OT: Barack Obama wins the Nobel Peace prize

[MaryvalesFinest]

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/10 ... index.html

So what do you guys think? Do you think he deserves it or not?

I'm kind of mixed on this

In one way you can say he was awarded it because of his goals and being the first African-american president of a country with a past where just 50 years ago he wouldn't have been allowed to do alot of things. Also this could also be a move that shows the international community giving the finger to the Bush administration.

On the otherhand, there's not much of a difference if any on foreign policy between Obama and Bush. Can he improve his foreign policy down the road? Possibly but it could also remain the same. Let's just hope he does bring peace anyway.

[lilfishi22]

I'm mixed as well. I don't think he's been in office long enough to show real progress or results. Being the first AA president is a definite achievement, but does it warrant a NPP? I don't think so.

[LV-Suns]

The votes were submitted in February, 2 weeks after Obama's inauguration. The reasoning are his goals towards making this country more cooperative to others and removing of the troops.

[rsavaj]

Kind of completely ridiculous, and I like the guy.

[Sun Scorched]

We've gone from awarding people like Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Teresa, and the Dali Lama to awarding people like Jimmy Carter, Al Gore and Barack Obama.

Enough said.

[Miklo]

I support Barack and am very excited to have the first black president, but Nobel peace prize already? Geez.

[Kerrsed]

I support Barack and am very excited to have the first black president, but Nobel peace prize already? Geez.

I agree. If i was able to vote, it would have been for Barack. I understand why they gave it to him (for what he has been doing with other nations leaders, and what he is trying to accomplish), but he has yet to accomplish much of his international goals. I could see him getting the Nobel Prize in a couple of years (when we finally get out of these messy wars), but think it was a little too soon. But its great to see other country's acknowledging what he is trying to do and restore the U.S's image around the word.

[pidi]

i realy like obama, i loved when u silly americans voted him as president. but, come on now. he didn´t move anything yet - no president ( i don´t care if black or white ) deserves any nobel price just being the president. not in this short time.

[aIvin adams]

i think this isnt a big deal. its only a big deal if you think the nobel peace prize is awarded to people who have accomplished something great for world peace. it has been, but it isnt necessarily.

thats my understanding anyway. lets just chalk this up to a good opportunity to realize the nobel peace prize isnt the biggest deal ever. like an all-star mvp.

[BurningHeart]

.....LMFAO

[eastsidecrossover]

Kerrsed said,

but he has yet to accomplish much of his international goals.

What about what he needs to do for the people who elected him? Wait, he has been doing that, but what about this country???? All I have to say is, this is a joke and the prize has turned out to be a circus and partisan BS. Its corruption.

[the_warden]

Should've been Clinton.

[LukasBMW]

Obama is a socialist and he will destroy this country if we let him.

[rsavaj]

Fear the socialists! RUN FO YO LIVES!

[MaryvalesFinest]

Obama is a socialist and he will destroy this country if we let him.

Want to tell us how exactly?

[LukasBMW]

Fear the socialists! RUN FO YO LIVES!

Are you mocking me? It concerns me very much that so many people now seem to think socialism is OK and capitalism is evil. If you don't understand why socialism is bad, you don't understand basic economics nor do you know that many socialist countries are finding out that socialism does not work and are starting to move away from it.

[LukasBMW]

Obama is a socialist and he will destroy this country if we let him.

Want to tell us how exactly?

1. Higher taxes on business when we already have the second highest business tax rate of any first world nation. Higher taxes kill ambition and drive away business, just ask California.

2. Nuclear disarment. Sorry...but I like our Nuclear weapons, we just might need them someday.

3. Cap and trade - The single largest tax increase in American history - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjQndLUn ... r_embedded

4. Health care - The government can barley run the DMV, but we want them to provide health care? We can expect a government run health care system to be inefficient and incredibly expense. Ask any tax paying Canadian, they HATE paying higher taxes for health care. You don't have to be rich to get great health care coverage. I am self employed, I pay Aetna $150 a month, no deductible, $25 co pays. When I hurt myself, get sick, or do something stupid, I visit urgent care, get seen in 20 minutes, and get better in no time at all.

