Has Nobel Peace Prize Become A Joke?

I prefer a blog with humor rather than one on politics (albeit politics is mostly laughable), but sometimes I must get things off my chest and point out obvious wrongs in today's world, as I see them. I am really bothered by this latest award to Albert Arnold Gore, Jr.

As many of you know the Nobel awards, of which there are five, were set up by Swedish industralist and inventor, Alfred Nobel. Nobel never revealed his reasoning for establishing the Peace Prize to accompany those awards for chemistry, physics and others, but the speculation is that it was remorse for his inventions of dynamite and ballistite -- instruments of war.

According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize would be awarded "to the person who shall have done the most or best work for fraternity between the nations, for the abolition or reduction of armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses."

You be judge on the following examples of Nobel Peace Prize winners:

James Earl (Jimmy) Carter, 39th President of the United States, received the honor in 2002. Carter, suffering from by all accounts a miserably failed Presidency, has desparately tried to secure his place in history as a great diplomat. His efforts have many times run counter to and interfered with the policies of administrations since his time in office. It it my thinking that he should be nominated for the "Senility" award.

Kofi Anan, former Secretary-General of the United Nations (a joke in itself), was a co-conspirator with his son, Kojo, in the UN Oil-for-Food program from which they are accused of benefiting to the tune of millions of dollars of graft in their pockets. Anan was awarded the coveted prize in 2001.

Yasser Arafat received the Peace Prize in 1994. A leader of the Palestinians against Israel, Arafat was accused of associations with Hamas and other terrorist organizations. He was also accused, after a World Bank audit, of diverting almost a billion dollars in public funds to a personal bank account.

Then we come to Big Al Gore -- recipient of the famed honor in 2007. Gore's accomplishments in the field of global warming are the backbone of his claim to fame -- dubious as they are. He is an Academy-Award winner for his documentary, "An Inconvenient Truth" and an Emmy-winner for a TV network, "Current TV", which he was instrumental in forming. He is also on the board of Google -- supposedly a non-political entity -- which has recently become involved in some rather far left leanings. According to a ruling by an English judge, "An Inconvenient Truth" must be preceeded by a disclaimer when shown to school children because of a number of "untruths" in the film.

With his strong advocacy of the dangers of global warming, Gore has found a way to turn this pulpit into pocket change in that he receives $100,000.00 for each engagement on the speaking circuit. This is obscene.

Others could be mentioned as questionable Peace Prize winners, but I think that the point is made that the awards have turned completely away from what Nobel envisioned -- a political agenda and/or securing monetary wealth are the basis for and potential results of the prize and Nobel truly wanted to award someone for efforts toward world peace -- what a shame.

My whole problem with all of this is HYPOCRACY! Why cannot most Americans see though this sham? Do we not know what is happening here? I am dismayed at how people latch on to a public individual and completely ignore what these people are doing.

Well, enough of that from my soapbox. I have said some of what I wanted to say and let it fall wherever it may. Thanks for indulging me.