Gore Urges Action After Nobel Prize Win

Former VP Says Now Is Time To "Elevate Global Consciousness" On Climate Change

(CBS/AP)  Former Vice President Al Gore, newly named co-winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, said Friday he hopes the honor will "elevate global consciousness" about the challenges of global warming.

Gore, whose documentary "An Inconvenient Truth," won an Academy Award earlier this year, was awarded the prize earlier in the day along with the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, an international network of scientists, for spreading awareness of man-made climate change and laying the foundations for counteracting it.

Shortly after the announcement, he pledged to donate his share of the $1.5 million prize money to the Alliance for Climate Protection, a bipartisan nonprofit organization that is devoted to changing public opinion worldwide about the urgency of solving the climate crisis.

"This is just the beginning," Gore told reporters at a meeting of the group. "Now is the time to elevate global consciousness about the challenges that we face."

Gore had been widely tipped to win Friday's prize, which expanded the Norwegian committee's interpretation of peacemaking and disarmament efforts that have traditionally been the award's foundations.

"We face a true planetary emergency," Gore said. "The climate crisis is not a political issue, it is a moral and spiritual challenge to all of humanity."

The Nobel committee chairman, Ole Danbolt Mjoes, asserted that the prize was not aimed at the Bush administration, which rejected Kyoto and was widely criticized outside the U.S. for not taking global warming seriously enough.

"We would encourage all countries, including the big countries, to challenge, all of them, to think again and to say what can they do to conquer global warming," Mjoes said. "The bigger the powers, the better that they come in front of this."

The Norwegian Nobel Committee said global warming, "may induce large-scale migration and lead to greater competition for the earth's resources. Such changes will place particularly heavy burdens on the world's most vulnerable countries. There may be increased danger of violent conflicts and wars, within and between states."

"His strong commitment, reflected in political activity, lectures, films and books, has strengthened the struggle against climate change," the Nobel citation said. "He is probably the single individual who has done most to create greater worldwide understanding of the measures that need to be adopted."

Even before Gore's Nobel prize was announced, speculation began over whether a Nobel medal might cause Gore to consider becoming a candidate for president.

CBS News chief Washington correspondent Bob Schieffer said entering the race now would require Gore to overcome some substantial political obstacles.

“The core of his support would have to come from that part of the Democratic Party that Hillary Clinton seems to have sewed up so far,” he told CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric. “The other part of his support would have to come from kind of the idealistic wing, that would be those voters that are for Barack Obama. I simply don't see him peeling off very much support from either of those two candidates and that would make it very, very difficult for him, it seems to me, to raise the money.”

Two Gore advisers, speaking on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to share his thinking, said the award will not make it any more likely that he will seek the presidency in 2008.

If anything, the Peace Prize makes the rough-and-tumble of a presidential race less appealing to Gore, they said, because now he has a huge, international platform to fight global warming and may not want to do anything to diminish it.

One of the advisers said that while Gore is unlikely to rule out a bid in the coming days, the prospects of the former vice president entering the fray in 2008 are "extremely remote."

As he left the room after making his statement, Gore ignored reporters asking if he planned to get into the presidential race.

"Winning a Nobel Peace Prize is a life changing event," Dylan Malone, who runs a Web site called AlGore.org, which advocates a Gore presidential run, told CBSNews.com's Brian Monotopoli. "He's done the slideshow, made the movie, won every accolade that our society has to give. There's nowhere else to go to take it to the next level in my mind."

According to recent CBS News polls, Gore remains popular among Democratic primary voters. In a poll conducted this summer, 55 percent of likely Democratic primary voters said they viewed the former vice president favorably, while only 20 percent had an unfavorable view. In April, a CBS News poll found that 35 percent of Americans believe Gore's positions go too far in protecting the environment at the expense of economic concerns, while 48 percent believe he strikes the right balance. (Read more CBS News poll analysis on Gore.)

Gore supporters have been raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for petition drives and advertising in an effort to lure him into the Democratic presidential primaries. One group, Draftgore.com, ran a full-page open letter to Gore in Wednesday's New York Times, imploring him to get into the race.

"I think the inconvenient truth for Al Gore president dreamers is he doesn't really want to run and a lot of Democrats think that's a wise decision," said Jim VandeHei, executive editor of Politico.com, on CBS News' The Early Show. "Al Gore does not have that fire in the belly that you need to mount a national campaign... But more importantly, Democrats seem satisfied with the candidates that they have right now."

Gore, 59, has been coy, saying repeatedly he's not running for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008, without ever closing that door completely.

He was the Democratic nominee in 2000 and won the general election popular vote. However, Gore lost the electoral vote to George W. Bush after a legal challenge to the Florida result that was decided by the Supreme Court.

"Eight years of the Clinton presidency - and one bitter campaign in 2000 - have left the two power couples estranged and, perhaps, resentful," writes CBSNews.com senior political editor Vaughn Ververs. "Another eight years later, Hillary Clinton is riding high in her bid to win the Democratic nomination and Al Gore is an international superstar."

