What were they thinking in Oslo?

President Obama has been less than nine months in office when he won the Nobel Peace Prize this Friday. It seems the decision took even the audience in the Norwegian capital of Oslo by surprise. But not only there. The world is in a state of disbelief and divided about the award. The rule was that the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to politicians if they could point to tangible political successes and with all due respect to President Obama and as Nils Butenschon, director of the Norwegian Center for Human Rights at the University of Oslo,said, this was not the case with Obama. He is receiving the prize before he has accomplished much of substance. In an article written in Spiegel magazine from Germany we can read “ The US president cannot point to any real diplomatic successes to date and there are few prospects of any to come.” This can sound harsh but while we have heard many speeches from Obama we have not seen much accomplishments yet. And that should have be the keyword for the Nobel Prize committee: yet. Were they have decided to put Obama in a waiting list for the prize, let us say two years from now, he might have had a chance of accomplish some of his promises and be able to receive the prize with honor for himself and America. As it is, many of us cannot but think of the war in Afghanistan, the prisons of Guantanamo and Bagram, the lack of peace between Israelis and Palestinians, the lack of a climate change bill to be signed… That abroad. At home this prize is not going to mean much unless we get a courageous and honest health care reform, jobs and help for all those who have lost so much in the economic crisis.
As much as I would like to congratulate President Obama, in all honesty I cannot do it yet.