President Barack Obama has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.  Some ask why.  What has he done.  He has been the President for a mere nine months.  Wars continue.  The economy struggles.  The Middle East continues to defy peace.  What has President Obama done?

President Obama has inspired a future of hope, a future of optimism.  President Obama has rejected the cynical attitude of a world drowning in the despair of terrorism.

• President Obama has a vision of a future free of nuclear weapons.
• President Obama has a vision of a future where all children receive necessary health care.
• President Obama has a vision of a future where all nations work together toward common values of peace and prosperity.
• President Obama has a vision of a future where American soldiers come home to their families.
• President Obama has a vision of a future where the term middle class outnumbers both the rich and the poor.
• President Obama has a vision of a future where poverty does not define any nation.
• President Obama has a vision of a future where religious tolerance is an accepted norm.
• President Obama has a vision of a future where optimism trumps cynicism.
• President Obama has the audacity to hope for the future of civilization.

Some are saying the Nobel Peace Prize to President Obama is a direct affront to the Bush Administration.  That may well be so.  Consider the mood, the temperament, the vision of the future defined by George Bush and Dick Cheney.

The future as defined by Bush/Cheney was one of unilateral military power to force the Bush/Cheney will on other peoples.  The definition of America as a country using brute force to dictate international policy brought despair and fear to the world.  Obama’s definition of America as a country working in harmony with others to bring peace to the world brings hope and optimism.

The Nobel Prize committee recognized the power of America.  We Americans should never underestimate the great power of our country.  We should be careful to never abuse the power of this great nation.

President Obama recognizes the limitations of power.  President Obama recognizes the abuse of power.   President Obama gave hope to the international community with his campaign rhetoric, with his clarity of vision, with his courage to act on ideology, and his courage to recognize that all people should have a voice.

The Nobel Peace Prize is an appropriate award for President Barack Obama.