This post is from Michael Lame, the founder of “Re-Think the Middle East,” an organization attempting to elevate the quality of public discourse regarding the Middle East. He blogs at www.rethinkme.org:
President Barack Obama, as everyone knows, has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Many people ask: Does he deserve it? Well, it depends on what the meaning of the word “deserve” is: “Deserve: to merit or have a claim to…because of one’s acts, qualities, or situation.”
Obama’s acts or actions have not produced definitive results on the world stage, not yet in any case. His qualities, as discerned through his words, probably weighed more with the Nobel Committee than any identifiable accomplishments. Speeches given in Cairo, Ankara, Prague, Strasbourg, and at the U.N. in New York have all been well-received internationally. Obama is the anti-Bush, signaling a new direction in foreign policy, and that sits well with Arab, Muslim, Russian, and European audiences, among others.
For those of us who care about the future of the Middle East, the award of the Nobel Peace Prize should be received as good news, though perhaps for reasons not at first obvious. Click here to read more.
Its really good news for Americans… but not for me..