Both Clintons, as well as several other presidential candidates and former president Jimmy Carter, made statements after Gore won the prize.

"Al Gore has been warning and educating us about the dangers of climate change for decades. He saw this coming before others in public life and never stopped pushing for action to save our planet, even in the face of public indifference and attacks from those determined to defend the indefensible," former president Bill Clinton said.

"Now the question is, will Al run?" added Ververs. "The answer is most likely no, but that doesn't mean Gore still can’t cause plenty of trouble for Clinton in the nomination fight." (Read "The Revenge Of Al Gore?")

[tbweb]

Gore.....Bore.....Yawn.....ZZZZZZZZzzzzz
z

Posted by GrammaWhamma at 10:06 PM : Oct 14, 2007,,,

Maybe, but with the endless drama in Iraq and elsewhere and WWIII brewing in the background, boring is good and a refreshing change don''t you think? The World needs a break and could actually use boring right now!

[grammawhamma]

Gore.....Bore.....Yawn.....ZZZZZZZZzzzzzz

[logicanada]

gaye5 re the bible. I have a fine one with many colour plates depicting biblical events. The plate of the garden of eden shows Adam in the image and likeness of god. Why does he have a navel? Does god have a navel? If so, who was god''s mom and how long was His gestation

[mediapreachr]

Yea,some people don''''t know what they are going to eat at lunch but they''''re certain the polar bears are gone in 50 years.What arrogant,unqualified fools.
I love Global Warming.This year there''''s been an increase
in the sightings of babes in bikinis.I met 3 or 4 at the Live Earth concert not long ago.
Also can''''t wait till all the ice is gone at the pole-I''''ll be first there fishing.
Remember when the US gov gave away land and money to people just to settle parts of good old USA??
The canucks will be doing that soon.Tired of competing with hordes of illegals in overcrowded cities for a fistful of dollars?
By the way I''''m neither republican nor democrat.Like most people I''''m independent.

[gaye5]

californiar, I am not going to go into some great debate on the bible, but I once thought like you, until I started reading bible prophecy and saw prophecies of what was going to happen in the last days and to discover that these prophecies were written 2000 and 4000 years ago really got me goings..so then what it said about Jesus must be true..I thought it had all just been made up after the fact, but 4000 years ago they didnt know about planes, but one of the prophecy said that the people from Yeman would go back to Israel on the backs of giant birds, and they went back in DC3''s..
I could not have believed with blind faith, it had to be proven for me to believe... Plus as a nurse I got to see and hear many things..

All I can say to you is, if I am wrong then when I go into eternity I have nothing to loose, but if you are wrong????

[toolmangler-2009]

And by the way, the bible is ficticious.
Posted by californiar at 01:14 PM : Oct 13, 2007


Prove it!!!!!!!!!!!

[gaye5]

GOOD ONE drinuk
and you are so very right. The trouble is that people cant seem to think for themselves.. all they have to do is look on the net at scientists against global warming, or the truth about global warming etc.. to see the other side, then and only then can they make a valuated opinion on the subject, but if they want to continue to give money to these lies and help make these people rich all for nothing then I suppose it is over to them..
The Ozone layer was found in about the late 1800''s...
By the late 1800s, atmospheric scientists had isolated carbon monoxide and .... Monitoring ozone levels in the south polar region
# 1840 - Christian Friedrich Schvnbein identifies ozone as a component of the lower atmosphere and names it.
# 1881 - W.N. Hartley identifies ozone as the substance that absorbs ultraviolet radiation from the sun at wavelengths below 290 nanometers. He also shows that ozone resides primarily at high altitudes.
Evidently they found that the ozone hole got bigger and smaller even back then..
The noble prize was also given to Dr. F. Sherwood Rowland in 1995, a pioneering researcher in the field of Chemistry for his work, (I gather on ozone).. but it now appears that at this stage the ozone hole is once again closing..
Two men given noble prizes on almost the same subject, hmmm

[joe965]

A well deserved award - not only did Al Gore invent Global Warming, but he''s also one of the leading individual contributers.

[hawksprings]

So the Democrats haven''t invented anything?
What about this list:

Top Ten Other Achievements Claimed By Al Gore

10. Was first human to grow an opposable thumb

9. Only man in world to sleep with someone named "Tipper"

8. Current Vice President - Moesha fan club

7. He invented the dog

6. While riding bicycle one day, accidentally invented the orgasmm

5. Pulled U.S. out of early 90''s recession by personally buying 6,000 T-shirts

4. Starred in CBS situation comedy with Juan Valdez, "Juan for Al, Al for Juan"

3. Was inspiration for Ozzy Osboune song "Crazy Train"

2. Came up with popular catchphrase "Don''t go there, girlfriend"

1. Gave mankind fire

[jowand]

Posted by californiar at 01:14 PM : Oct 13, 2007

You spelled your name wrong it should be calipornliar

[wonder25]

