In a 2011 CNN interview, Thorbjorn Jagland, chairman of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee was asked, “Has President Obama lived up to his Nobel Peace prize?”.
Jagland’s reply was, “I think so. I’m as convinced as I was when he got it that he deserved it for many reasons.”
Apparently, White House staff never brought the interview to Obama’s attention, or maybe they did, and Obama thought the nominating process and the prize was all a big joke anyway !
On January 27th, 2013 he sent a pre-recorded video message congratulating Henry Kissinger as the honoree at the ultra-exclusive Alfalfa Club dinner in Washington DC, joking how both he and the former Secretary of State had many things in common, including their Nobel Peace prizes: Kissinger for negotiating an end to the Vietnam War; “and I won mine for. . . ”
Obama looked off camera. “What did I win mine for ?”
Well, Obama here’s what you didn’t win it for … continuation of the CIA’s torture and rendition programs, and your role in the armed conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and Syria.
And then there’s your personal “Kill List” and the drone assassination program that has resulted in the deaths of 700 plus bystander civilians including 179 innocent children in Pakistan and Yemen. Where also, at least 3 American citizens have been targeted and killed without any “due process” other than your own interpretation of their Constitutional rights to life.
When asked if the decision to put the first American on the Kill List – and then kill him - was difficult, Obama said, “It was an easy one.”.
While the first 2 were implicated and most probably involved in terrorist activities, the third American, a 16 year old boy, a minor, killed 2 weeks after the first two in a separate drone attack, was not.
He only had the misfortune of having had a parent on the Obama “Kill List” and who according to former press secretary Robert Gibbs in attempting to justify the boy’s death, said, “I would suggest that you should have a far more responsible father if they are truly concerned about the well being of their children. I don't think becoming an al Qaeda jihadist terrorist is the best way to go about doing your business.”
In other words, according to an incoherent Gibbs, the presumed sins of the father is justification enough to kill the son.
Congress having pressed the White House for an explanation of the legal authority for its “007 License to Kill” mentality, has so far been re-buffed by the Obama administration.
Recently, too, the United Nations has opened an official inquiry into the legality of the Obama drone assassination program.
Obama, however, remains unfazed and is content to now “profile” his victims without ascertaining actual identity as was required in the earlier stages of the program. He gives the order, the trigger is pulled, an explosion ensues, maybe some terrorists are killed, maybe not, but the body count of innocent civilians and children is likely to rise.
Why? Because the blast radius of a Predator Drone Hellfire missile's 20 pound explosive warhead is at least 50 meters.
For those who can't relate to the metric system yet, or that amount of destruction, it is the equivalent of a 110 yard or 330 foot diameter circle - or - imagine 2 NFL football fields side by side - and anything living - terrorist, civilian or innocent child - within that area when the missile strikes has a very high probability of ending up dead !
Would Americans remain silent if they really understood how devastating and destructive the drone strikes were and the toll they exact on innocent lives in contrast to the surgical precision of a sniper's bullet destined for a single adversary ?
Is it any wonder then, why the Obama Administration wants to downplay the extent of "civilian collateral damage" resulting from the widespread area blast effects of its drone strikes ?
Yes, in war civilian casualties are unfortunate, but according to the designer of the drone assassination program, John Brennan, who's also Obama's nominee to run the CIA - "we're only whacking the bad guys (circa)"
Yeah, right !
Unlike the early stages of the program where high level Al Qaida operatives were positively identified, Obama is content now to kill low level threats indiscriminately - no longer must the US Military absolutely ascertain identity, they merely "profile" targets on the ground - and mistakes take place with an all too frequent regularity and lack of accountability.
No word on whether Jagland sleeps well at night.
see also:
Pakistan Drones .... Blood on Obama's hands?
Obama's Deadly Use of Drones .... UN opens War Crimes Inquiry
What Harry Reid Thinks of Americans …. You Stink!
Initiative Launched Today to Revoke Obama's Nobel Peace Prize
Litigation Against US for Drone Strikes
Court Case for Death of 16 Year Old Boy Killed in Obama Drone Strike
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