Did Obama Snub the Nobel Prize Committee?

[Faeelin]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/dec/09/obama-nobel-peace-prize-snub

Barack Obama has turned down a lunch invitation from the King of Norway. Photograph: Win McNamee/Getty

Barack Obama's trip to Oslo to pick up his Nobel peace award is in danger of being overshadowed by a row over the cancellation of a series of events normally attended by the prizewinner.

Norwegians are incensed over what they view as his shabby response to the prize by cutting short his visit.

The White House has cancelled many of the events peace prize laureates traditionally submit to, including a dinner with the Norwegian Nobel committee, a press conference, a television interview, appearances at a children's event promoting peace and a music concert, as well as a visit to an exhibition in his honour at the Nobel peace centre.
He has also turned down a lunch invitation from the King of Norway.

According to a poll published by the daily tabloid VG, 44% of Norwegians believe it was rude of Obama to cancel his scheduled lunch with King Harald, with only 34% saying they believe it was acceptable.

"Of all the things he is cancelling, I think the worst is cancelling the lunch with the king," said Siv Jensen, the leader of the largest party in opposition, the populist Progress party. "This is a central part of our government system. He should respect the monarchy," she told VG.

The Norwegian Nobel committee, which awards the peace prize, dismissed the criticism. "We always knew that there were too many events in the programme. Obama has to govern the US and we were told early on that he could not commit to all of them," said Geir Lundestad, secretary of the committee.

Although Obama will not lunch with King Harald, he will see him on a visit to the royal palace.
Peace activists opposed to the Afghanistan war are planning a 5,000-strong protest in Oslo.

The visit will test Obama's rhetorical skills as he seeks to reconcile acceptance of the Nobel peace prize with sending an extra 30,000 US troops to Afghanistan.

White House officials said that Obama, who was planning to work on the final draft of his speech on his flight from Washington to Oslo, would directly address the issue of the irony of being awarded the peace prize while escalating the war.

The Nobel peace committee has been criticised for awarding Obama the prize before he has any major accomplishments in international relations.

A White House official said that it was not necessarily an award that Obama would have given himself.

I'm torn. Yea, he's a busy man, as president, but for an award he didn't deserve, the least he could do is respect the people giving it to him. Does seem like a bit of a slap in the face to Norwegians.

[Admiral Yi]

George Will had a nice line in his weekly Newsweek article (I paraphrase some).  President Obama will be called on to deliver a fine speech on receipt of the Nobel Prize he won for all the fine speeches he has delivered.

[Valmy]

Maybe he was afraid of somebody getting a picture of him bowing to the Norwegian King.

[Josquius]

Hopefully he felt like the fake he was and hence it wouldn't be right for him to act like a real nobel peace prize winner.

[grumbler]

Hopefully he felt like the fake he was and hence it wouldn't be right for him to act like a real nobel peace prize winner.

I love how all the pinheads are blaming the blunder of awarding the NPP to the wrong man on the recipient! 

He isn't the fake in this situation.  The award is the fake.   that he doesn't respect the award any more than absolutely required earns him kudos from me, and if the Norwegians don't like it, they should address their anger to the people who trashed the credibility of their prize over the last few decades (but never more than this year).

[Viking]

If you come to Norway you have to be nice to the King. Obama also turned down an invitation to stay at the Royal Palace, preferring to stay at the Grand Royal Hotel with his staff. Usually handing out the prize is a 3 day bonanza of meetings, press conferances, interviews, state dinners and conferances. Effectively the Laureate is treated like a visiting head of state.

But Obama needs a decent reason not to go to Copenhagen if the climate conferance is a bust (remember the last time he went there?). He can't use the argument that he doesn't have time when he is being wined and dined and fawned over in Oslo, just 1 hour by Air Force 1 away.

[Viking]

Hopefully he felt like the fake he was and hence it wouldn't be right for him to act like a real nobel peace prize winner.

I love how all the pinheads are blaming the blunder of awarding the NPP to the wrong man on the recipient! 

