The Way We Live Now: Basking in economic glory. Nobel Prize for economics? Check. Wall Street's highest point of the year? Check. The rest of our nation's crumbling economic infrastructure, from Wichita to Vegas? Check minus. That's still one check!

Even though he didn't deserve it, it's still awesome that Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize, right? No, it's not. It used to be, but now that Barack Obama has done it, it's un-American.

CBS's Chip Reid: Why didn't Nobama give his Nobel Prize that he award to himself to Ronald Reagan???

Barack Obama knows that the Nobel Peace Prize is as often given as encouragement as it is for accomplishment. So he starts off humble, says he'll accept the award, and moves on to his international relations to-do list.

It was an awkward moment, topping even Barack Obama's meeting with the president he spent two years running against: Economist and Times columnist Paul Krugman, receiving congratulations for his Nobel Prize from the man he said built the "Party of Stupid," who "got rid of accountability," and who "was lying" about his "patently, shamelessly dishonest" budget, among many, many other brutal criticisms Krugman has leveled against the president over the past seven years. The photo, by Chip Somodevilla, says plenty, but hopefully Krugman will write something (for his blog?) on the words that actually came out of the president's mouth at the Oval Office meeting.

Congratulations to Paul Krugman, Princeton Economist, for his Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences! The international trade expert learned he'd been honored this morning, greeting the news with only mild surprise. "To be absolutely, totally honest I thought this day might come someday, but I was absolutely convinced it wasn't going to be this day," Krugman told the New York Times, where he's been an Op-Ed columnist for years. And the prize committee claims they honored Krugman for "having shown the effects of economies of scale on trade patterns and on the location of economic activity," but we layman can all assume that Krugman won the prize for his column's years of Bush-bashing. Just like when Jimmy Carter won the Nobel Peace prize in 2002! Carter won supposedly for working "to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development" but everyone knew it was just because the international community hates George W. Bush and former president Carter can't stop complaining about Bush. Of course, Krugman still thinks he won this prize for his "economics," but he knows full well that the recognition won't silence the people who read his writings just to call him a communist or whatever:

"But this is a recognition of your life's work," the reporter argues.

So the womyn of Jezebel and our new cougar pal Erica Jong were very thrilled that feminist author Doris Lessing got the Nobel Prize for literature, but we were sort of less than thrilled and felt like the choice reeked of affirmative action girl style now. (We think Doris felt much the same!) Seriously, ladies (and mens!): have you read 'The Golden Notebook'? Really? While awake?