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Wed Oct 14 11:17:47 BST 2009

Please: cite a more demonstrable shift in American foreign policy objectives
since World War II.  Saturday Night Live* actually nailed it: Obama won
chiefly for not being George W. Bush.  The differences were like black and
white.

Still haven't answered my question: who did MORE in 2008 than Obama?

Pret

*Hey, if Vic can cite NewsMax, I can cite SNL.

-----Original Message-----
From: trauma-list-bounces at trauma.org [mailto:trauma-list-bounces at trauma.org]
On Behalf Of Larry Torrey
Sent: Wednesday, October 14, 2009 3:31 AM
To: Trauma-List [TRAUMA.ORG]
Subject: Re: Recognition for (Peace) Performance

On Tue, Oct 13, 2009 at 8:23 AM, Bjorn, Pret <pbjorn at emh.org> wrote:
> Let the record show that I suggested this thread be taken off-List last
week.
> But the ensuing discussion is hard to observe quietly.  So let me just
ask:
> since the Nobel Peace Prize is an annual recognition, who(m) would have
> a more appropriate recipient for 2008?

Possibly someone who has accomplished something tangible towards that end?

> I think there's something to be said for the fellow who quite absolutely
changed
> the face of a superpower.  Or the guy who turned unilateralism and
bellicosity
> into dialogue and diplomacy, practically overnight.  Or the man who,
certainly
> more than any leader in the civilized world, risks his safety (and that of
his family)
> by merely doing his job.  Or the one who endures an unprecedented and
> ceaseless barrage of hyperbolic, hypocritical vitriol and counterfactual
sabotage
> from self-described patriots in his own government who are drooling (in
some
> cases, literally) in anticipation of any national crisis or failure, in
the hopes that
> it can be pinned on him.

"Changed the face of a superpower"?  In what way, exactly, other than
with a few warm and fuzzy platitudes?

Last I checked, Iran was still working on whatever is it they're doing
with nukes, the Lockerbie bomber was released to a hero's welcome,
Israel and Palestine are still at it, the war in Iraq is status quo,
the one in Afghanistan is worsening, we all still have the same number
of nukes and wars and hungry people in the world, Africa is still a
mess, No Korea is still launching missiles and rattling sabers, Gitmo
is still there, we're more in debt, 40+ million are still uninsured,
and on, and on, and on.

Now, I don't lay these things at the feet of a guy who has been prez
for less than one year, but I also don't see what positive impact he
has had on changing any of these things.  I see an increasing US
deficit, but I haven't seen any progress on peace.

So tell me once again how he has changed our face.  With a few
speeches that the world's problem children aren't listening to?

It's Norway's award and they can give it to whomever they want, I guess.

LT
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Recognition for (Peace) Performance