--from the song ''Hot Air'' by lance Morrison from his album ''Hating America First''

..."having wealth ain''t ''Occidental''
shares of oil and run down rentals
made a bundle growin''cancer sticks
and heatin'' up the atmosphere like hicks
and while I know the zinc is ''mine''
I protest ''gainst the workin'' kind
they pollute enroute to work
and my job is to tutor jerks...
IIIIIIIIIIIIiiiiiii''m the conscience of America
and I''m so smart that when I speak
the liberals all say, "Duh..."
and when I say that climate talk is done,
that by consensus we have won
I''ll shut down New York
(I''m a big dork)
Its our fault we cannot blame the sun!
(who invented the sun anyway?)

hear it @

www.conservativemusiconline.com

[jowand]

You know what Republicans want? Attention. They didnt invent the car, the airplane, the computer; they are not the visionaries, the scientists or the inventors. You people need to get a life. And by the way, the bible is ficticious.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by californiar at 12:53 PM : Oct 13, 2007

Let me see Democrats who invented something.
Al Gore, he invented the internet, he invented human caused global warming, he invented the hanging chad, he invented the accent he has when he screeches in black churches "he betrayed us he played on our fears".

[rohink-2009]

They are SO WORTHLESS that they can''''''''t even stand to post to one another on their republican news blogs.



Posted by george2221

```````````

George, this is a free country. Republicans, Democrats and Independents can post on any blog they choose.

So your last statement says two things. 1. CBS is a biased news source as is Fox. 2. If you consider yourself a liberal, than you are the one that doesn''t have a life and is trying to control what others can do.
That is very narrow minded

[wonder25]

Okay Californiar..I''ll play--name me one ''visionary'' running for Prez as a Dem....just one name is all I ask...no commentary, just one name...

[rohink-2009]

Foxnews is watched by the many worthless no-lifers. They don''''t have a life. Their life only has meaning if they are ruining others'''' lives.

They are SO WORTHLESS that they can''''t even stand to post to one another on their republican news blogs.



Posted by george2221

```````````

George, your ignorance is showing. It is the "liberals" that really aren''t liberals anymore that try to run everyone else''s lives. They are the ones banning everything that "they" say is bad for you. They are the one''s banning free speech. It is a pretty sad day when words are banned. Think about it. There are words that are hateful and bigoted, but, just because you ban the word, you don''t ban the bigotry. Tolerance goes both ways. Everyone on this planet is different in one way or another. And all are entitled to live their lives as they see fit. If I don''t want to wear a seatbelt, that should be my right. If I want to consume trans fats, that too should be my right. If I want to say a word that is taboo, that should be my right. But remember, with rights comes consequences. If I don''t wear a seat belt and get in an accident, I might die. If I want to consume mass quantities of trans fats I may have a massive heart attack or be obese or both. And finally, if I utter a word that is hateful and cruel, I may get by a$$ kicked or worse. That is what living in a free country is about. Not live your life as I think you should live it, and that my friend is truly liberal. Think about it.

[wonder25]

By the way, John Edwards says he did nothing wrong by cheating on his wife because he did it in the ''other America.'' (No controlling legal authority)

www.conservativemusiconlin.com

[wonder25]

From the song ''Hot Air'' on (police officer) Lance Morrison''s album Blaming America First:

" Get your sun screen-grab your shades,
Cats on time roofs must evade,
The heat that in my estimation''s new,
and Al Gore''s blamin'' me and you.
Broken clock''s right twice a day,
Hot or cold we''re gonna pay.
''Cause if its hot then he''s a sage,
and if its cold its ''climate change,
There''s a ponzi scheme he cannot lose,
Darlin'' of the liberal press,
''Do as I say not as I do''
I''m a scientific Elliot Ness
Sure I fly in private planes,
But someone has to be the brains..."

Hear it @

www.conservativemusiconline.com

[antoniof123]

californiar you are correct about that most of the conservitives are just mad because they can''t do anything. Wait yes they can they can ruin the enviornment, politics, destroy a country, divide one, and the list just keeps going on.

Morons instead of seein it like a true American sees it you see it like a true reactionary sees it. But we aren''t buying anymore Al Gore is an American and by winnin the Nobel Prize he makes all Americans look good.

But wait you are either with us or against us. Wonder which one you are?

[ajmarine1]

"Gore, 59, has been coy, saying repeatedly he''s not running for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008, without ever closing that door completely."

Either open that door wide or slam it shut, I''m tired of hearing,"I''m not going to run; but then again, I might."

[one_american]

californiar:

Only a liberal like yourself would try to deny free speech to anyone.

Only a liberal like yourself would make false claims and try to take credit for things they had never accomplished.

Only a liberal like yourself would expect everthing to be given to them by a re-distribution of wealth by a liberal government.

Only a liberal would say "Now Is Time To Elevate Global Consciousness" On Climate Change, while continuing to refuse to debate the subject, as your Eco-Fuhrer Al Gore has done.

Wake up and grow up, liberal.

Nobody owes you anything.