Well, that was quick!  Here we are just nine months into the Obama presidency and the folks in charge of dishing out those fancy shmancy Nobel Prizes have decided to convey upon President Obama one of them there peace ones.  All the while, Obama has done virtually nothing on either the domestic or foreign policy front, as our friends at SNL reminded us last week.  It’s as if the Nobel folks said, “Results be damned, we’re going with pure intention!”.  If only I could get paid on my intention to work.

Now, I won’t join the chorus of those conservative nincompoops who blindly rage against anything good that ever happens to Obama, but I will furrow my brow in confusion at this award.  Of course, as Americans we should all rejoice in this very high honor being given to our president.  And I’m feeling a little prescient in my endorsement of Obama for president in the first place, as I expected he would put our country in better stead with a world still smarting from eight years of Bush.  In fact, now that I ponder this a moment, I’m thinking this award has more to do with Obama not being Bush than anything else, sort of a poke in the eye to our former president and a pat on the back to the American voting public.  But still, this just doesn’t seem to fit, evidenced by my very genuine reaction when first hearing this news – “Seriously?”.  I honestly thought it was a spoof of some sort and so fumbled around online looking for confirmation before actually believing it.

I thought Peter Beinart had a good take on all this over at the Daily Beast:

George W. Bush launched a “preemptive” war. Now the Nobel Committee is trying for “preemptive” peace. I had always thought the way these things worked was that you helped bring peace or democracy to some corner of the globe first, and then you won the Nobel Prize. But this year, the Nobel Committee has turned that logic around: It clearly likes what Obama is trying to do: on nuclear disarmament, climate change and Middle East peace—and so, in a “preemptive” strike, it’s giving him the award now, in hopes that doing so will boost his chances of success later. It’s an interesting idea. Perhaps next they’ll start giving Oscars not to the people who have made the best movies of last year, but to the people who have the best chance of making the best movies next year. After all, once you’ve already made the movie, you no longer need the encouragement.

Zing!  I certainly don’t don’t share Beinart’s annoyance – I’m more puzzled than annoyed – but he certainly makes some good points.

In any event, Obama will soon make his way over to Oslo – the Norwegian capital formerly known as Christiana until better judgment prevailed (seriously, look it up) – to receive his award and give a nice and gracious speech.  I’m sure he’ll do a fine job and will strike the right tone while doing so.  But my guess is he’ll be received by just as many rolling eyes as clapping hands.