See today's new posting, "Rebranding America" as we continue this discussion. Mr. E.

See follow-up with new posting today (Tuesday, October 20, 2009) - "Rebranding America."

PanamaRed: A much more reasoned post than your last! You said "What makes a true democracy is the freedom to express a wide range of views. Unfortunately, there are those on both sides that use freedom of speech to pass off lies and the distortion of facts as truth. That form of rhetoric does nothing to benefit this country and only serves to line the pockets of those spreading what amounts to hate". And I totally agree with you up to that point.
Please realize that the mainstream media are liberal. Rush, Fox, Hannity, et al are the alternatives to CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN, AP, UPI, the major newspapers, etc. They are in the minority. The assertion that they "are not interested in fact or truth but only their ratings" is just plain wrong. Let's be honest here - anyone who makes a living within the world of media needs to be concerned with ratings to some degree. But the new media seem to be much more open to various points of view that the old media. Yes, those cited lean to the right. But do you ever really listen to what is being said? Do you hear the impassioned calls from the general public? Do you feel the frustration? We now have a black president, and yet to oppose anything he says or does is racist. Where does that come from? One can only assume that the attack is not sincere and is meant only to stifle dissent. And notice how Rush has been attacked just in the last few days, not on the basis of truth, but on outright lies that the mainstream media purposely made up solely to discredit him. Since I want the truth, how do you think that makes me feel? And these pseudo-journalists pretty much get away with it! Are you interested in learning the truth? Or are you just believing what the mainstream, state-dominated media are telling you?
Beyond all the left vs. right debate, the greater point is this. The powers that be, whoever they are, use the left vs. right dichotomy as a diversion. (Btw, your use of the term "both sides" indicates to me that you believe the false dichotomy - actually there are way more than just two "sides"). We can't fight them if we are fighting each other. Keep us all preoccupied with the latest controversy, firestorm or sound bite. And then they do whatever they want.
Getting back to the article, Mr. Obama is getting the Peace Prize for totally political purposes. This is most transparent to any impartial observer, since he has done nothing (other than give speeches) to further world peace. Even the man himself has acknowledged that he doesn't deserve it. And of course it's hard to overlook the fact that he is presiding over the continued escalation of the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistsn.

The "prize" I referred to Dave was the Nobel Peace Prize. I should have capitalized the "P" in prize to reflect the reference more clearly.
I feel the same way many others do, including President Obama himself; there were very likely other individuals more deserving of this Prize at this time. That said, the selection committee didn't pick the others, they chose Obama. They didn't base the award on the fact Obama is Democrat or Republican, white or black, male or female, popular or unpopular. It was because the Committee recognized Obama's "...extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples." Evidently, rocksolid, and others of his ilk, consider that "foolish".

No Dave, I am not a member of the "fringe left" although I admit to be more liberal than conservative, depending on the issue. What makes a true democracy is the freedom to express a wide range of views. Unfortunately, there are those on both sides that use freedom of speech to pass off lies and the distortion of facts as truth. That form of rhetoric does nothing to benefit this country and only serves to line the pockets of those spreading what amounts to hate. Rush, Beck, Hannity, O'Reilly are not interested in fact or truth but only their ratings. Spreading lies and distorting the truth have made them wealthy. What's insulting is that too many Americans are lazy and base their ideology on a single voice.

PanamaRed: You throw out a bunch of insults to "the right", and THEN say "I am proud that President Obama is viewed as a person capable of bringing America back to its rightful place as a world leader in our stalwart defense of human rights and freedom. The prize has nothing to do with being liberal or conservative; it has to do with being proud to be an American, something the fringe right will never be. They value their ideology, not America and what it represents". You make no sense. As a member of the "fringe left", how do you define "the prize"? Just curious.

Well mark twain (at least the Janesville version) certainly knows a thing or two about being a nut-job. He spouts the same psycho babble as Rush and Fox news. The fringe right is scared out of their minds, just read their posts. Although its obvious they can't read, since the Nobel Prize committee honored our President for the change in foreign policy that brings our allies together in the war on terrorism. They also cited his desire to rid ALL nations of nuclear weapons and his use of negotiation in efforts to find solutions instead of making idle threats which (as Bush proved) do more to escalate the tension than find resolution. He is viewed as a leader that seeks to find peaceful solutions through consensus building. A man that has transformed America into a positive force for change in regard to human rights abuses. Yes our President is a terrible, terrible man. The fringe right don't believe in human rights. They are afraid of freedom and of individuals who dare to think. The fringe right represent the absolute worst of America. I am proud that President Obama is viewed as a person capable of bringing America back to its rightful place as a world leader in our stalwart defense of human rights and freedom. The prize has nothing to do with being liberal or conservative; it has to do with being proud to be an American, something the fringe right will never be. They value their ideology, not America and what it represents.

