President Obama was given the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize “for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples,” according to the Nobel committee.
I was surprised to hear this but much more startled by the response I heard from many Eastern students.
Instead of confusion or surprise, there was an overall tone of disdain for this allegedly undeserved accolade. President Obama has made many steps towards furthering peace –though I still hesitate to say it wasn’t a little premature.
Regardless, the main subject I wish to address is not how President Barack Obama has or has not earned his award, but the attitude of the American people. One of the downfalls of the American political system is a false sense of duality.
Sometimes politics is more than just Republicans against Democrats. Citizens have every right to have enthusiasm for their political affiliations during campaigning and elections.
The biggest problem is that we never seem to step out of our presidential election mindset.
Now that the election is over, President Obama isn’t just president of half of the United States. He is president over all of America.
The point is that President Obama has received an international honor that will help put America in a better, more positive light. So why is there so much harsh objection?
The Nobel Peace Prize has not lost any prestige because it was given to President Obama. He has, in fact, done a substantial amount, considering the short amount of time he has been in office.
Obama has worked with the United Nations and successfully passed a bill helping the disabled have a better quality of living internationally.
Politifact.com, a non-partisan Pulitzer Prize-winning Web site, checks the factuality of what political figures say. Politifact.com reported that Obama has kept his promises to “make U.S. military aid to Pakistan conditional on anti-terror efforts,” to “give a speech at a major Islamic forum in the first 100 days of his administration,” to “grant Americans unrestricted rights to visit family and send money to Cuba” and to “invest in all types of alternative energy,” which are only some of his major contributions.
I’m not saying that Obama definitely deserved the award, I’m just saying that he did not damage the reputation of the Nobel Peace Prize.
The problem is that people find themselves pulled into this notion of a bitter sports rivalry. We root for our side and the other side’s failure is equal to our own success.
When Rush Limbaugh, a major political commentator and radio show host, was asked what his hope was for the Obama presidency, Limbaugh was quoted saying, “I hope Obama fails.”
The problem is that when either side fails, it generally hurts America. So when President Obama received the Nobel Peace Prize, an accomplishment that will further foreign policy and may help change negative views towards America, it doesn’t make sense to hate the candidate that you didn’t vote for.
People should never hate any President more than they love America. The problem is that when politics becomes a competition, everyone loses.
Kylie Smith 
Ella Curcuruto 
Adaelle Stobie