Congratulations Mr President

Last Friday, everyone learned the shocking news that President Barack Obama had won the Nobel Peace Prize.I was taken by surprise. Some commentators have gone so far as to suggest he won simply because he wasn't George W. Bush.

He wins the prize for more of hope and potential than for achievement.Mr Obama had been in office for just 11 days when nominations for this year's Nobel Peace Prize closed on February 1. He spent most of those first days settling into the White House.Although humbly questioning whether he was deserving, he described the prize as a "call to action". Apparently, someone got a little caught up in the “Change We Can Believe In” campaign and decided to nominate Obama before he even really had time to get comfortable in his new role as president

To my mind there are four enduring impasses, that, if Obama do it he will be truly worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize. One - to help revert potentially catastrophic climate change by leading the way in climate action policies that will work. Two - end once and for all the Israel-Palestine saga. There is little hope now for a two state solution - so interweaved are the territories. The only hope is for a single state, two peoples with equal rights. Three - mitigate and avert the always-looming threat of nuclear war or catastrophe by enforcing a drastic reduction in the world's nuclear arsenal. And four - deliver to the American public long standing calls for some type of sustainable and universal health care model.

He hopes to build multilateralism in the world, which is obviously a nice breath of fresh air compared to the previous administration’s more unilateral approach to global issues. Additionally, Obama hopes to reduce the stock of nuclear weapons in the world, telling a European crowd in April the United States has a “moral responsibility” to help along the process of nuclear disarmament. Obama has also reached out to the Muslim world, and he actually admits global warming is a pressing issue.

In fact, if he pulls off any one of those impasses, then he deserves the Peace Prize. Maybe a couple of peace medals and keys to all the cities on earth. But however they are only ideas.It is obvious Obama received the peace prize because of what the committee thinks he is capable of doing. However, I’m not sure capability is the strongest basis on which to decide the recipient of the award. This is probably why so many people are uncomfortable with Obama winning; since he has won without doing anything overly impressive, it calls into question the judgment of the selection committee and the legitimacy of the Nobel Peace Prize itself.