I wanted to see the video that 916WI posted on the 11th but it says it has been removed by the user. Hmm, something doesn't smell right here. Could that user have been "persuaded" to remove it?? 916WI - I wonder if you could find it again and repost the link?

Shopiere: Absolutely!
NVgrf: Not sure who you are referring to, but in my case, I am neither "right-wing" nor "sad" nor "angry". But feel free to continue your "research". LOL!

Gee Mr. E, I thought you'd LEARNED YOUR LESSON. I'm interested in how you passed high school English.

Actually the Gazette is quite balanced with an equal amount of left-wing-nut-jobs; I wonder how folks on the far left lead their lives being so ignorant (and angry as well)... So your prophet/messiah Obama is not delivering. So-called Peace prize indeed!

Having done some research, I think the Gazette blogs leads the league in right-wing nut job entries. A sad and angry lot indeed. I wonder how folks can lead their lives being so angry.

"THE AUDACITY OF IGNORANCE USELESSNESS AND POLITICAL CORRECTNESS!"

BWAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHA! That right there is some good stuff, would it be ok if I borrowed that sometime?

Shout it out Super Dave!!!

THE AUDACITY OF IGNORANCE USELESSNESS AND POLITICAL CORRECTNESS! THE COMPLETELY MEANINGLESS NOBEL PEACE PRIZE GOING TO MR. OBAMA PERFECTLY DOVETAILS WITH HIS VAPID SPEECHES AND FAILED PRESIDENCY. Whoops, sorry, caps lock was stuck again. I nominate Joe Biden for the Nobel Prize in Intelligence.

marienburg- ..*perfect* analysis..

At 1st I said you must be kidding. ... Then I thought of the people that were awarded the prize previously. This has become a left wing radical award. He was nominated , nearly before he evem took office. He really hadn't done much in congress and was elected based upon his personality and the lack thereof for his competitors. So in the end, this award means very little to most, and even less as time moves on.

First, everyone shuld take note that the Nobel Peace Prize means absolutely nothing in the real world (it doesn't stop war, heal the sick, or feed the poor), so to bestow it on someone who has accomplished absolutely nothing seems fitting. Second, make no mistake that the Committee's rewarding of an alleged changed in foreign policy that seeks not to defend and promote US interests zealously but prefers to have our American exceptionalism die a death by a thousand cuts is a selfish act by the Committee. The US, by becoming more deeply entangled in the sordid mess of international institutions such as the UN, the International Criminal Court, and WTO does nothing more than provide other countries the ability to tie-down the US for their own selfish own interests. It is understood, John, that you seem to relish nothing more than the sizzle of good pagentry like this; however, when you get to the steak, you will find it cold.

I guess Change is the key here! Change the criteria for getting an award that is meant for doing something above and beyond the simple acts of simplicity. The reason he recieved the Noble Peace Prize is still unclear to me. His short time as president has not shown me any Change and what ever he did to achieve this please enlighten the readers so we can find a reason to celebrate something he IMO does not deserve......... We are still at war, still in economic turmoil, and still in the shadows of bush's leadership and O has not CHANGED any of it! So lets give him the Noble Peace Prize to maybe give him incentive to produce some of his promises he has not kept and changes he sold us on. JMO

Unfortunately after this presentation of the Nobel prize, the value of winning this prize has slipped somewhere between eating the 40 Oz steak at Prime Quarter and getting selected to perform for American Idol. What will our president buy next.

And let's not forget that in 1986, Elie Wiesel won the Nobel Peace Prize, even though less than one month previous to receiving his honor, at the "Norwegian Pickle Fest" in Guam, he had slapped the pickle out of the mouth of a Scandinavian mansard who had already had his pickle, even though everyone had been told "one pickle a piece". So I don't see what the fuss is all about, seriously people. GET A LIFE!!!!!!!

Rocky - don't forget about Obama bombing Pakistan with drones and killing innocent civilians. http://www.canadafreepress.com/index.php...

Thanks, Plastics. I like your way of thinking.

SarahB1, actually he seems more like SC during the latter phase of his life, bitter and cynical(cf. Letters to the Earth etc.). Unlike SC, this one only believes he is witty and intelligent...

A brief addition: Mr E. A good read, but you have back slid a bit on the use of caps. Please remember "nettiquette" and try to avoid this as it can mar a well written piece of opinion. Thanks,

The Nobel Peace prize is more complicated than cause and effect: X did this and we award X. It is typically given to recipients who have had a profound effect on society or are symbolic of a profound change in it. Did Obama change much by the February nomination date? You can argue no, but his election is a huge change societally. The change in tone in forign affairs is also no doubt a factor. It seems more a recognition of a change in path of the country as a whole.

If the committee declared him the most deserving, using the criteria laid out in Nobel's will, it is safe to assume the other 204 did even less to earn it, per the established criteria.

