The President of the United States accepted the Nobel Peace Prize this morning, a prize of which he acknowledged being undeserving.
As is customary, he gave an acceptance speech, a speech that I unfortunately did not watch. I have read the text and I include it for you here.
I have read it through all the way only once; I will come back to it later today. All I can give you right now is my initial reaction: President Obama gave one of the most effective speeches I've ever read; it was not soaring and lofty--it was tough and sensible. It--dare I say it--made a clear case for American exceptionalism--and issued a challenge to the world to meet our standards in an effort to make us less exceptional (while he acknowledged that we don't always uphold our own standards).
I am proud of the President, and I congratulate him on his award. More than that--much more than that--I congratulate him for the way he represented our country today. It was superb.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
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8 comments:
Agree.
So the Kool-Aid tastes pretty good, right CW? What is going on? Nobody ever said the guy wasn't a good speaker. And going to Oslo with a good speech hitting all the right notes does not a good president make. So what are you saying? Obama believes in American exceptionalism now? Since when? If he got up there and read a chapter of "Wealth of Nations" I'd still believe him a socialist.
Look, winning an election is one thing, governing a country is another. And so far Obama has done an abysmal job. He has destroyed wealth at lightspeed, he has burdened us an unbelievable perhaps crippling debt. He apologizes to our enemies and disrespects our friends. So far he is a disaster, and it truly scares me to think what's coming.
Mr Hammer, Had GWB delivered the speech, what would your reaction have been to the passage "the plain fact is this: The United States of America has helped underwrite global security for more than six decades with the blood of our citizens and the strength of our arms."???
Is it the ideas or the man that you fear?
I'd much rather talk about the dichotomy between the domestic v. international agenda. There is fertile ground for discussion there.
WP IV Sends
Ok GHD, I promise to lay off the Kool Aid if you promise to take those meds every day! You little scamp.
Pull your head up long enough to re-read what I wrote. Tell me where I said I thought Obama was a good President. Tell me where I said that Obama believes in American exceptionalism (hence the "dare i say" language); tell me where I said that I support the job he's doing as President. Show me where I indicate that I have decided to support his domestic policies.
I think Barack Obama is a bad President and I disagree with much of what he says. But he is STILL THE PRESIDENT of the country that you and I once raised our hands to support and defend (well, the Constitution thereof, but I digress), and I refuse to be so blind and pigheaded as to not see when he has done something well and made me proud of him. And when he does such a thing (like go into the lions den of lefty pacifism and tell them straight up no bullshit that peace doesn't come from wishing for peace), I will continue to praise him for it.
Ok point taken. I thought you had gone around the bend there for a second. You know, all those diet pills.
I will say this, it's the best speech he's ever given. But what was remarkable was it was given by Obama. No one expected him to challenge pacifism while accepting an award from the world's biggest pacifists.
But again I take your point. I just cannot bring myself to praise this guy under any circumstances. He is hitting us (you know, Constitutionalists) pretty hard and if he gets his way I'm moving to Norway...it'll be more free.
And by the way, I ain't little and if you call me a scamp again (whatever the hell that is) I'm coming to Alexandria and slap you around in front of Kitten.
C'mon Hammer, cut CW a break. He seems to feel obliged to throw a bone to his liberal readers every once in a while. Call it the "Scarborough Effect".
I'm not sure that this is not an example of the soft bigotry of low expectations. Another blogger wrote, "He didn't apologize, as such. He spoke of a just war. Of his obligation as President to defend the country. As if this all were a revelation."
Has Barack Hussein set the bar so low that the mere hint of American exceptionalism on his part earns him praise from conservatives?
Tom--you may be onto something. I think many conservatives (including this one) were downright shocked by the speech, at least the first part of it.
Upon re-reading and more time for it to sink in, I'd like to revise and extend my remarks.
The first part of the speech (on war) is truly the best stuff I've seen him do. Superb. Out of control good.
The rest of the speech--probably too long and containing the "straw man" fall choice construct he is so full of, as in the "realist" vs. "idealist" choice--and then you have ME (obama). It's a bit much.
But the length and the standard Obama portions of the second part of the speech don't detract from the brilliance of the first part. It's as if the speech were written by two different people.....
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