tagged w/ Nobel Peace Prize
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“I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.
Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.
But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. So we have come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.
read more at
http://diversitynewsmagazine.com/2012/01/dr-martin-luther-king-jr-s-full-i-have-a-dream-speech-as-delivered-on-aug-28-1963/“I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the... more
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– The recognition of three women in the Nobel Peace Prizes announced earlier this month came as a welcome variation to the long list of male names, but it also begged the question why women so rarely get the prize, and why when they do, they have to share it.– The recognition of three women in the Nobel Peace Prizes announced earlier... more
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OSLO, Norway — The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to three champions of women’s rights in Africa and the Middle East on Friday in an attempt to bolster the role of women in struggles to bring democracy to nations suffering from autocratic rule and civil strife.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee split the prize between Tawakkul Karman, a leader of anti-government protests in Yemen; Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first woman to win a free presidential election in Africa; and Leymah Gbowee of Liberia, who campaigned against the use of rape as a weapon in her country’s brutal civil war.
By picking Karman — the first Arab woman to win the peace prize — the Norwegian Nobel Committee found a way to associate the 10 million kronor ($1.5 million) award with the uprisings sweeping North Africa and the Middle East without citing them alone, which would have been problematic.
After a popular uprising at the height of the Arab Spring, Libya descended into civil war that led to NATO military intervention. Egypt and Tunisia are still in turmoil. Hardliners are holding onto power in Yemen and Syria and a Saudi-led force crushed the uprising in Bahrain, leaving an uncertain record for the Arab protest movement.
Prize committee chairman Thorbjoern Jagland said it was also difficult to identify the leaders of the Arab Spring among the scores of activists who have spearheaded protests using social media.
“We have included the Arab Spring in this prize, but we have put it in a particular context,” Jagland told reporters. “Namely, if one fails to include the women in the revolution and the new democracies, there will be no democracy.”
He called the oppression of women “the most important issue in the Arab World” and stressed that the empowerment of women must go hand in hand with Islam.
“It may be that some still are saying that women should be at home, not driving cars, not being part of the normal society,” he told The Associated Press. “But this is not being on the right side of history.”
He noted that Karman, 32, is a member of a political party linked to the Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist movement sometimes viewed with suspicion in the West. Jagland, however, called the Brotherhood “an important part” of the Arab Spring.
No woman or sub-Saharan African had won the prize since 2004, when the committee honored Wangari Maathai of Kenya, who mobilized poor women to fight deforestation by planting trees. She died last month at 71. The 2005 prize went to the International Atomic Energy Agency and its head Mohamed ElBaradei of Egypt.
more at the linkOSLO, Norway — The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to three champions of... more
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This year's Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded jointly to three women - Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberian Leymah Gbowee and Tawakkul Karman of Yemen.
They were recognised for their "non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women's rights to full participation in peace-building work".
Mrs Johnson Sirleaf is Africa's first female elected head of state, Ms Gbowee is a peace activist and Ms Karman is a leading figure in Yemen's pro-democracy movement.
Announcing the prize in Oslo, Nobel Committee chairman Thorbjoern Jagland said: "We cannot achieve democracy and lasting peace in the world unless women achieve the same opportunities as men to influence developements at all levels of society."
The women will share the $1.5m (£1m) prize money.
Here are some great profiles of the three winners: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-15214032This year's Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded jointly to three women - Liberian... more
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OTTAWA (September 7, 2011) - Nine distinguished recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize have written to President Obama, urging him to reject the proposed Keystone XL tar sands oil pipeline, saying his decision offers "a critical moment" to make good on his pledge to create a clean energy economy.
"We urge you to say no" to the pipeline and "turn your attention back to supporting renewable sources of energy and clean transportation solutions," says the letter (Download PDF), sent today. "This will be your legacy to Americans and the global community: energy that sustains the lives and livelihoods of future generations." Read the full text of the letter below.
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The letter was signed by nine Nobel Peace Prize laureates: Mairead Maguire and Betty Williams of Ireland, who shared the prize in 1976, Adolfo Pérez Esquivel of Argentina (1980), Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa (1984), His Holiness the Dalai Lama (1989), Rigoberta Menchú Tum of Guatemala (1992), José Ramos-Horta of East Timor (1996), Jody Williams of the United States (1997), and Shirin Ebadi of Iran (2003).