To bad the official unveiling of the other 204 is kept secret by the committee for 50 years.

RET: Very interesting info. It shows people who actually did and accomplished something to earn the award. It was not given out to repudiate another person as one of the Nobel Peace committee members stated. This was a waste of the award. Obama has done a lot of talking and that is about all he has done. What will the standards be for the next awarding of the Nobel Prize for Peace?

"Actions speak louder than words!" Very funny that rocksolid is using this phrase and is on the Janesville School Board! Where is the action to keep our great employees here in Janesville? We're losing some great educators and employees at an alarming rate during this school boards' "reign".

Attached is a good commentary on exactly how far Obama has come in the first part of his presidency....:)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YT5Kl38fS...

What is the criteria for the prize?

From the Nobel web site ( http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace... )

"When Alfred Nobel died on December 10, 1896, it was discovered that he had left a will, dated November 27, 1895, according to which most of his vast wealth was to be used for five prizes, including one for peace. The prize for peace was to be awarded to the person who "shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding of peace congresses." The prize was to be awarded "by a committee of five persons to be elected by the Norwegian Storting.""

Somehow the five judges thought Obama fit the criteria left by Nobel in his will.

Also, I think those who vote on the Nobel Peace Prize probably know a little bit more about the criteria than most of those complaining in Southern Wisconsin.

Apparently Obama took office less than two weeks before the deadline for nominations for the prize. I was wondering if any of you could tell me what he did that caused him to deserve the nomination.

Joke = Obama peace prize

So Obama gets the prize essentially for "not being Bush". What else has he done? Out of Iraq? Nope - still on Bush's plan there. Out of Afghanistan? Nope - increasing troop levels and fighting there. Reduced the deficit? Nope - tripled it so far (1.4 Trillion). National health care? Not yet - stuck in congress. Can someone please tell me his "accomplishments" in 9 months in office?

----

To be fair- I don't expect many "accomplishments" after only 9 months of being President. It takes a while for things to change. But that only underscores even more the utter foolishness of this award. Obama and his ardent supporters should be ashamed of this "award" and decline it in favor of someone more deserving.

Good for you, Mr. Eyster. You're shaking the nuts out of the tree. It's really amazing how apoplectic they get over giving Obama this honor. Fun for us.

kid....you're not making much sense. Please give me an example of the "non-tangible" that Obama has bestowed on us "peeps"? He is a great speaker that seemingly can make people feel all warm and cozy inside regardless of the situation faced, but how has this translated to his performance and the effect it has had on our country? I realize that he hasn't been in office for that long, but seriously what has he accomplished in that time?

Now yet again, Barack will load up his entourage and the gas guzzling the AirForceOne's and head back across the puddle.
In the mean time who is minding the store.
We are not getting any new jobs and unemployment insurance is running out. The debt is piling up.
Does the Barack need more time on the media???
Chicago politics. Disgusting.

Too bad it's not possible for the real Mark Twain to sue from the grave for misuse of his name.

im aware zoom. ive seen the smoke blown on other threads...i was trying out a school yard insult:) his analogy of getting good grades without the work was shortsighted and school grade in my opinion. to use that analogy, to get those grades he would have to first inspire his class and the whole school to realize that they can do better as a class and a school. has obama 'done' anything to merit the award?? maybe not tangible...but the non tangible is something he brought to the country and the world before he was even elected. if peeps cant grasp the non tangible hes had on the world, then yes they probably will whine about our PRESIDENT WINNING THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE. im thankful i dont have to explain the non tangible to my kids....

mark_twain's blabbing is exactly what im talking about. no attempt to understand or respect the award just continued right wing blahblahblah. i use to think i sat in the middle of things. all the right wing 'bloggers' on this site have me PROUDLY stating i lean left because i fear ending up with their thought process...or lack thereof as the case usually is....

Zooom; I think what many folks like you do not understand is that that the Europeans are as divided as Americans are politically. Conservatives and socialists are about equally balanced throughout Europe (as is true here) with many countries voting out the socialists governments (Germany, France, and soon The United Kingdom). Unfortunately the monolithic “mainstream” press (and Obama sycophants) refuse to objectively report on the corrupt and leftist Obama regime and ignore major news stories which make the Manchurian Candidate and his henchmen and toadies look bad. We will see how the midterm elections fare here next year when the Republicans recapture the House and/or Senate from the socialist/pacifist DemocRAT party.

What people like Bill don't realize (even from reading the article, apparently), is the utter disdain much of the rest of the world (or at least some Norwegians) had for Bush.

thekid, Bill Sodemann (aka rocksolid) is on the Janesville school board.

