Obama accepts Nobel with humility, robust defense of war

    OSLO (AP) - President Barack Obama has accepted his Nobel Peace Prize with humility, saying he’s “at the beginning, and not the end” of his labors on the world stage.
    Although he acknowledged that compared to other recipients his own accomplishments were “slight,“ he promised to use the prestigious award to “reach for the world that ought to be.“
    Obama became the first sitting U.S. president in 90 years and the third ever to win the prize.
    In his remarks today in Oslo, the president refused to renounce war for his nation or under his leadership, saying that he faces the world “as it is” and is obliged to protect and defend the United States.
    Obama said, “To say that force is sometimes necessary is not a call to cynicism, it is a recognition of history.“ He added that “The belief that peace is desirable is rarely enough to achieve it.“
    But he also stressed the need to fight war according to “rules of conduct” that reject torture and other methods.
   
    (Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)