Nobel Peace Prize

I think that more time should have been taken to give this out, even though some may argue that the first few months in office were enough to judge Obama’s record enough to say he deserved it. That he has out shown a past president on public appeal and addressing his want to create peace in the world has improved a tarnished image in the media but I think it was too early to know if in fact peace as he proposes will be accomplished. Most probably it will happen after many more years of armed conflict in the Afghan region but that is not what most Americans would like to see.

So Obama has been given an award of distinction but he hasn’t yet been able to secure peace in those hot spots where peace efforts have been attempted and failed before. Is the academy wanting to influence the presidency so that the American leadership will work more diligently and eliminate the seeds of discord?Perhaps the academy is in cahoots with the European government in order to pressure the Americans to follow through with peace initiatives and to look the other way when facing Iran on its nuclear development program.

Giving the peace award might also work negatively by causing the presidency to think more peace that it will undermine ts alliances elsewhere and leave more room for Taliban insurgency to strike. However for all I know the Afghans might be more willing to relinquish their hold of their once controlled regions, especially if all they see is a recurring nightmare of repeated counter attacks. A recent survey showed a corruption in the Afghan police force which has given in to insurgent pressures. Would the president be able to get the Afghans to keep their own peace at a local level?

In other words I question the solidness of the Karzai government which would have to maintain an infrastructure left behind by an American pullout. Critics might say well at least the award was given for the effort Obama made to create a more secure Afghanistan against the insurgency.The region has been known as the graveyard of empires for centuries. The British tried to kidnap an Afghan outlaw in the 1800’s and failed, the Russians failed in the region after eight years. Will history be gentler on the US?

The president will be facing a real challenge on how he lives up to the award that he has been given, as far as I know he has already accepted. He might just as well have refused it because of the complications of establishing a lasting peace in the  region running from Iraq all the way to India and beyond.

Image by US Army Africa via Flickr

Image by US Army Africa via Flickr

Afghanistan.