I will say it again: the QUISLINGS of Norway have chosen the QUISLING OBAMA to receive the so-called “Peace Prize” because they want to see the United States defeated and impotent. Our Dear Leader Obama is aiding and abetting our enemies while turning a cold shoulder to our allies. …………………Shame on the Norwegian Nobel Committee, whom we liberated in WWII and protected during ther Cold War. World War II left more than 10,000,000 Allied servicemen and 6,000,000 Axis servicemen and countless civilians on both side dead. The total cost of the war has been estimated at $1,150,000,000,000. Was it worth it? ------------------------------------------------------“Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace-- but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! …What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!” Patrick Henry ----------------------------------- “Si vis pacem, para bellum” (“If you want peace prepare for war”) Publius Flavius Vegetius Renatus ----------------------“You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on having both at once.” RA Heinlein -------------------------------------
“Pacifism is a shifty doctrine under which a man accepts the benefits of the social group without being willing to pay; and claims a halo for his dishonesty.” Robert Heinlein ------------------------------------ “Since pacifists have more freedom of action in countries where traces of democracy survive, pacifism can act more effectively against democracy than for it. Objectively the pacifist is pro-Nazi.” George Orwell

Every person who voted for the mendacious con-man Obama should be insulted for either being a dupe, corrupt, or a fellow traveler of far left ideology. Obama IS a fear monger who makes fuzzy thinkers feel good about themselves as they Hail their Dear Leader and worship the anointed One!

'duped and hypnotized' a country into electing him prez?? even if you are correct, which insults every person who voted for him, i think he deserves an award for fooling a majority of the country better than the fear mongering right. good day. i said good day.

Ole and Lena and have nominated our very own Quisling, Obama the Manchurian Candidate, for the so-called peace prize which has degenerated to become socialist/pacifist endorsement by a pathetic bunch of weasels. I know that not all Norwegians’ are hoodwinked by our sly huckster, the Big ZERO Obama. There are many intelligent Norwegians’ besides the ignorant ones who are anti-American and anti-Bush. Thank G*d the defeatist Europeans do not vote in our elections!!!

I guess we know where this writer stands, I thought they were supposed to be unbiased when writing a story???NOT!!! Just a liberal like most of them who write.

More like the audacity of dopes!!!
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> The emperor still wears no clothes, in spite of the Norwegian awe of the imperial robes of Our Dear Leader Barack Hussein Obama II, prophet and messiah of the duped and hypnotized and future destroyer of the Constitution. Face it; the Sick old Europeans would like to see us fall. They are still embarrassed that we saved them from Hitler and the Soviets in the last century.

rocksolid: are you still in school?? you should do what NVgrf suggests and find out the criteria for the award...but of course that would require your actions speak louder than words and we all know that is obviously easier said than done:)

Nvgrf:

I get along great with John. I had the pleasure of speaking to his class during the 1994 campaign. He was, and still is, a great teacher. I was using sarcasm in that, OF COURSE, he wouldn't give out a final grade before class barely started - and that is why it is foolish to award a Nobel prize to someone who was only in office 11 days when the nominations were due.

I realize that it is hard to pick up the "tone of voice" that one uses on the blogs but I would never say anything negative about Mr. Eysters teaching because he is one who inspired his class. John and I get along well enough that we are able to disagree on some things and poke good fun at each other when doing so.

Now, as to your "dirty laundry" comment, your tactic of trying to imply something that does not exist is disgusting.

Sincerely,
Bill Sodemann

Bill,
Hey, if you had been my teacher the "dog ate my homework" would have worked.
.
Isn't that your excuse for VOTING for the Chinese program? You blame someone else for a VOTE YOU MADE. It isn't anyone else's fault but yours for making an uneduated vote.
.
Imagine that, a school board making unEDUCATED votes/decisions.

rocksolid.....You might want to do some research regarding the criteria for receiving the Nobel Peace Prize. Also your comments about the author's teaching standards demonstrate more ignorance. Be careful. I am sure there are more than a few in the Janesville community who could point out the dirty laundry on the clothes line of your school board career.

Eyster's Eysores have returned.

John:

If I only could have had you for a teacher when I was in school! My teachers actually made me do things like homework and pass tests before they would give me a good grade in their class. Just think, if you were my teacher, I wouldn't have had to do anything! After only 11 days you would have said, I don't care what my student accomplishes - I am going to give them an "A" right now for the entire year because they give me "hope"! Now that is audacity!

Good grief! By their actions, this committee has turned the Nobel Peace Prize into a complete joke and has cheapened the award to those who actually did SOMETHING to earn it.

The funniest joke I have ever heard about the Nobel Peace Prize was from comedian Steve Wright who stated (in his low monotone voice), "I would KILL to be able to win a Nobel PEACE Prize". I have a feeling that we will now be hearing a lot more Nobel Peace Prize jokes.

Actions speak louder than words.

Sincerely,
Bill Sodemann