Just to prove that the world hasn't gained any sanity while I've been busy elsewhere, Bush and Blair have been nominated for the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize for “their work in fighting terrorism and promoting world peace”. Excuse me while I decide whether I should laugh or cry.

How is it that declaring war can be considered a peaceful act? Alfred Nobel believed that war was a horrible thing. The very definition of his prize is that it should go to “the most or the best work for fraternity among nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the promotion of peace congresses.” He even hoped that his invention, dynamite, would annihilate all the armies in the next war, bringing about instant peace.

Why would we want to give such a prize to those who would start a war?