Did Obama Snub the Nobel Prize Committee?

[KRonn]

Big difference is just politics. If a Repub gave the speech he'd be a war monger, Hitler,or what ever the current fetish is of the haters of the far left. Since Obama gave it, and is a darling (so far) of the left, he gets away with it. But his speech was right on, no matter who gave it.

That's not true, though.  He's been condemned by the MoveOnistas who are unhappy about the speech (and more importantly policy) and at least one of Yi's Democrat cheerleaders haven't wrapped themselves into a pretzel but have also said they're not keen on it.

For what it's worth I think it's important because I think it's the first time we have a hint of foreign policy philosophy, rather than response to specific events.  Now, of course, that doesn't necessarily mean anything.  Bush II's philosophy when campaigning was a 'humble foreign policy' (just imagine the apoplexy on the right if Obama used that phrase) after Clinton's adventures.  After 9/11 he was quite aggressively neo-con and so was his second inauguration.  Despite that for most of his second term his foreign policy was almost a reprise of Bush I it was so studiedly realist.  So it doesn't necessarily mean anything but it's interesting nonetheless.

Yeah, I'm having to rethink that. There is a lot of "Obama the warmonger, even war criminal" coming out, which I didn't quite expect from the left so quickly or angrily. But they're showing the same viewpoints that they had before. Also probably from some on the right  who either disagree with the fighting or just want to oppose Obama.

[grumbler]

The queen of Poland was for a time a painting.  It would make a boring lunch I suppose.

Actually, the queen was the Virgin Mary, which I suppose would make for an even more dull conversation than the painting of her would.

[DisturbedPervert]

European Monarchs don't have power but they are Heads of State.  So it's a way of paying respect to the nation.

If Norway decides its head of state is a rock, are you going to think Obama should have lunch with the rock?

Obviously not, rocks can't eat.  But he should at least bow to the rock.

[Razgovory]

The queen of Poland was for a time a painting.  It would make a boring lunch I suppose.

Actually, the queen was the Virgin Mary, which I suppose would make for an even more dull conversation than the painting of her would.

A painting of the Virgin Mary.  Though she was black in the painting so they might have somethings in common.

[grumbler]

A painting of the Virgin Mary.  Though she was black in the painting so they might have somethings in common.

Yes, the "Black Madonna" is a painting of the Virgin Mary, who at one point was proclaimed the "Queen of Poland."  The painting was not itself declared the queen.

[Ed Anger]

Jesus is king.

[Sheilbh]

Yeah, I'm having to rethink that. There is a lot of "Obama the warmonger, even war criminal" coming out, which I didn't quite expect from the left so quickly or angrily. But they're showing the same viewpoints that they had before. Also probably from some on the right  who either disagree with the fighting or just want to oppose Obama.

To be honest I'm hoping to see a return of conservative realism in foreign policy debates.  That may, initially, be opportunistic.  Figures on the right may attack a surge in Afghanistan and Obama's Nobel speech because it's the Democrat President's policy, but I think any such critique would have to be formulated in a realist way (because neo-cons should quite like it) which would re-introduce the right to realism.  I think that would be a positive thing.  I think George Will's column calling for withdrawal from Afghanistan is an excellent example.

It seems healthy to me for all parties to have a strong internal argument running through most policy issues rather than a monolithic set of ideas and taboos.  So I like that the Democrats have what I'd call a liberal internationalist wing and a side that seems so anti-war to be verging on isolationist; I think it would be healthy for the Republicans to re-engage with their realist heritage as well as the neo-con ideas that ran the show in Bush's first term (after 9/11) and still seem to run it in terms of discourse on the right.