5. Extending school hours - http://www.boston.com/news/nation/artic ... _vacation/ Obama is an idiot. 1. It sounds like he wants schools to be open 24/7/365 to serve as a shelter for poor inner city kids from broken homes. I'm sorry, but that is not what schools are for...schools are supposed to teach our kids, not serve as substitute parents. 2. Forcing kids to spend 3 more hours per day year round in a broken system is not the answer. I agree that it is a concern that our math and science scores are going downhill, but forcing kids to take more math and science classes is not the answer. It does not matter how smart you are, if you are not interested in a subject, you won't pass it. I barley got through science, not because I couldn't pass it...I just hated it and spent as little time on it as possible. It has not affected my career at all...hell, I make more then most doctors and I'm 25. With all these extended school hours, when are kids going to find the time to get REAL WORLD EXPERIENCE like getting their first job? How are kids going to save for college? Hell, how are kids going to even find time to play sports? The school calendar is fine as is...what we need is better teachers and updated curriculum. Most kids graduate from High School and know nothing about our financial system, credit cards, loans, real estate, financing, and money management. Yet those kids had to pass physics, dissect a heart, and pass algebra. I'm sorry, but that is stupid! You use money management every day. When was the last time you used physics, algebra, or had to dissect a heart? Forcing kids into longer school days is just going to make more kids drop out.

6. The current mortgage crisis was caused by democrats forcing lenders to lend to people with low income and bad credit. Jimmy Carter started the snowball, Bill Clinton expanded it. In the early 90’s, banks had officers look at bad loans that they were “required” by the government to make. The bank officers would then calculate the loss expected by the sub prime loans and compare that projected loss to the government fine they would have to pay if they did not make those loans. If the fine was less, the banks would pay the fine. If the projected loss was less then the fine, the banks would make the loans. Well, enough of the loans got through and home prices starting appreciating like crazy due to an increase in demand. Banks started realizing that they could make more sub prime loans because even if the roaches (a term for people with bad credit) could not make their payment, by the time the bank went to foreclose on the property, the property would have appreciated in value and the bank would not actually lose money as they could get rid of it at foreclosure auction for the sum of their balance. Banks then started jamming sub prime people through the doors and the rest is history. Yes, I do hold the banks partially responsible for this mess, but this entire disaster was caused by the government forcing private business to do something they originally did not want to do. The mortgage crisis is not a result of unregulated business, it is the result of what happens when the government tells private business how to operate. You can’t mess with the invisible hand, or it will come back to bite you in the ass. If Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton had left the banks alone, this whole bubble never would have happened. This video sums up what happened: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RZVw3no2A4

[LukasBMW]

...and not to get slightly off topic, but it KILLS me to see IDIOTS like Michael Moore distribute pure bull to the Americans. In his latest film, Michael Moore attacks capitalism. Capitalism allows people to make movies, sell the movies to theaters, and get rich. Michael Morre got rich because he started his own film making business and now he is getting richer trashing the very system that allowed him to become rich. He is the worlds biggest hypocrite.

now, I do agree with Michael Moore that capitalism does not involve bailouts and it is complete and utter bull that AIG, BofA, etc are getting bailed out with our tax dollars. However, the reason these companies failed is because Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton passed legislation that basically forced these financial institutions into failure (see my above post). Letting them completely fail could have destroyed our economy overnight, so we had no choice but to bail them out. Both democrats and republicans seemed to agree on this. The solution is for government to stay out of business completely. If businesses are not regulated and the invisible economic hand is allowed to work, successful businesses will be rewarded and unsuccessful businesses will die. If a bank does not want to make sub prime loans...don't force them to!! If a bank DOES want to make sub prime loans, let them...but don't tell them they can only charge 12% interest. Let them charge whatever they want...AND...if they fail...don't bail them out.

For what it is worth, I'm not a republican. I'm about 40% libertarian, 40% independent, and 15% republican, and 5% democrat. So I'm not saying the republicans have all the answers and the democrats are all dumb asses. Both political parties are full of jackasses and neither party seems to fully understand basic business. The republicans just seem to know more then the democrats. Ron Paul seems to know more then anyone else in congress, but even he has his faults.

[rsavaj]

Fear the socialists! RUN FO YO LIVES!

Are you mocking me? It concerns me very much that so many people now seem to think socialism is OK and capitalism is evil. If you don't understand why socialism is bad, you don't understand basic economics nor do you know that many socialist countries are finding out that socialism does not work and are starting to move away from it.

No, I have no beef with you my man.

[MaryvalesFinest]

Obama is a socialist and he will destroy this country if we let him.

Want to tell us how exactly?

1. Higher taxes on business when we already have the second highest business tax rate of any first world nation. Higher taxes kill ambition and drive away business, just ask California.

