The American Spectator

Frankly, though, I think the award has gone to Nelson’s head a little. Remember, he only won half the award. Fredrik Willem de Klerk received the other half, so I think we should start getting de Klerk’s position on these issues and give it equal weight.

Mandela should also be more knowledgeable of Nobel history. Numerous awards have gone to individuals and groups for their efforts at reducing the spread of nuclear weapons: Joseph Rotblat and the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs in 1995, International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War in 1985, Alva Myrdal and Alfonso Garcia Robles in 1982, and Linus Pauling in 1962. In short, nuclear disarmament is Nobel Peace kind of stuff. I don’t expect Mandela would go so far as to nominate President Bush for the prize, but when you think of it, isn’t Bush’s goal to stop the spread of nuclear weapons?

This might just be a bad time to be a Nobel Peace laureate. Jimmy Carter just disgraced himself last week, claiming, even though it is “quite likely” Iraq possesses chemical or biological weapons, “exposing the lies and trickery of Saddam Hussein…will not indicate any real or proximate threat by Iraq to the United States or to our allies.”

I’m beginning to think that maybe those Nobel medallions contain some trance-inducing design on the back. This would not only excuse Nelson Mandela’s kooky ranting and Jimmy Carter’s faux pax, but give us hope that something can be done about Yasser Arafat.