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We can disagree about the amount of harm this kind of headline does to Obama. But I argue that these kind of paper-cut news bites will cumulatively, subliminally, diminish his credibility and integrity in the public eye. It's not that HuffPost's snotty little headline is totally out of line, because it isn't. But it was entirely predictable and avoidable, just as I said. And he'll be taking it from the right and the left, both, for the duration. Especially as the economy continues taking, which every reputable macroeconomist says it will.
And my greater point stands, too: taking the prize blew a perpetual serving of chum to cowardly but bloodthirsty celebrity pundits who love to sniff at "apparent contradictions" in their betters. Every cycle of bandwidth this kind of petty critique takes up is one less cycle available for covering a real news topic. Unnecessary and regrettable, but not for the reasons the celebrity pundits give.
Update: TPM points to a real zinger by the always beyond-odious Pat Buchanan, who uses a sophomoric trick of rhetoric to launch an exciting new meme: thanks to the Nobel committee, he says, Obama is once again the recipient of affirmative action. That's all on this topic from me for the time being.
BO don't need no stinking deflections. Even an early left-wing objector (MM) opened his eyes. (and actually, the troop addition to afghanistan pretty much neuters the right on one of its pointless rants-- BO will do what needs to be done to protect the unfortunates already over there).
ReplyDeleteI guess the Nobel committee could have pulled a Time Magazine stunt and awarded it to "the American Voter" for opening their eyes. But BO got it and now lets see how he spends it. Maybe he should buy the St. Louis Rams.
Big: this, plus an update to the post, will be my last words on the topic. Again, it doesn't matter to me who says what about Obama's Nobel. I can't see a single concrete upside to the recognition, but I can see all kinds of downsides, which I've explained. The worst is the drumbeat of constant negative noise, now with a ready-made meme that people can fashion into proof that he's a hypocrite, or undeserving, or narcissistic, or a bona fide failure. This meme is much glitzier, and has more legs, than the stupid idea that he's an illegal Kenyan immigrant. Time will tell; like I said, I hope I'm wrong. That's all.
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