BARACK OBAMA, A NOBEL LAUREATE!

And the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize winner is, President Barack Hussein Obama! Surprised like many, but our congratulations to President Barack Obama for this remarkable achievement, an evidence of America's return to the heart of the world. Icheoku has always known that America is the most beloved nation on earth, the reason why everyone wants to get to 'God's own country' and by all and any means possible! But the antics of the fringed flag-draping loonies, who fan the embers of "the world hates America's exceptionalism", try often very hard to keep this truism hidden.

However, the symbolism of this award is great as BHO is now certified the authentic leader and spokesman of the world. The world through the Nobel Prize committee said, "YES WE CAN" make him our peace ambassador and the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize winner he became. With this latest accolade, President Barack Obama now joins the league of Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu, Jimmy Carter, Al Gore and select few other privileged laureates who the world has recognised for their efforts at improving the lot of humanity. President BHO also makes history as one of three other American Presidents Wilson Woodrow, Theodore Roosevelt and Jimmy Carter; as well as a Vice President Al Gore to win the award. Icheoku says, congratulations to President Barack Obama on this one of a kind honor. In fellow laureate, Desmond Tutu's own words, "It is an award that speaks to the promise of President Obama's message of hope"

It is about expectations; but some detractors in Afghanistan, represented by the Taliban said, it would have been more appropriate to call it a "Nobel Prize for Violence" given what they have to take every day with American drones and other weapons of war? One congressman from Florida said, 'those right-wing Americans dissing the award are agents of American military industrial complex which is smarting that 'if President Barack Obama is allowed to succeed in making and achieving world peace, it will remove a lot of pie from their table; as less wars will be fought which will spell drought for their weapons sales and killing business? In his assessment, it is just a crazed out crowd who can never be pleased with anything Obama does or did not do, or wins or losses? And if our memory is still right, it was just last week's Friday that the same deranged anti-Obama crowd were chiding him, for now being rejected by the world who refused to award him the Olympics? For them, everything is personal irrespective of whether it involves the American public's interest or city of Chicago; no, none of that is important - it is Obama land, Obama's America!

To those people who deride the award to Barack Obama as being too pre-mature, Icheoku says, remember during the Democratic primaries when some wanna-be presidents also chided him for being too ambitious and admonished him to wait for his turn? That it is not yet his time to run, but BHO defied them and today his defiance paid off big time as our 43rd President. Now his Nobel prize win is "too early"? Icheoku says, those detractors should just suck it and quit being HATERS! A man of destiny, BHO; his ilks are usually unstoppable and cannot be stopped until they rendezvous with their destiny! Like William Shakespeare once wrote, it is in their stars!

A confessional however, we initially called the award too patronizing, until we realized it could be awarded for efforts geared towards the direction of peace! Now we know and since it was awarded for his effort so far and to spur him on, we believe it is well earned and deserved. What an additional feather to such a young cap of our dear Nobel Peace Laureate! But one thing is assured, he now has his global work cut out for him, from trying to rid the world of its nuclear weapons, to forging an enduring, comprehensive Mideast peace, stabilizing Afghanistan and tackling climate change/global warming? Republican Senator John McCain correctly articulated the higher bar now set by the award when he opined, "He now has even more to live up to."

Our research revealed that contrary to popular believe that Nobel prize for peace is only awarded for bagged accomplishment/achievement, it is equally awarded to encourage and goad on a momentum for peace as was the case here with President Barack Obama. A former West German chancellor Willy Brandt became a recipient in the early stages of his policy of peaceful engagement with then communist East Germany. Yasser Arafat and Rabin were also once so encouraged regarding their effort at Mideast peace process? The Nobel committee chairman Thorbjoern Jagland, articulated it properly when he said, "I hope it will help him, Obama is the right man at the right time, and that's why we want to enhance his efforts." And as if taking a cue from the consternation of the watching world as to his deserving of the award judging his "meagre accomplishment", President Barack Obama, while accepting the award said, "I will accept this award as a call to action; this award must be shared with everyone who strives for justice and dignity." Icheoku implores you to note the two operative words here, "call" and "strives", which explains the humility of the man of the moment's full understanding of his call to action!

Icheoku says, as scant as President Obama's contribution to peace so far is, his very young administration taken under advisement, for him to be, in the words of the committee, "the person to contribute the most to peace in the last year" shows that the world was sitting on a keg of gunpowder, waiting to explode and within few precious minutes to destroying itself. According to the committee, 'his multilateral diplomacy reduced tension more than the last eight years of unilateral military actions;' therefore, "it was unavoidable to give the prize to the man who has improved the international climate and emphasized negotiations and dialogue.” In one other commendation, the committee said that "Obama has achieved a lot already" which begs the question, was he the present day "messiah" that saved the world from a complete annihilation; again judging the infancy of his administration? Maybe his "doing too much, all at the same time" as he was accused by right wing detractors, has paid off big time? But since 'a prophet is always without honor in his own country,' may be it took the intervention of the Nobel prize committee to tell Americans that they have the greatest president on earth in President Barack Hussein Obama. But would Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and other far-right fringed lunatics change their ways; no, not until they recover their White House from that "nigger"!

But the sterling gist of the award is that the Nobel peace prize committee wanted to strengthen Obama’s hand and encourage him in the direction of peaceful dialogue and negotiations; which shows that President Barack Obama is headed in the right direction. We pray that Almighty God shall help him get to his destination. And on your prize money which you intend to donate to charity, Icheoku advises that you set up a charity of your own and make the donation to it if permissible. May be something akin to and which will complement Bill Gates malaria charity or Bill Clinton's food or Jimmy Carter Habitat of Humanity. Lets have a 'BHO Human Rights and Laws Reforms' charity with focus on Africa and other democracy-suppressing countries of this world. Once again, congratulations Mr. President Nobel Peace Maker!