El Baradei Wins The Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded:
VIENNA (Reuters) - U.N. nuclear watchdog head Mohamed ElBaradei said on Friday winning the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize would give him and his agency a much-needed "shot in the arm" as they tackle nuclear crises in Iran and North Korea.
ElBaradei said he had been certain he would not win, despite being favored, because he had not received the traditional advance telephone call from the Nobel Committee. He only learned of his win while watching the televised ceremony.
The 63-year-old Egyptian lawyer and the International Atomic Energy Agency won the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts to prevent both the spread of nuclear weapons, to new states and to terrorists, and to ensure safe civilian use of nuclear energy.
People will remember El Baradei from last October, when the WaPo suggested he might be trying to influence the US election. (OK, we had been screaming that as well, and let's note the denial.)
Needless to say, for the Nobel Committe that was not a bug, it was a feature.
MORE: From the comments, Bumperstickerist completes the picture:
All we need now is for Bush to give the head of the US Army Corps of Engineers a Freedom Medal and all will be well.
I mean, most of the levees in New Orleans didn't fail.
During ElBaradei's tenure not every country developed nukes.
What a joke. Like he and the Agency have done such a bang up job with Iran. Blair and Bush did more by invading Iraq and getting Kadafi to get rid of his programs and blow the whistle on Pakistani AQ Khan.
Posted by: Laddy | October 07, 2005 at 10:08 AM
Intresting that ElBaradei gets the prize from the Nobel committee on the same day that George makes a "rally the troops" speech that sounds almost wistful.
Since he now says God told him to do all of this, I hope God will follow through and tell him how to get us out of this mess.
Posted by: TexasToast | October 07, 2005 at 10:50 AM
TT- easy way out; let the Islamic militants have their caliphate. Then they'll leave us alone for a while (perhaps our lifetime but
screw the kids and grandkids.) While Iraq
may have not been the time and place, sooner or later the good guys have to stand up to the bad guys.
Posted by: creech | October 07, 2005 at 11:44 AM
When Arafat was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, the moral bankruptcy of the Nobel committee was plain for all to see. This merely reinforces that fact...not that El Baradei is, like Arafat was, a murderer but rather that his major qualification for the award is that bestowing it upon him is sure to rankle the United States.
Posted by: charlie eklund | October 07, 2005 at 12:47 PM
When Arafat was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, the moral bankruptcy of the Nobel committee was plain for all to see. This merely reinforces that fact...not that El Baradei is, like Arafat was, a murderer but rather that his major qualification for the award is that bestowing it upon him is sure to rankle the United States.
Posted by: charlie eklund | October 07, 2005 at 12:48 PM
When Arafat was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, the moral bankruptcy of the Nobel committee was plain for all to see. This merely reinforces that fact...not that El Baradei is, like Arafat was, a murderer but rather that his major qualification for the award is that bestowing it upon him is sure to rankle the United States.
Posted by: charlie eklund | October 07, 2005 at 12:49 PM
If you read the New York Times version of the story, you get this laugh out loud line:
"[Peace prize candidate] Mr. Yamaguchi, in Nagasaki, told Agence France-Presse that he believed he had been passed over because the Nobel committee didn't want to offend the United States."
It must really rankle to not get the Nobel Peace Prize you think you deserve.
Posted by: Henry Woodbury | October 07, 2005 at 01:08 PM
Needless to say, for the Nobel Committe that was not a bug, it was a feature.
Just curious - is their any international organization (besides the "coalition of the willing") that has any credibility with folks on the right?
Posted by: TexasToast | October 07, 2005 at 02:04 PM
...any international organization...that has any credibility with folks on the right?
The American League East, with the Toronto Blue Jays.
Posted by: TM | October 07, 2005 at 02:08 PM
Can't argue with that - the Expos were always a joke
Posted by: TexasToast | October 07, 2005 at 02:10 PM
All we need now is for Bush to give the head of the US Army Corps of Engineers a Freedom Medal and all will be well.
I mean, most of the levees in New Orleans didn't fail.
During ElBaradei's tenure not every country developed nukes.
Posted by: BumperStickerist | October 07, 2005 at 02:35 PM
Toast:
"Is their any international organization (besides the "coalition of the willing") that has any credibility with folks on the right?"
Hmm, isn't there a chapter of the Federalist Society in England?
Okay, give me the name of an international organization that (a) isn't anti-American or (b) isn't anti-semitic.
Either one will do. When you've got one, I'll endorse it.
Your turn: Is there any international body that the left doesn't like?
SMG
Posted by: SteveMG | October 07, 2005 at 05:08 PM
Several from this list from
Northwestern University
.
Your turn: Is there any international body that the left doesn't like?
The axis of evil?
Posted by: TexasToast | October 07, 2005 at 05:39 PM
...any international organization...that has any credibility with folks on the right?
NATO? SEATO? IHOP?
Posted by: Jeff R. | October 07, 2005 at 07:55 PM
"Since he now says God told him to do all of this, I hope God will follow through and tell him how to get us out of this mess."
Texas Toast, you ignorant slut.
Posted by: AT | October 07, 2005 at 09:32 PM
Jeff got some good ones -- I think most Conservatives like NATO. With Wolfowitz at the helm, the World Bank has promise. How about the WTO? The G7? Lots of good corporations are multi-national (not just IHOP) -- if I trust FedEx or UPS for international shipping, does that count? How about Visa and Amex?
But a much more important point, that I cannot emphasize enough: the Nobel Peace Prize is not awarded by an international organization.
It is awarded by a committee whose members are all appointed by the Norwegian parliament. The voters of Norway, indirectly, choose the recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize. Every member of the committee, throughout the Prize's long history, has been a citizen of Norway.
Don't believe me? Here's the official web site.
Posted by: Clint | October 08, 2005 at 12:10 AM
Ooh -- completely forgot about Churches -- most big Churches are international organizations... and most are on the conservative side.
Posted by: Clint | October 08, 2005 at 12:12 AM
Bush Foreign Policy stabilized Paki/Indi relations, helped bust the Rogue Paki Ring, brought Quadafi(notice the surplus French) into the tent, and helped China corral Kim.
And elB gets the N? For what? Iran?
I figure they hope it will keep the ayatollahs from targetting Oslo.
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Posted by: kim | October 08, 2005 at 12:27 AM
Oh, and I don't think the IAEA has had a whole lot to do with increased US/Russian co-operation re: the lethality of nuclear armed forces. Apparently the committee didn't value very highly the recent joint rescue of nuke navigators near Norway.
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Posted by: kim | October 08, 2005 at 12:33 AM
I think we should have a Mitchell War Prize. The actual award will weigh about 20,000 pounds and be delivered to the winner's door by a C-130. Best of all, there have been at least a couple Nobel Peace Prize winners who are obviously worthy of the Mitchell War Prize, so its legitimacy should not be in doubt.
Posted by: AT | October 08, 2005 at 01:00 AM
I reckon John Bolton should have gotten the prize. Actions speak louder than words.
Shameless plug
Posted by: Pat | October 08, 2005 at 10:07 PM
Here comes Bolton, hasten,
Give him a PSI tation.
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Posted by: kim | October 11, 2005 at 12:25 AM