FNORD Awards
History of the FNORDS
The People's FNORD Awards refer to annual community recognition awards bestowed upon members of the Anglophone Simulationist Community, typically every January. The awards were first organised by Scott Alexander in 2002, and were organised by the staff of MNN each year until 2008 with the collapse of MNN, when FNORDs were awarded by the MCS. Typically, a judging panel of five veteran micronationalists convenes to decide the recipients of each award from a group of nominees named by the general population.
FNORDs are believed to have been inspired by the similarly named Emperor Norton Award of the seccessionist micronation of Molossia. These were similarly awarded each year and, like the FNORDs, were named after Emperor Norton I, an eccentric citizen of San Francisco during the late 19th century who declared himself Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico, and known by many as the 'First Micronationalist'
Prior to 2006, the number of awards varied greatly with very little consistency inrecognition categories. Some years, the general public were invited to create the recognition categories, adding further inconsistency between years. In preparation for the 2006 awards, Liam Sinclair, the chair of the awards judging committee from 2004 to 2007, implemented a system of fixed awards year-to-year, with the most prestigious awards being retained. The addition of new awards is dependent on whether or not there is a quantifiable uniqueness to the nature of the award which can be objectively considered (i.e. not awarded on bias). For example, 'most efficient government', awarded to Babkha in 2005, did not qualify as every government has its efficiencies or lack thereof. The FNORD Awards, while named after the year in which they are awarded, in fact recognize achievements in the previous year (for example, the 2007 FNORD Awards recognize achievements in 2006).
Categories of FNORD award
As of 2008, there were in excess of thirty-five individual awards handed out, the vast majority of which were "one-off" (that is, awarded during one year only). The following includes only the permanent awards named prior to the 2006 ceremony (many of which have been awarded several years prior to that date). Where the names of permanent awards have changed from pre-2006 names, the pre-2006 awardee of the equivalent award is named as a recipient of the permanent award:
[*]Odlum Award for Overall Achievement - Named for Shane Odlum, the founder and leader of the micronation of Blackrock, this award is the most prestigious of all FNORD Awards. It is typically given to a veteran micronationalist in recognition of years of service to the community at-large.
[*]Abbas Namvari & Charles Beard Award for Conflict Resolution - honouring two of the greatest diplomats in the community's history (Namvari of Babkha and Beard of Attera), this award is given to a micronationalist, or group/micronation, who exhibits great achievement and leadership in diplomacy. The award was re-introduced for the 2007 ceremony.
[*]Best Revolutionary Concept - awarded in recognition of a micronationalist, or group/micronation, whose innovative concept receives widespread attention and improves the community at-large.
[*]Bill Dusch Award for Micronational Cultural Development - named for the most prominent creator of the Soloralism micronational culture/religion, the award is presented to a micronationalist, or group/micronation, who makes a significant contribution to the development of culture within his/her micronation or intermicronationally.
[*]RIMA Award for Excellence in Micronational History - created by Liam Sinclair, this is awarded by the Royal Institute of Micronational Antiquities to the micronationalist, or group/micronation, who contributes most to the preservation of the community's history. It is not awarded to any micronationalist who is a member of the Institute's management. The award was first introduced in 2006.
[*]Norton Award for Excellence in the Field of Journalism - awarded to the micronationalist, micronation or media service that makes the most significant contribution to journalism and news media in the community each year.
[*]Peter Little Award for Excellence in Micronational Literature - named in honour of Peter Little, a micronationalist with atrocious spelling and grammar who was active in the community from 2001 to 2003, this award recognizes contributions to the development of the community through literature.
[*]Best New Micronationalist - as the name implies, this award is given to an outperforming micronationalist who has entered micronationalism within the past year (though in 2007, it was awarded by the judging panel to Jeremy Hart who was in the community just over a year).
