What is the Nobel Peace Prize, and how does the Nobel Committee in Oslo choose to award it? The U.S. awoke to some befuddlement about this today (Friday, October 9, as I write this), finding Barack Obama to be this year's recipient one of our world's most prestigious honors.

Confusion spilled over to some contempt. While I concede that something about this feels overly optimistic, I do think that is precisely the point.

Much concern arose that the award is premature given the few tangible accomplishments on Obama's résumé; however, that view bespeaks a fundamental misunderstanding of the purpose of the prize. It is not simply a reward for a job well done, like a blue ribbon at the county fair: "what a fine head of cabbage" or "what a remarkable specimen of a peace agreement."

The Nobel Peace Prize promotes continued and future peace by highlighting examples of what must be done to stay on the road to achieving greater peace and well-being. The work is never-ending. That deeper purpose is why a key component of the prize for all recipients is seed money to continue his or her efforts. The important concept here is that they continue. The Nobel Prize can in that way be seen as a prestigious "E for Effort," or in this case $1.4 million and international acclaim for effort the committee wants to see continued and emulated.

Seeing the prize as an affirmation of ongoing good work, awarding the prize to Obama now does two things.

First, it recognizes unwavering optimism and an aggressively positive attitude toward change. Whether considering a problem big or small, the value of a positive approach is almost unparalleled. It is also very difficult to maintain when in Obama's position balancing so many interests and concerns.

Some criticize that in Obama we have a war time president, getting his hands dirty so to speak, winning a prize about peace. What we have, however, is a war time president looking to responsibly draw down, draw back, and reengage in diplomacy to the extent he finds possible. The simple optimism that we can do all of these things, without sacrificing U.S. security, is how someone in his position can tirelessly chip away at a goal of achieving something better for the world.

Considering tireless effort, with debatable results, is logically consistent with past awards. Nobel Prizes are not necessarily awarded doing the easy things or the popular things. The Nobel Committee is no stranger to controversy when it suits their purposes: consider Mother Theresa, Yasser Arafat, Jimmy Carter, Henry Kissinger. Who deserves the greater award or reward: those mired in fighting for and balancing harms against worse harms, or the aloof who do not deign to deal?

The fact that the Nobel Committee embraces controversy highlights the second and more important point. Oslo threw a gauntlet at our feet. That is the point; end of story. This award challenges the entire American government and public to live up to the mission of promoting greater peace and well-being. Going back a little, on the eve of Obama's election the entire world held its collective breath. It was a giddy moment and the world still hasn't really yet exhaled. Before the moment ends, the world's hopes, as well as many of our own, are for great things. Now, just as with the election, the prize is about Obama, but moreover it is about us. Obama is a man, but he is also a symbol. Creepy and disturbing as that may be to him and to us, the fact remains.

The Nobel committee most likely knew perfectly well the reaction this would create, and mostly likely they were perfectly happy to unleash this storm of confusion, uncertainty, and even anger. That cost was worth the gain. When was the last time so many citizens of the United States discussed, all at once, what a true hero for peace is and what they would do to deserve that title? America collectively is thinking about peace today.

The Nobel committee focused our attention, like little has recently, on the most noble of goals. We can bicker all we want about the particulars, but for an overall goal of peace and well-being this was a stroke of genius.

With all that in mind, consider one of the first responses from the Obama White House on this. He officially and beautifully tweeted one word, "Humbled." This was an award but also an entreaty; as such we all ought to feel the same. In a giant game of chess, the move is now ours. I suggest we all skip the tick marks on scoresheet on this one and think about what this really means about our society, our world, and the never-ending fight for peace.