The Keystone XL, proposed by TransCanada Pipelines of Calgary, would carry dirty, toxic and corrosive oil from the tar sands of Alberta through six states in the American heartland to refineries on the Texas Gulf Coast. The Obama Administration has said it will decide by the end of the year whether to permit the pipeline, after the State Department determines whether it is in the national interest.
Opposition to the pipeline has surged in recent weeks as more than 1,250 people were arrested in 14 days of sit-ins at the White House - perhaps the largest wave of civil disobedience ever for an environmental cause in the U.S. More protests are being organized for September 26 in Ottawa and the first week of October in Washington.
"In asking you to make this decision," the Nobel Laureates wrote to Obama, "we recognize the thousands of Americans who risked arrest to protest in front of the White House between August 20th and September 3rd. These brave individuals have spoken movingly about experiencing the power of nonviolence in that time. They represent millions of people whose lives and livelihoods will be affected by construction and operation of the pipeline in Alberta, Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas."
The Laureates noted the risk of a pipeline spill contaminating the Ogallala Aquifer, the main source of fresh water for the Great Plains. Concern for the fragile Nebraska Sandhills, which lie above the aquifer, has led Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman to call for rejection of the pipeline in its current route. TransCanada's existing Keystone I pipeline, which would connect to the XL, has leaked 14 times in its first year of operation.
The letter also called attention to tar sands oil as one of the dirtiest energy sources on Earth. If fully developed, the Alberta tar sands would be the second largest source of global warming gases in the world, which the Laureates said "will not only hurt people in the US--but will also endanger the entire planet."
The letter was released today by the Nobel Women's Initiative, an Ottawa-based nonprofit founded in 2003 by six of the only 12 women ever to win the Nobel Peace Prize.
Read the full text of the letter at the linkOTTAWA (September 7, 2011) - Nine distinguished recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize... more
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Of course it's just a drop in the bucket compared to the never ending conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq (economic black holes), but how many American states could the federal government have pulled out of the red with nearly a billion dollars?
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The cost of U.S. military intervention in Libya has cost American taxpayers an estimated $896 million through July 31, the Pentagon said today.
The price tag includes the amounts for daily military operations, munitions used in the operation and humanitarian assistance for the Libyan people.
The U.S. has also promised $25 million in non-lethal aid to the Libyan Transitional National Council, half of which the Defense Department has already on MRE’s (military lingo for Meals, Ready to Eat).
Over the past 12 days, U.S. planes have flown 391 sorties for a total of 5,316 since April 1, according to figures provided by the Defense Department. That total includes 1,210 airstrike missions (bombing for peace) over the same three and a half month period. The U.S. has also conducted 101 Predator drone strike missions (bombing for peace) in Libya.Of course it's just a drop in the bucket compared to the never ending conflicts... more
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The Nobel Peace Prize officially rejected a bid to award the Norway killer, Anders Behring Breivik, with its most prestigious prize. The committee announced the Norway bomber’s plan for peace and saving the West from Islam was not comprehensive enough to deserve the famous peace prize and it significantly fell short of Obama’s “much more effective long term predator drone peace policies.”
http://deardirtyamerica.blogspot.com/2011/07/nobel-peace-prize-norway-killers-plan.htmlThe Nobel Peace Prize officially rejected a bid to award the Norway killer, Anders... more
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CNN...
Argentine singer shot dead in Guatemala
By the CNN Wire Staff
July 9, 2011 5:23 p.m. EDT
Photo: Police stand near roses laid at the scene of Saturday's shooting of Argentine folk singer Facundo Cabral in Guatemala City.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Nobel Peace Prize winner Rigoberta Menchu says Facundo Cabral died "for his ideals," report says
The singer was on a Latin American tour
Gunmen attacked his SUV as he made his way to the airport
A motive for the killing remains unclear
(CNN) -- Gunmen shot dead Argentine folk singer Facundo Cabral Saturday as his car made its way to the airport in Guatemala City, police said.
The singer's agent was also shot and is in stable condition in the hospital, said police spokesman Donald Gonzalez.
In Guatemala on a Latin American tour, Cabral, 74, left his hotel at 5:40 a.m. in a white SUV for an eight-minute ride to the airport.
Gunmen attacked the SUV -- at least 20 bullet holes could be seen on the Range Rover. Nothing was reported stolen from the vehicle, government spokesman Ronaldo Robles said.
