O SLOW LEARNERS::

Jimmy Carter Wins Nobel Peace Prize (THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, 10/11/02)

Former President Carter won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday "for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights.''

The Norwegian Nobel Committee cited Carter's ``vital contribution'' to the Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt and his efforts in conflict resolution on several continents and the promotion of human rights after his presidency.

"In a situation currently marked by threats of the use of power, Carter has stood by the principles that conflicts must as far as possible be resolved through mediation and international co-operation based on international law, respect for human rights, and economic development,'' the citation said.

The award is worth $1 million. [...]

He helped defuse growing nuclear tensions in Korea, then helped narrowly avert a U.S. invasion of Haiti in 1994, as well as leading conflict mediation and elections monitoring efforts around the world.

"In a situation currently marked by threats of the use of power, Carter has stood by the principles that conflicts must as far as possible be resolved through mediation and international co-operation based on international law, respect for human rights, and economic development,'' the citation said. [...]

Many known nominees, including former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, reflected the 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States and their aftermath.

President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair were nominated, but their chances for winning seemed doubtful at a time when they are poised to launch a military strike against Iraq.

"It should be interpreted as a criticism of the line that the current administration has taken,'' Gunnar Berge, chairman of the Nobel committee, said. "It's a kick in the leg to all that follow the same line as the United States.''

The Nobel Peace Prize is too political to take seriously, except as a public relations tool, and is almost always awarded to dubious and even undeserving folk, but I wonder if the Committee has ever, as this year, used the awarding of the prize in such a way as to make war at least marginally more likely. It's too much to hope that they would have had sense enough to choose Tony Blair and George W. Bush, but Hamid Karzai, the new leader of Afghanistan, was widely considered to be the leading contender and not only was he more deserving than most of the other nominees but giving him the award would have served several vital purposes.
Posted by Orrin Judd at October 11, 2002 9:30 AM