#53274: Jenn — 12/10  at  09:07 AM

There is no Science Blog category. I wouldn't need to be in it, but it sure would be good if they at least acknowledged the existence of our niche.

Funny, since they are quite liberal with the use of the term "ecosystem" :-D.

#53275: — 12/10  at  09:21 AM
As I state in my Reports to the Gin'rull:

Mission Accomplished, Suh!

Although I gots to say, I also have a soft spot in my heart fer that Fafblog feller. But, as Our Dear Leader sez, makin' hard decisions is Hard Work!

#53276: — 12/10  at  09:21 AM
People could also do worse than to vote for Orac in the best new blog category.

#53278: Orac — 12/10  at  09:38 AM
Thanks, Kristjan.

Unfortunately, I just can't vote for Kos. I don't like it at all. I don't even check it anymore.

I do love Jesus' General, though.

#53282: John in DC — 12/10  at  09:57 AM
That was my thought when I saw the award categories. If there can be Religious, Parenting, and Law categories, there ought to be one for Science blogs as well, and maybe for a few other subjects. And Wonkette is miscast as a liberal blog - that one really belongs in the Humor/Comics or Culture/Gossip category.

#53283: — 12/10  at  09:58 AM
Orac vote for Eschaton (Atrios/Duncan Black) or Political Animal (Kevin Drum) instead.

I must admit that I have never quite understod Daily Kos' popularity. I have serious issues with Marcos' use of language (it's degrading to women), and I see him as a left-wing Instapundit, though with more content.

#53290: — 12/10  at  10:25 AM
Kristjan, While I used to read both Eschaton and Kos, I cant really put up with the immature commentary that is prevalent at both.

That said, I do think that Duncan Black has more to say than Marcos.

Sounds like this popularity contest is going to imply that people on the left are complex, thinking, beings with varied interests; but the right can round up a flock of compliant sheep on a moments notice.

Sound about right.

#53293: — 12/10  at  10:32 AM
Sage, I have stopped reading Eschaton's comments entirely, much for the same reason.

In general, I think most comment sections leaves quite a lot to be wished for. Pharyngula has pretty good commenters, and Making Light's commenters are incredible. Other than that, it seems that the bigger the site, the less interesting commenters.

#53303: — 12/10  at  11:18 AM
Sites like Eschaton and Daily KOS are the liberal's version of Powerline and the other big-name right-wing blogs. While I personally believe that the lefties have it correct most of the time, it is easy to see that both sides (right and left) resort to similar loudmouth, blowhard tactics. The best "liberal" blogs are the slightly lesser known ones like Angry Bear, Brad Delong, Pharyngula, Pandas Thumb, and so on. Those sites tend to be a lot more intelligent and thoughtful.

You have to understand the sort of sites that Eschaton and Powerline are; they're there to stir up political passions and smack around the other side.

#53304: — 12/10  at  11:20 AM
However I will add that, as far as I know, the right doesn't have too many sensible blogs. I mean a site like Vox Day would be the right's version of a "smaller political blog" but it's completely loony and insane.

#53306: coturnix — 12/10  at  11:36 AM
My bookmark to Kos in my browser is NOT set on the home page but on the "Recent Diaries". I've been a registered "Kossian" for about two years now and I don't think I have read more than two posts authored by Kos. Yet, I have read probably hundreds of Diaries, and written about 60 of my own.

There are some very smart and informed people in the dKos community who I love to read (although the best ones have left and formed MyDD, BOP News, Booman Tribune, MyLeft Wing...).

In other words, I think of dKos as a community blog, not as Markos' blog. It is telling that dKos is nominated (and usually wins) as the Best Group Blog at Koufax Awards every year. And every year Markos protests the classification claiming that it is HIS blog. But it is not - he has lost any control of it as soon as he enabled Diaries.

People think of it as a community blog and many, like me, have no great interest in what Markos has to say. Because it is so big, and so many people post regular diaries (collecting, de facto, their own mini-blogs within dKos), dKos is almost like a small liberal blogosphere all on its own - sometimes, IMHO, even too segregated/isolated from the rest of the (liberal) blogosphere.

