs Peter Beaumont is not moved to defend the selection: âWhy now?â his commentary asks. Spiegelâs Claus Christian Malzahn predicts the prize will be âmore of a burden than an honor.â And Le Monde, Franceâs leading liberal paper, put the selectors on the defensive, headlining its coverage âThe Nobel committee justifies the choice of Obama.â (Translations via Google).
So if nothing else, the announcement is revealing some underlying similarity of opinion on either side of the Atlantic. Maybe Obama deserved the prize after all!
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