Police found a brown Hyundai Santa Fe nearby containing bullet-proof vests and AK-47 magazines.
A motive for the killing of one of Latin America's best-known folk singers remained unclear. Robles said an investigation was underway.
"Adios amigo!" said Argentine Foreign Minister Hector Timerman on Twitter.
Argentine folk singer Facundo Cabral, 74, gained fame as a protest singer.
Guatemalan Nobel Peace Prize winner Rigoberta Menchu traveled to the site of the attack, where she wept and said the singer had died "for his ideals," according to Notimex, the state-run news agency in Mexico.
"I can't think of a single reason why Cabral was killed here in Guatemala. He came just to sing," Notimex reported she said.
Cabral was the latest victim in a wave of violence that has rocked Guatemala ahead of elections.
In a report last month, the International Crisis Group warned that the violence and unregulated campaign finance were putting the country's political institutions at risk.
Stephen McFarland, the U.S. ambassador to Guatemala, echoed that warning Saturday.
"I think this of course hurts Guatemala's image before the rest of the region and I believe that brings serious questions to the table about what can be done to prevent this from continuing," he said.
Guatemala's human rights ombudsman, Sergio Morales, expressed his condolences to Argentina.
"I ask authorities of this country that this crime not be left unsolved, to investigate," he said.
Ironically, Cabral, who said he was inspired by Jesus Christ and Mohandas Gandhi, was recognized in 1996 by the Organization of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization as a "World Peace Messenger."
Cabral gained fame as a protest singer. His song, "No Soy De Aqui, Ni Soy De Alla" ("I'm Not From Here Nor There") was recorded in nine languages by stars including Julio Iglesias and Neil Diamond.
CNN's Claudia Dominguez and Moni Basu contributed to this report.CNN...
Argentine singer shot dead in Guatemala
By the CNN Wire Staff
July 9,... more
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Libya’s foreign minister Abdulati Alobidi, has condemned recent NATO strikes on Tripoli, and added that the alliance’s bombing of civilian targets should be regarded as a “call for all free people of the world and for all Muslims to initiate a global jihad against the oppressive, criminal West.”
More here:
http://www.politicalfailblog.com/2011/06/libyan-fm-calls-for-global-jihad.htmlLibya’s foreign minister Abdulati Alobidi, has condemned recent NATO strikes on... more
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(RT) According to the Russian president’s special envoy in Africa, Mikhail Margelov, the idea of nominating Dmitry Medvedev for the Nobel Peace Prize for mediating in the Libyan conflict belongs to the Tunisian foreign minister, Muldi Kefi.
Margelov shared the news with Russian journalists during a media briefing in Moscow on Saturday. Margelov said that the Tunisian authorities are certain the Russian president justly deserves the reward “even today” and “to a greater extent surely than US president Barack Obama, who got his Nobel in advance,” less than a year after entering office.
Read more here:
http://www.politicalfailblog.com/2011/06/medvedev-deserves-nobel-prize-for-libya.html(RT) According to the Russian president’s special envoy in Africa, Mikhail... more
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The singing Bay Area protest group calling themselves the "Fresh Juice Party" -- who made headlines serenading President Obama during his last local fundraiser -- nearly got into the pricey Michelle Obama fundraiser in the East Bay Tuesday morning.
Naomi Pitcairn, one of the founders of the group, says her members purchased three $2,500 tickets to Mrs. Obama's Claremont Hotel breakfast fundraiser for the Obama 2012 campaign. But over the weekend, she said she received a letter from Obama campaign finance staff saying she had already donated the maximum amount to the campaign.
see videos here:
http://www.politicalfailblog.com/2011/06/singing-protest-group-rebuffed-in.html?utm_source=BP_recentThe singing Bay Area protest group calling themselves the "Fresh Juice... more
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In 2009, the Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the annual Nobel Peace Prize to newly minted President Barack Obama. In its press release, the Committee noted “his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples.”
Democrats hailed the announcement as a validation of their faith in the erstwhile junior Senator from Illinois. Conservatives acknowledged the most-recent addition to the untested former community organizer’s collection of accolades as proof that the Nobel Prize — which had gained considerable tarnish after being handed to Al Gore for science fiction — was rapidly becoming as precious as those fancy breath mints they have in a dish at the Chicago-area restaurants where Oprah Winfrey dines. The conservative skepticism was confirmed after it became apparent the Norwegian Nobel Committee voted to hand the medal to Obama only nine days into his occupation of the Oval Office.
