And the winner of the 2012 Nobel Peace Prize is......

[give her dixie]

The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided that the Nobel Peace Prize for 2012 is to be awarded to the European Union (EU). The union and its forerunners have for over six decades contributed to the advancement of peace and reconciliation, democracy and human rights in Europe.

In the inter-war years, the Norwegian Nobel Committee made several awards to persons who were seeking reconciliation between Germany and France. Since 1945, that reconciliation has become a reality. The dreadful suffering in World War II demonstrated the need for a new Europe. Over a seventy-year period, Germany and France had fought three wars. Today war between Germany and France is unthinkable. This shows how, through well-aimed efforts and by building up mutual confidence, historical enemies can become close partners.

In the 1980s, Greece, Spain and Portugal joined the EU. The introduction of democracy was a condition for their membership. The fall of the Berlin Wall made EU membership possible for several Central and Eastern European countries, thereby opening a new era in European history. The division between East and West has to a large extent been brought to an end; democracy has been strengthened; many ethnically-based national conflicts have been settled.

The admission of Croatia as a member next year, the opening of membership negotiations with Montenegro, and the granting of candidate status to Serbia all strengthen the process of reconciliation in the Balkans. In the past decade, the possibility of EU membership for Turkey has also advanced democracy and human rights in that country.

The EU is currently undergoing grave economic difficulties and considerable social unrest. The Norwegian Nobel Committee wishes to focus on what it sees as the EU's most important result: the successful struggle for peace and reconciliation and for democracy and human rights. The stabilizing part played by the EU has helped to transform most of Europe from a continent of war to a continent of peace.

The work of the EU represents "fraternity between nations", and amounts to a form of the "peace congresses" to which Alfred Nobel refers as criteria for the Peace Prize in his 1895 will.

Oslo, 12 October 2012

http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2012/press.html

[playwiththewind1st]

Pretty sensible decision - given the daily rioting in Spain, Greece etc etc.

[magpie seanie]

Absolute joke.

[Declan]

Whoever said the Norwegians haven't got a sense of humour?

[stew]

The committee has never had much credibility, remember the Obama decision, fecking joke and this latest debacle is further proof that these clowns dont know what they are doing...................... will the taliban be the next recipients??

[J70]

The committee has never had much credibility, remember the Obama decision, fecking joke and this latest debacle is further proof that these clowns dont know what they are doing...................... will the taliban be the next recipients??

NEVER had much credibility?

The ridiculous award to Obama discredits ALL of their decisions and recipients over the years?

[stew]

The committee has never had much credibility, remember the Obama decision, fecking joke and this latest debacle is further proof that these clowns dont know what they are doing...................... will the taliban be the next recipients??

NEVER had much credibility?

The ridiculous award to Obama discredits ALL of their decisions and recipients over the years?

Well not only Obama.

Let's look at Henry Kissinger, he won it for his sterling work on the Vietnam peace initiatives, at the same time he mastermined and oversaw the secret bombing of Laos.

Lets look at Jimmy Carter, a failed Liberal politician and one term President who was even more useless as the current dude, he won it.

Lets turn back the clock to the 40's,Cordell Hull, secretary of State won it despite denying the holocaust was happening and sent Jews back to Germany to their deaths.

Yasser Arafat.................. The man who is as responsible as much as the Israeli's are for the current state of his people/state.


Rigoberta Menchu, a Guatemalan won it for her humanitarian work in that country.............................. trouble was much of what he was said to have done was complete bullshit and the Norwegian amadans were embarrassed no end.

Al Gore, lecturer on Global warming and a passionate advocate of going green and someone who worries about ths size of our cars and our homes.......................... it was disclosed that his quarterly electricity bill at ONE of his mansions exceeded $9,000!

Hopefully this clarifies my stance, you are right though, I should not have used the word never however even one of our own, who could have used the money as he was broke, declined it because he despised why the award came about in the first place!

[playwiththewind1st]

Well - they had to win something. It would hardly be the Economics prize, as nobody will sign off the accounts.

[Oraisteach]

Stew, just a point of clarification--Rigoberta Menchu was a woman.

[stew]

Stew, just a point of clarification--Rigoberta Menchu was a woman.

Shit, I had Al Gore as a she and Rigoberta Menchu as a he, I caught the Gore thing and missed the Menchu one.

Thanks Orais.

[Capt Pat]

I disagree. I have found the human rights environment within the EU to be pretty poor. There is lots of money and wealth that is spread out pretty well. It can give the impression of fairness, but fall between the cracks in the EU societies and life can be very poor.

[johnneycool]

WTF why didn't bono get it?

[stew]

WTF why didn't bono get it?

They probably didnt like the fact he was a tax evader!

He would have been a better winner that  the wans that did win it.

[magpie seanie]

Will Bertie get a call up from his old buddies for the acceptance ceremony.

[give her dixie]

Now we know why Enda got the cover of Time magazine.... Consolation prize !!