This Amber issue raises some serious DOTY questions:
1. Can the DOTY be won posthumously? I expect that certain DUmmies who are in the running may die before year end.
2. Should there be a physical award for DOTY? Consider Amber, who has to be the sentimental favorite for 2013: SURELY in her situation she wouldn't look askance at a small honorarium from CC? A $25 gift card to WalMart? Star sponsorship on DU? A donation to her PayPal account in the name of CC?
Yes, a primitive can make the Top DUmmies posthumously in both senses--either as a primitive who got banned from Skins's island during that particular year, or as a primitive who in real life passed from this time and place.
For example, grouchy old Don, the late NNNLHIO or whatever primitive, is eligible this year even though he's recently become deader than a doornail.
Just so the primitive was "active" some time during the year of the award.
As for the other question, no, because such involves real-life contact with a primitive (such as the act of donating something to the primitive's paypal account), and it's always best to keep things only on the internet, never coming into any sort of contact in real life.