He isn't the fake in this situation.  The award is the fake.   that he doesn't respect the award any more than absolutely required earns him kudos from me, and if the Norwegians don't like it, they should address their anger to the people who trashed the credibility of their prize over the last few decades (but never more than this year).

I blame this man. Thorbjørn Jagland.


(the guy holding the mini-caligas)

Present leader of the Council of Europe and the Norwegian Nobel Comittee and former President of the Norwegian Parliament and former Prime Minister of Norway.

[Neil]

Effectively the Laureate is treated like a visiting head of state.

In this case, he is a visiting head of state.

At any rate, the Norwegians shouldn't get worked up.  The sold themselves cheap, why would anyone treat them with respect?

[Josquius]

Hopefully he felt like the fake he was and hence it wouldn't be right for him to act like a real nobel peace prize winner.

I love how all the pinheads are blaming the blunder of awarding the NPP to the wrong man on the recipient! 

He isn't the fake in this situation.  The award is the fake.   that he doesn't respect the award any more than absolutely required earns him kudos from me, and if the Norwegians don't like it, they should address their anger to the people who trashed the credibility of their prize over the last few decades (but never more than this year).

You've got issues.

[KRonn]

Hopefully he felt like the fake he was and hence it wouldn't be right for him to act like a real nobel peace prize winner.

I love how all the pinheads are blaming the blunder of awarding the NPP to the wrong man on the recipient! 

He isn't the fake in this situation.  The award is the fake.   that he doesn't respect the award any more than absolutely required earns him kudos from me, and if the Norwegians don't like it, they should address their anger to the people who trashed the credibility of their prize over the last few decades (but never more than this year).

Agreed. I've said before that this isn't Obama's doing, but that he stands to suffer criticism for it. This more reflects on the manner of award giving, and those doing the awards, and how that process is viewed.

[The Larch]

Hopefully he felt like the fake he was and hence it wouldn't be right for him to act like a real nobel peace prize winner.

I love how all the pinheads are blaming the blunder of awarding the NPP to the wrong man on the recipient! 

He isn't the fake in this situation.  The award is the fake.   that he doesn't respect the award any more than absolutely required earns him kudos from me, and if the Norwegians don't like it, they should address their anger to the people who trashed the credibility of their prize over the last few decades (but never more than this year).

You've got issues.

What grumbler said is not outrageous at all.

[Neil]

Hopefully he felt like the fake he was and hence it wouldn't be right for him to act like a real nobel peace prize winner.

I love how all the pinheads are blaming the blunder of awarding the NPP to the wrong man on the recipient! 

He isn't the fake in this situation.  The award is the fake.   that he doesn't respect the award any more than absolutely required earns him kudos from me, and if the Norwegians don't like it, they should address their anger to the people who trashed the credibility of their prize over the last few decades (but never more than this year).

You've got issues.

Actually, that's one of grumbler's better posts.

A solid 40% of his posts are something to the effect of how someone's point is invalidated because they didn't hypenate correctly, or used a paragraph break in the wrong place, or used 'ran' instead of 'fled'.  But this was great wisdom on his part, and you would do well to learn from him and to make sacrifices at my altar.

[Viking]

Actually, that's one of grumbler's better posts.

A solid 40% of his posts are something to the effect of how someone's point is invalidated because they didn't hypenate correctly, or used a paragraph break in the wrong place, or used 'ran' instead of 'fled'.  But this was great wisdom on his part, and you would do well to learn from him and to make sacrifices at my altar.

I agree there, this is the first grumbler post I've replied to in about two or three years now.

[LaCroix]

forgive my ignorance, but..

how many other winners of the nobel peace prize who participated in these events were the acting head of government at the time of their acceptance? i suppose the real question might be, how long would it take to get through the traditional events? there are some heated topics going on in the united states right now, and i'm not sure the president would want the possible backlash from being shown running around in norway with his peace prize while the issue of health care is still on the floor. his administration might feel that it would just add more criticism

[Josquius]

What grumbler said is not outrageous at all.

It was an incredibly stupid post.
How could anyone short of a conspiracy theorist possibly say it was Obama's fault for winning the nobel peace prize? There's just no way that could possibly be the case.