In case you still thought there was still anything even slightly rational, even-handed and non-ideological about the Nobel Peace Prize:

April 5, 2002 2:52 PM

In case you still thought there was still anything even slightly rational, even-handed and non-ideological about the Nobel Peace Prize: Members of the NPP committee that gave Shimon Peres the Prize in 1994 are now attacking him for not singlehandedly putting a stop to Israeli reoccupation of Palestinian territory, even though here's only a member of the cabinet, not the leader of the country. (Alternatively, they say, he should have quit.) Which would be okay, since what's going on now isn't very peaceful ... except that they've said not a peep about about the actions of one of the other two men that shared the prize that year, one Yassir Arafat. (The third, Yitzhak Rabin, apparently gets off the hook since he's already dead.)
posted by aaron (12 comments total)

The third, Yitzhak Rabin, apparently gets off the hook since he's already dead.

Murdered by an Israeli terrorist, let's not forget.
posted by mapalm at 3:54 PM on April 5, 2002

An Israeli terrorist who was immediately arrested, tried, convicted, and is now spending the rest of his life in jail.

I think that the committee's concen over the prize being brought into disrepute is well-founded, if a couple decades too late.
posted by jaek at 4:14 PM on April 5, 2002

Did anyone really think the prize was "authentic"?
posted by Postroad at 4:33 PM on April 5, 2002

So they wisely decided that was a leeetle premature, giving out those Nobels like they were Halloween candy. Like they really thought Israeli/Palestine peace was a done deal? Fools.

Anyway, that gang doesn't really fit in when you go over the Peace Prize Laureate list. I mean, as if Arafat was ever the equivalent of Baroness Bertha Sophie Felicita von Suttner, née Countess Kinsky von Chinic und Tettau...
posted by RJ Reynolds at 4:52 PM on April 5, 2002

Damn, I read that as "Countess Kinky" for a second and thought I was going to see something really cool.
posted by aaron at 5:38 PM on April 5, 2002

You know, since the advent of the net and the democratization of information, all of us are so much smarter now. We've evolved and it's really really hard to put anything over us. Actually, it's quite pathetic watching these idiots trying to propagandize us.
posted by mikegre at 5:43 PM on April 5, 2002

<sidebar>

Countess Kinky? Isn't that Princess Gloria von Thurn und Taxis, who once appeared on David Letterman dressed like Cyndi Lauper and somewhere south of sober? Letterman made so much fun of her that she came back a couple of months later and gave the exact same performance, the same inane answers to questions about how many rooms her castle had and such.

</sidebar>
posted by dhartung at 9:23 PM on April 5, 2002

coughs*dynamite* coughs.
posted by clavdivs at 11:22 PM on April 5, 2002

Recent scandals like the Rigoberta Menchu lies has already done a lot to disrepute the prize. And somehow it must have been obvious to the NPP committe that laureates like Arafat and Peres would be controversial years to come when they were awarded the prize in 1994, I thougt. Still Hanne Kvanmo acts surprised. It should be stated that one NPP committe member left after the choice of Arafat, another protests the terrorism towards Israeli civilians. Kvanmo's opinion isn't uncontroversial in Europe, others argue that Arafat's prize also should be revoked, even if it's not stated in the BBC piece.
All things aside, the Peres critics are right about his responsibility. Without his support, Sharon couldn't go through with what's happening now.
And of course the NPP committe isn't non-ideological or rational, why would you think that? The Right Livelihood Award realised that years ago...
posted by ushuaia at 12:42 AM on April 6, 2002

Sorry to quote The Onion, but so appropriate:

"Amputee Children of Cambodia Award Peace Prize to Henry Kissinger"
posted by solistrato at 9:50 PM on April 7, 2002

Andrew Cuomo has written the committee asking them to reconsider Arafat, rather than Peres.
posted by dhartung at 2:17 PM on April 8, 2002

Cuomo has to. Sucking up to the Jewish vote is an absolute necessity in New York if you want to get elected. Just look at Hillary's u-turn and her subsequent New Square pardon scandal.
posted by aaron at 8:31 PM on April 9, 2002