But Obama is a Nobel laureate. He successfully campaigned on his opposition to war, proudly touting his stance against further combat in Iraq and promising a swift withdrawal from that conflict. With Obama in the White House, not only were we all going to be better people, but we were going to live in a more peaceful world. Obama was demonstrating “extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation.”
So, more than two years later, how’s that working out for everyone?
The War in Iraq continues, although the corporate media have developed an apparent aversion to reporting on it. The War in Afghanistan has gotten more — not less — violent, although the corporate media have evidently forgotten how to find Afghanistan on a map. The Middle East has erupted in a revolutionary frenzy which seems inspiring, until closer examination of the various conflicts reveals what may well be some sort of intramural Islamofascist squabble. Instead of delivering harmonious peace to the planet, Obama has increased U.S. military obligations from two wars to four. And he has done so at a time when the U.S. economy is wheezing like Ed Schultz chasing after a date (thanks to Obama’s ham-fisted economic stewardship).
You read that correctly. In addition to the continuing engagements in Iraq and Afghanistan, Obama has committed us to the dubiously progressing effort to oust Moammar Gadhafi from Libya. And thanks to a report which will probably cost The New York Times a spot on the plane the next time Michelle Obama takes a few dozen of her closest friends to a five-star foreign resort, it has been revealed the U.S. military is now conducting a “secret” — and growing — conflict in Yemen. “Cooperation between peoples” is fairly simple when one side of those “peoples” is pushing up palm trees.
To be honest, I have no issue with justifiable war. Terrorists, among others, need to die; and the U.S. military has consistently demonstrated it is second to none at killing terrorists. Plus, war looks much cooler on television than the corporate media excusing Representative Anthony Weiner’s contact with high school girls. Of course, I didn’t run for President of the United States on an anti-war platform, nor did I win the Nobel Peace Prize on spec. The Obama global doctrine appears to involve some sort of diplomatic board game: “All right, Mr. President, you rolled a five and a three. You have to go to…Yemen… with a cruise missile!”
I am, therefore, perplexed by the ability of rank-and-file liberals to rectify their beloved Obama’s anti-war promises with his decidedly belligerent (or scattershot) performances.
The whole of human history has been marked by war. Indeed, the number of war-free years since the first Neolithic tribesmen began scribbling depictions of dead other Neolithic tribesmen is, counting 2011, effectively zero. Ever since Thok figured out he could have the best cows and women by splitting Unk’s skull with a rock, we’ve been at it. In fact, there may well be only one thing that has defined man’s attempts to assert his own dominance over the world: lying.
–Ben Crystal
http://www.personalliberty.com/hot-topics/outside-the-asylum/giving-peace-no-chance/?eiid=&rmid=2011_06_14_PLA_[P11826592]&rrid=238466338In 2009, the Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the annual Nobel Peace Prize to newly... more
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Wow! This guy is coming to my town in a few weeks and I just may have to go check him out live. Video at link.
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Lupe Fiasco called out President Barack Obama this week, calling his fellow Chicagoan "the biggest terrorist."
The comments came in an interview with CBS News Tuesday while discussing the political content of his music.
"My fight against terrorism, to me, the biggest terrorist is Obama in the United States of America. I'm trying to fight the terrorism that's actually causing the other forms of terrorism. You know, the root cause of terrorism is the stuff the U.S. government allows to happen. The foreign policies that we have in place in different countries that inspire people to become terrorists."
And it's not the only shots the president has taken this week. Republican presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty stopped through Chicago Tuesday and said Obama "needs to go to rehab" in reference to the economic recovery.Wow! This guy is coming to my town in a few weeks and I just may have to go check him... more
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No one was more surprised than I when Obama received the Nobel Prize. After all, he hadn’t had a chance to do much of anything yet and I’m not sure a few months of grappling with the large bag of burning dog poo left on his doorstep qualified him to be the bringer of world peace.No one was more surprised than I when Obama received the Nobel Prize. After all, he... more
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Another unconstitutional war, and by a Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.
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On Saturday, the Pentagon began "Operation Odyssey Dawn" in Libya, according to NBC News.
