Obama awarded 2009 Nobel Peace Prize

Summary: On Friday, the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, President Barack Obama. This honor comes just 8 months into his presidency, and was a big suprise to many people, including the presidents administration. The committee honors him for his "extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples." They reject the idea that Obama is being recognized prematurely. He has initiated peace missions to many parts of the globe recently, advocating peace between Isreal and Palestine, and negotiating with Iran and North Korea to end their nuclear programs. This award has many people hoping the conflicts of Afghanistan, and Iraq will be resolved over this. Obama is the fourth U.S. president to recieve this honor, and only the third to do so while in office.

Opinion: I am as suprised as anyone to hear that our President has won this prestidious honor. I had not heard a single rumor that he was even nominated, much less a front runner. I hope that with the confidence, and respect that this award brings him, Obama can be even more successful in his quest to rid the world of nuclear weapons, and bring peace to the Middle East. I somewhat agree with the committee, that this award is not premature. Obama has already overcome so much adversity, and has already made so much progress in world politics, however I think that his best accomplishments still lie in the future. I wonder how this peace award will affect Obama's decisions on the war in Afghanistan. Sending more troops there isn't exactly an action that defines a Nobel peace laureate. Whether or not people support Obama or agree with his beliefs and actions, or whether he deserves this award or not, we should be proud that our president was chosen for this honor. This award is for the American people as much as it is for Obama, because we are the ones who elected him. I hope that petty accusations and bickering will halt enough for everyone to appreciate the good this says about our country. America has finally regained the world's respect.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/10/09/nobel.peace.prize/index.html?eref=rss_politics