Obama is a special person for the world
By O.J.George
The news was stunning that Barack Obama, the fledgling President of the US, has won this year’s Nobel Peace Prize.

No doubt, he has fetched international acclaim for his ethical, intellectual and egalitarian views on world issues.

The prize is for ``his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples,'' the Norwegian Nobel Committee said, citing his outreach to the Muslim world and attempts to curb nuclear proliferation.

Obama's name had been mentioned in speculation before the award but many Nobel watchers believed it was too early to award the president. ”Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world's attention and given its people hope for a better future,'' the committee said.

"His diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world's population.''

Theodore Roosevelt won the award in 1906 and Woodrow Wilson won in 1919. Former President Jimmy Carter won the award in 2002, while former Vice President Al Gore shared the 2007 prize with the UN panel on climate change.

Our own Mother Teresa had won the prize in 1979.

That Obama was for inclusion of variegated sections, ideas, resources etc in his world view have fetched him rich dividends. Even though the al-Qaeda and similar movements do not approve of his ways, Obama has genuinely tried to reach out to the Muslim world, which has been at loggerheads with the US and allies for a long time now.

Let us hope Obama will not trip in his efforts to make the world a livable place.