BY ALFONSO PABLO
In the preface to her book Men in Dark Times (1968), Hannah Arendt wrote that “even in the darkest of times we have the right to expect some illumination, and that such illumination may well come less from theories and concepts than from the uncertain, flickering, and often weak light that some men and women, in their lives and their works, will kindle under almost all circumstances and shed over the time span that was given them on earth….”
President Obama has shed a powerful light of hope upon the dark times in which we live. His accomplishments in the pursuit of peace can hardly be matched: he has inspired millions all over the planet; he has gained back the respect and leadership with which the United States can make a difference on the global stage; and he has set the world on a different path and shared spirit.
Obama’s Nobel Prize is an encouragement for all of us not to let this light dim.
Alfonso Lamadrid de Pablo is an LL.M. student from Spain.