OSLO – President Barack Obama won the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday in a stunning decision designed to encourage his initiatives to reduce nuclear arms, ease tensions with the Muslim world and stress diplomacy and cooperation rather than unilateralism.
The Nobel Committee lauded the change in global mood wrought by Obama's calls for peace and cooperation but recognized initiatives that have yet to bear fruit: reducing the world stock of nuclear arms, easing American conflicts with Muslim nations and strengthening the U.S. role in combating climate change.
Obama's election and foreign policy moves caused a dramatic improvement in the image of the U.S. around the world. A 25-nation poll of 27,000 people released in July by the Pew Global Attitudes Project found double-digit boosts to the percentage of people viewing the U.S. favorably in countries around the world. That indicator had plunged across the world under President George W. Bush. The award appeared to be a slap at Bush from a committee that harshly criticized Obama's predecessor for his largely unilateral military action in the wake of the Sept. 11 terror attacks. The Nobel committee praised Obama's creation of "a new climate in international politics" and said he had returned multilateral diplomacy and institutions like the U.N. to the center of the world stage.
(A stark difference from Bush's accomplishments (haha)... 'here's your stimulus check and here's your M-16 rifle'... and of course winning "most likely to become president and fuck up the whole entire world" in high school. Enough said)
Well David....as a fan of everything Americian (especially Pittsburgh) i actually hail from North Wales. I lived in wales until I was 18....then moved to various cities in England (more civilized) to study as a psychiatric nurse. In 1989 when I was 26 I moved to the city of sheffield to study as a general nurse (and to come out)and I spent 16 very happy years there working in a spinal injury unit as a nurse manager.
ReplyDeleteI have been with my present partner Chris for 10 years and we are very happily plodding along into middle aged life!
we moved back to wales in 2005( a tiny welsh village)...he works in a local University as a bigwig researcher and I am a very part time nurse on Intensive care and a "carer" to 4 dogs,1 cat,7 turkeys, 59 hens, 2 pigs, guinea fowl and a horde of ducks.....I also have an allotment field
how boring is all that!!!
john