Nobel Peace Prize and the Price Tag Attached to It
An Award for a European Utopia
The Sceptics in the Crisis
Britain's Prime Minister didn't even deign comment on the decision of the
Norwegian Nobel committee. Despite the economic crisis, the Norwegians, who are
quite happy without a membership card to that exclusive club, recognize the EU
as a major influence in the post-World War era that helped keep peace and
stability on the continent. The German magazine Der Spiegel commented,
the Nobel committee did not take any risks awarding the prize. Nobody could
even criticise the political signal of the award. When in doubt, remind the
people about the great European Unity, with enough pathos you might even
convince some of those demonstrators in the streets, that the EU is more than
just crisis and a rising debt. The loud voices of the die-hard sceptics will
not be silenced by prizes. They might be able to admit that the EU turned out
to be a no-war-single-currency-zone but with “the penniless Greeks and the pinchand scrimp Germans we need to be really careful that what has been built in thepast 60 years will not be destroyed”.
The people and the politicians
The Nobel Peace Prize is a victory for all of us 500 million citizens,
at least according to Jose Manuel Barroso. If you ask those people and not the
politicians, they seem to be more derisive and less delighted about a the
victory of “peace and reconciliation, democracy and human rights” in Europe.
While our politicians celebrate themselves, the people are more concerned about
their personal misfortune the EU brought. The German media were strangely quiet
about the demonstrators in Greece but the social media sites like Twitter and
Facebook, filled the gaping hole with scorn. Comments using the prize money to
bail out Greece were posted next to proposals for next year’s nominees
Antarctica to “planet Earth for not self-imploding” (Asma I. AbdulMalik ) Fact is, the big EU family is a bit short of domestic bliss. Spiegel Commentator Christian Rickens blames Germany and France, both countries would no longer unconditionally fight for the unity of Europe or even the European commission and its president Barroso who were marginalized by the various European leaders.Consequently everyone wanted to accept the prestigious prize. But then again, the peace prize was awarded to the entire institution not one particular person. Is Barroso or Merkel or Hollande etc. the embodiment of the European idea? What is Europe today? The expensive machinery of red tape kept alive by detail oriented politicians who fail to see the big picture? The people are Europe? What will happen to us, the people, in the next 60 years? The idea of a European Utopia was awarded with the Nobel, now the politicians will have to live up to those lofty ideals.
http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/nobelpreis-fuer-eu-begeisterte-reaktionen-der-politik-a-860934.html
http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/nobelpreis-fuer-eu-begeisterte-reaktionen-der-politik-a-860934.html
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