2. Nuclear disarment. Sorry...but I like our Nuclear weapons, we just might need them someday.

3. Cap and trade - The single largest tax increase in American history - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjQndLUn ... r_embedded

4. Health care - The government can barley run the DMV, but we want them to provide health care? We can expect a government run health care system to be inefficient and incredibly expense. Ask any tax paying Canadian, they HATE paying higher taxes for health care. You don't have to be rich to get great health care coverage. I am self employed, I pay Aetna $150 a month, no deductible, $25 co pays. When I hurt myself, get sick, or do something stupid, I visit urgent care, get seen in 20 minutes, and get better in no time at all.

5. Extending school hours - http://www.boston.com/news/nation/artic ... _vacation/ Obama is an idiot. 1. It sounds like he wants schools to be open 24/7/365 to serve as a shelter for poor inner city kids from broken homes. I'm sorry, but that is not what schools are for...schools are supposed to teach our kids, not serve as substitute parents. 2. Forcing kids to spend 3 more hours per day year round in a broken system is not the answer. I agree that it is a concern that our math and science scores are going downhill, but forcing kids to take more math and science classes is not the answer. It does not matter how smart you are, if you are not interested in a subject, you won't pass it. I barley got through science, not because I couldn't pass it...I just hated it and spent as little time on it as possible. It has not affected my career at all...hell, I make more then most doctors and I'm 25. With all these extended school hours, when are kids going to find the time to get REAL WORLD EXPERIENCE like getting their first job? How are kids going to save for college? Hell, how are kids going to even find time to play sports? The school calendar is fine as is...what we need is better teachers and updated curriculum. Most kids graduate from High School and know nothing about our financial system, credit cards, loans, real estate, financing, and money management. Yet those kids had to pass physics, dissect a heart, and pass algebra. I'm sorry, but that is stupid! You use money management every day. When was the last time you used physics, algebra, or had to dissect a heart? Forcing kids into longer school days is just going to make more kids drop out.

6. The current mortgage crisis was caused by democrats forcing lenders to lend to people with low income and bad credit. Jimmy Carter started the snowball, Bill Clinton expanded it. In the early 90’s, banks had officers look at bad loans that they were “required” by the government to make. The bank officers would then calculate the loss expected by the sub prime loans and compare that projected loss to the government fine they would have to pay if they did not make those loans. If the fine was less, the banks would pay the fine. If the projected loss was less then the fine, the banks would make the loans. Well, enough of the loans got through and home prices starting appreciating like crazy due to an increase in demand. Banks started realizing that they could make more sub prime loans because even if the roaches (a term for people with bad credit) could not make their payment, by the time the bank went to foreclose on the property, the property would have appreciated in value and the bank would not actually lose money as they could get rid of it at foreclosure auction for the sum of their balance. Banks then started jamming sub prime people through the doors and the rest is history. Yes, I do hold the banks partially responsible for this mess, but this entire disaster was caused by the government forcing private business to do something they originally did not want to do. The mortgage crisis is not a result of unregulated business, it is the result of what happens when the government tells private business how to operate. You can’t mess with the invisible hand, or it will come back to bite you in the ass. If Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton had left the banks alone, this whole bubble never would have happened. This video sums up what happened: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RZVw3no2A4

Ok so you basically think, socialism is bad and capitalism is good. Nothing wrong with that, it's your opinion but Obama is far from a socialist, if anything he supports the corporations along with basically every other modern president in history. His largest campaign donor was goldman sachs, do you seriously think if he was a socialist they would be giving him campaign money?


Now about some of your points, some can be debateable but

1) Obama is just about the same as Bush on that issue, except with Obama he wants to help the smaller business rather than the big corporations like Bush did. Both were corporote presidents though.

2) That's a debateable point but the US is only one of the few countries along with what is it, Iran, North Korea, Pakistan, India and Israel that didn't sign that one treaty? I mean if the US signs it some of those other countries might follow and even if they don't at least we will be setting a good example.

3) Anyone can make a video on youtube and put anything they want in it, not a very reliable source

4) What they want to do isn't government run healthcare, it still goes through insurance companies. Government run healthcare would be universal healthcare and unfortunately they don't want to do that, the system they want will basically be set up the same and if they get a public option, it's optional for people to buy into. Note this describes the basic plan, it's ok if you don't believe me but you can research it for yourself.

5) I would say extending school hours is a good thing, I know when I was in highschool all those extra minutes would have helped.

6) Another debateable issue but I think the mortage crisis was actually caused by trickle down economics which Republicans are famous for.