Obama's Nobel Peace Prize an award for audacity of hope

Yes, most of the past awards were given to recipients on the basis of accomplishments, as far as presidents and political luminaries are concerned, including Anwar Sadat, Mikhail Gorbachev, Kim Dae-jung, for example. But there were many more, like Mahatma Gandhi who had contributed greatly to the cause of peace but had never been honored by the prize. So, decisions made by the Norwegian Nobel Committee have never been without any controversy.

But this year's controversy had a new dimension. It was like a bombshell. It was astonishing even for Obama himself, not to mention the world at large. It was also bemusing, as many who heard of the bombshell would have asked the inevitable question: For what?

President Obama has two wars in his hands and is struggling to send a “surge” of 40,000 more combat troops in Afghanistan to fight the Taliban. There's a smidge of irony in war and peace. And, since his inauguration in January, he has not delivered on his campaign promises of bringing about “change” at home and abroad.

His critics at home, conservatives and Republicans, assailed him for being apologetic and denigrating American values to please the Europeans and adversaries. The Wall Street Journal says it is an award “for the end of American exceptionalism.” The term refers to America's long-held view that American values are universal and must be promoted “without apology and defended by military force when necessary,” according to the Journal. So, Obama-bashers at home depicted him as someone who is less than patriotic.

Abroad, the choice was also greeted with a lot of skepticism. “For what? So soon?” was the reaction from Lech Walesa, former president of Poland and a Nobel peace laureate.

In all fairness, however, the recipient of this lofty honor should be judged not only by his or her accomplishments, but also by the ideals espoused and championed by the recipient. Ideals that would change the world for the better. Measured by this yardstick, Barack Obama richly deserves the award.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee, headed by Thorbjorn Iagland, decided to bestow the honor on Obama because the 48-year-old American president has “created a climate change in international politics.” This sounded abstract, but the change is sorely needed judging from the miasma created by his predecessor whose “go-it-alone” unilateralism has alienated the world.

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