Obama and Nobel Peace Prize

When I first heard the news that Barack Obama had been selected by the Nobel Committee as this year’s recipient for its Peace Prize, I thought it was a put-on, not unlike the headlines frequently associated with the satirical newspaper The Onion. Whatever Obama’s promise and idealism, the point is that after barely nine months in office, he has accomplished very little in the area of international relations and world peace. About the only thing that can be said is that the Committee was making a political statement, namely, that after eight years of American unilateralism and heavy-handed arrogance as displayed by the Bush Administration, it was endorsing Obama’s commitment to international cooperation and diplomacy. In essence, Obama got the prize because he isn't George Bush.