The U.S. military attacked Moammar Gadhafi's air defenses Saturday with strikes along the Libyan coast that were launched by Navy vessels in the Mediterranean.
A senior military official said the assault would unfold in stages and target air defense installations around Tripoli, the capital, and a coastal area south of Benghazi. That's the rebel stronghold under attack by Moammar Gadhafi's forces.
Complete details were not immediately available.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss sensitive military operations.
Hours after Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton attended an international conference in Paris that endorsed military action against Gadhafi, the U.S. kicked off its attacks on Libyan air defense missile and radar sites along the Mediterranean coast to protect no-fly zone pilots from the threat of getting shot down.
Story continues below
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A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity in order to discuss sensitive military operations, said the Obama administration intended to limit its involvement -- at least in the initial stages -- to helping protect French and other air missions.Another unconstitutional war, and by a Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.
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On... more
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WikiLeaks, Internet in record Nobel Peace field | Reuters
Anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks, the Internet and a Russian human rights activist are among a record 241 nominations for the 2011 Nobel Peace PrizeWikiLeaks, Internet in record Nobel Peace field | Reuters
Anti-secrecy website... more
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Wikileaks will get Nobel Peace Prize 2011 ?
Click Link and Vote : http://tinyurl.com/6ek4lcbWikileaks will get Nobel Peace Prize 2011 ?
Click Link and Vote :... more
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A member of the Parliament of Norway says he has nominated WikiLeaks for the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize.
Snorre Valen, a member of the Socialist Left party, announced his decision to nominate the whistle-blowing organization on his blog.A member of the Parliament of Norway says he has nominated WikiLeaks for the 2011... more
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A Norwegian lawmaker has nominated WikiLeaks for the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, saying Wednesday that its disclosures of classified documents promote world peace by holding governments accountable for their actions.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee keeps candidates secret for 50 years, but those with nomination rights sometimes make their picks known.
Snorre Valen, a 26-year-old legislator from Norway's Socialist Left Party, told The Associated Press he handed in his nomination in person on Tuesday, the last day to put forth candidates.
"I think it is important to raise a debate about freedom of expression and that truth is always the first casualty in war," Valen said. "WikiLeaks wants to make governments accountable for their actions and that contributes to peace."A Norwegian lawmaker has nominated WikiLeaks for the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, saying... more
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Screw Time’s “Person of the Year,” it looks like WikiLeaks could be going after a much bigger award. A Norwegian lawmaker named Snorre Valen has apparently nominated the website for the Nobel Peace Prize. And, while nominees are officially kept secret for 50 years, Valen has taken to the Internet (perhaps in an homage to WikiLeaks’ transparency ideals) to write a blog post entitled “Why I have nominated Wikileaks for the Nobel Peace Prize,” thus ensuring that a bunch of American newscasters are now going to have to learn how to pronounce the name “Snorre Valen”.
From Valen’s post:
It is always easier to support freedom of speech when the one who speaks agree with you politically. This is one of the ‘tests’ on liberal and democratic values that governments tend to fail. For instance, western governments have a long history on tolerating oppressive regimes that are ‘friendly-minded’. Internet companies assist China in censoring search engines. And many countries respond to Wikileaks‘ obvious right to publish material that is of public interest, by seeking to ’shoot the messenger’.
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Nevertheless, many seek to redraw the map of information freedom with the emergence of institutions like Wikileaks. Political powers and institutions that ordinarily protect freedom of speech suddenly warn against the danger, the threat to security, yes even the ‘terrorism’ that Wikileaks represent. In doing so, they fail in upholding democratic values and human rights. In fact, they contribute to the opposite. It is not, and should never be, the priviledge of politicians to regulate which crimes the public should never be told about, and through which media those crimes become known.”
Valen goes on to compare his nomination to the recent win by Liu Xiaobo, the pro-democracy activist, who was not able to claim his award in person since he was still being jailed by the Chinese government.
The actual winners won’t be announced till next October but really, who cares? “Person of the Year?” Nobel Peace Prize? They may sound nice but we only care about the really flashy awards like the Oscars. Let us know when WikiLeaks wins one of those. Ha! That’s impossible.
…or is it?
http://www.mediaite.com/online/wikileaks-nominated-for-the-nobel-peace-prize/Screw Time’s “Person of the Year,” it looks like WikiLeaks could be... more
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