An Honor Just to Be Nominated...

I have seen several online pieces lamenting the Nobel Committee's decision to award the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, an international (you can tell by the "s" in "Organisation") group that's supposed to be ridding the world of chemical weapons. Most of these folks believe the award should have gone to Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani teenager shot in the face by a Taliban gunman who opposed her going to school and singled her out for her many statements about the education of girls. A few folks thought it should go to NSA leaker Edward Snowden or convicted national-secret-discloser Bradley Manning, but I think they're getting the proper care and that shouldn't happen again.

I'm not sure I agree the OPCW award was the wrong choice.

Oh, I agree that Malala was far more deserving of the award -- the Taliban congratulating the Nobel people for not giving it to her is proof enough of that. And I agree that if there ever was a year to bestow the honor on the OPCW, it probably wasn't one in which Syrian thug Bashir Assad nearly got his wrist slapped for gassing the hell out of his own people and the number of times anyone quoted or talked to the OPCW about the matter was next-door-neighbors with zero.

It's just that Malala -- who is still only 16 -- has many years ahead of her to try to continue to win hearts and influence people as she has already been doing. Although she is known in many corners of the world and respected in most of the civilized ones, she has really only just begun the work she can do, and only accomplished a little of the potential that awaits her. Nobel Laureate or not, targeted for assassination or not, young Ms. Yousafzai is very likely only at the front end of what should be a great life of work for peace, education and understanding.

But I'm willing to bet that this award is pretty much the high-water mark for the OPCW, given its quarter century history of nothing much. Like Al Bundy living his life off the four touchdowns he scored in one game, they'll be trading on this recognition for the rest of their existence. And since nobody ever said they wanted to be Al Bundy when they grew up, we should let them have their bound-to-be-brief moment.