#53308: coturnix — 12/10  at  11:39 AM
Oh, BTW, if you go to vote there, vote for Pam's House Blend in the GLBT Blog category. Even a couple of other finalists there are urging their readers to vote for Pam instead of them, so the Wingers don't win.

#53310: The Bad Astronomer — 12/10  at  11:47 AM
Funny-- I wrote up a blog entry for later this week complaining that most of those blog award sites don't list science as a category. They have tech, but not science?

P.S. In my entry, I mention this very blog too.

#53311: PZ Myers — 12/10  at  11:55 AM
Well, yeah...some of us just read dKos for DarkSyde.

#53314: coturnix — 12/10  at  12:01 PM
Now that you mention, I realize that DarkSyde is the only remaining Big-Picture-Thinker there, so yes, I am reading Kos for DakSyde.

#53320: John in DC — 12/10  at  12:42 PM
I used to read the Diaries at Daily Kos, but I stopped because there were just too many to wade through to find the good ones. On the front page I frequently find the other writers like Armando and Plutonium Page to be more informative than Kos himself.

#53336: — 12/10  at  02:31 PM
For major left-wing blogs I pefer Eschaton to Daily Kos and I also like the videos on Crooks and Liars; they had a video up a few days ago of Bill O'Reiliy trying to interview Howard Stern - it was hilarious.
But Daily Kos seems sort of "isolated" from the other left-wing blogs, I don't know why but for a site that's supposed to be the main liberal blog it seems kind of in a world of its own.

#53337: Keith — 12/10  at  02:32 PM
They don't have a library blog catagory, either. But then, neither do they have many niches. pretty broad. And yeah, Kos is a bt overrated these dats.

#53344: Mrs Tilton — 12/10  at  03:39 PM
I'm no big fan of DKos myself. However, before one tars Markos Moulitsas as just a 'left-wing mirror image' of Reynolds et al., one should recall that there is a very significant difference: unlike most of the baying rightwing pack, Moulitsas has served his country in uniform (and, indeed, in the combat arms: if I am not mistaken he was an artilleryman).

#53350: The Rev. Schmitt. — 12/10  at  04:11 PM
I can't stand Daily Kos and Eschaton, and not just because of the commentators (who seem some horrific mirror of the pillocks which hover around Little Green Footballs. Well alright - hyperbolic, but they're still fully capable of being absolutely disgusting.) Mr Black seems to be performing the same service as Yahoo news, and I haven't the patience to wade through the Kos diaries for the few gems.

God, the best blog category is depressing. Still - Sadly, No!, Michael Berube, Orac and Orcinus all got nominated for some things, and the good General seems set to take best humour. Pity about the lack of a science category.

#53381: — 12/10  at  08:34 PM
Be sure to vote for most conservative blog as well. http://weblogawards.org/2005/12/best_conservative_blog.php
TBogg suggests "The Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiller". I concur - it's a conservative blog after a few drinks, or perhaps some other stronger inhibition-reduction drug. [I'm not 100% sure it's not a parody]

#53404: — 12/11  at  08:28 AM
Making Light's commenters, though, don't need awards: many of then already *have* awards, or should get them, or both.

(I have never seen another weblog anywhere with the fertility of the Making Light comment threads. It's just a shame that weblog comment threads are such a bloody primitive discourse mechanism. Bring back decent Usenet news readers, or at least gmane.org...)

#53510: That Girl — 12/12  at  10:30 AM
There SHOULD be a Science catagory and you should win. I will never vote for Kos, he's a misogynist. I also think it's funny to complain that "people" will follow their unthinking overlords and vote for "the" right-wing choice. Is it really ethical to vote for a blog you never heard of or read just so "the other side" wont win?

Trackback: Thoughts On The 2005 Weblog Awards Tracked on: The Politburo Diktat (216.227.210.33) at 2005 12 17 14:35:28
Kevin Aylward at Wizbang Reflects In a very nice, longish post, Kevin sums up his experience running the 2005 Weblog Awards. As Lefties dominated many of the large categories this year, I was struck by Kevin’s comment about that: It’s n...