The Noble Nobel Peace Prize

"I am absolutely convinced that it's being misused for Norwegian political purposes, and the convenience and vanity of Norwegian parliamentarians."
"The prize has now been misused for so long. Without profile or purpose, it's being spread out at random and crumbles in all directions. There is an absolute and total confusion of what peace idea it should support. It's not a prize for peace in general."
"What they always forget is that it's not their ideas -- about what the words can be used for -- which counts, but what Nobel himself had in mind when he used the words. And he wanted to support an idea, the peace idea of the period."
Fredrik Heffermehl, Norwegian lawyer, Nobel Peace Prize skeptic

The Nobel Peace Prize Laureates and members of the Nobel committee during the awards ceremony.

A sponsoring letter from some recognized entity like a member of a national government, or a member of an international court, a university rector or chancellor, even a professor of social science, history, philosophy, law or theology can advance a nomination to the Nobel Prize Committee for consideration of acceptance as a nominee, and from there to the final choice for the year's award, of the committee.

Although it was a Swedish industrialist, Alfred Nobel, wishing to make social-conscience amends for having invented dynamite, and despairing of its use in conflict, who used his riches to invest in annual presentations of Nobel prizes in science, literature, medicine and the ultimate, the peace prize, it was given as a special 'gift' to Sweden's neighbour Norway to administer the prize for peace.

The 1895 will of the Swedish industrialist specified, however, that the peace prize should be awarded to "champions of Peace", those who advance the causes of "fraternity between nations, reduction or abolition of standing armies and the promotion of peace congresses". Once the nominations have been received, a shortlist is developed and the selection of the winner of the award is released to the news media in October.

"Not everything worthy of admiration should win the Nobel Peace Prize", commented Jay Nordlinger, senior editor of National Review, author of the 2012 book Peace, They Say: A History of the Nobel Peace Prize, The Most Famous and Controversial Prize in the World. As far as Mr. Nordlinger is concerned, the prize committee of the Norwegian parliamentarians is "way too far afield", selecting "screwy" prizes to individuals whose work has little to do with peace.

"I wouldn't have given a peace prize to a Kenyan environmentalist [Wangari Maathai, 2004], dear as she was, who planted trees. I wouldn't give a peace prize to global-warming campaigners [Al Gore and the IPCC, 2007]. I think that was just a fashion of the time. It's sort of like a pretzel; you can't twist it endlessly." No mention, unfortunately, of the rather premature award to U.S. President Barack Obama.

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama depart Oslo City Hall following the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo, Norway, Dec. 10, 2009.

Mahatma Gandhi had been nominated, no fewer than five times. He was never chosen to win the award. Roughly two hundred nominees are received annually. NSA leaker, American fugitive Edward Snowden, and James Anaya the UN special rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples are two of the nominees this year. Uruguayan president Jose "Pepe" Mujica was also nominated for legalizing pot.

"It's such a prestigious thing, it can be used as a club", Mr. Nordlinger said, who in his book quotes Desmond Tutu, former Anglican South African Archbishop as commenting after he received the prize, that it made of him an "instant oracle". Lech Walesa related to Mr. Nordlinger that Solidarity might never have succeeded in Poland without the prize, because it "blew wind into our sail".

John Bolton, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, said of his own failed 2007 nomination: "The Nobel Peace Prize has become hopelessly politicized. I think it cheapens the prize itself. At least they didn't give Gore the prize for economics".