This weblog awards contest has few people up in arms because WUWT is currently leading. Lucia points out some of the dynamics of silliness that go on related to it.
My take on it: it’s all simply fun, and the outcome affects nothing, heck there’s not even a prize except for a sidebar badge. But in the spirit of that fun, I thought I’d share some of my favs:
- Best Blog – I’m going with Huffington Post, for having the courage to run Harold Ambler’s essay on Al Gore
- Best Online Community – Our friend Jennifer Marohasy is in the running, she needs a little help
- Best Liberal Blog – I note that BigCityLib is not present, so I have no pick. Though given Wonkette’s lead, choice is irrelevant
- Best Conservative Blog – This is a tough one, as many of these have befriended WUWT. But I think I have no truer friend than Kate over at Small Dead Animals
- Best Celebrity Blogger – Hands down, Wil Wheaton, the rest are just noise
- Best Technology Blog – I like Engadget for this.
- Best European Blog – Not only for content, but for widgets, Luboš Motl and The Reference Frame
- Best Science Blog – Take your pick
Here are some categories that didn’t make it this year and my nominees:
Best tongue in cheek commenter: Steve Mosher
Best blog that is my inspiration: Steve McIntyre of Climate Audit
Best cheerleader: Gosh, there are so many. Roger Pielke Sr. has been stalwart as has been Joe D’Aleo. Evan Jones and John Goetz come to mind. So do Russ Steele and Gary Boden, and Leon B. and ‘jeez’, tough choices. But given all these choices….I think perhaps ‘smokey’ might be the winner here though.
Best angry blogger not nominated: Joe Romm of Climate Progress seems to be the clear winner, though Tamino is worthy of note
Best troll: TCO aka TCOisbanned
Best reason for me to stop blogging: my family that doesn’t get enough attention from me as it is
Best label from a detractor who is now belly up: “Reverend Anthony’s Screeching Mercury Monkeys” …from editor Tom Gascoyne of the Chico Beat, now history.
Best Silly Logo: Gary Boden’s rendition above
Best Orange Wiener Dog in a sidebar: Lucia’s the Blackboard
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Pierre G said “It’s a shame ClimateAudit has only 11% of the vote up to now.
I was hoping substance would count for more.”
I agree, but WUWT is more readily understandable even by those of us with technical degrees.
I think the “prize” to be won in this contest is more visibility. If WUWT comes out on top, or even close, it should pull in some more readers. The more people that see the content here, the more the ranks of the skeptics will grow.
Vote early, vote often.
REPLY: Just don’t cheat, the contest rules allow voting once a day. – Anthony
philw1776 (15:17:28) :
i agree very much. i have a degree in Chemical Engineering and Climate Audit is hard for me to understand at times!
Regarding the climateprogress.org piece,
I don’t think WUWT is anti-science.
Rather, it is anti-bad-science.
The way their piece on CP reads doesn’t help their case, either. It’s like, “what? People think the science could be wrong? They think the scientific institutions could be wrong? They think the establishment could be wrong?? How ludicrous! Who are these people who could think such insane thoughts!”
It appears they lost their common sense. How could all those scientists and learned institutions possibly get it wrong? Um, human minds, faced with highly complex system, never before understood…
If all it took to solve problems was to get lots of bright minds together, form committees, gain unanimous support from institutions, make policies, and make computer models, we’d have cured cancer a long time ago.
“It seems Huffington have removed the offending article !!!!!”
Not surprising since she seemed to originally post it in an odd way. She didn’t link to it on the main page and posted it under 8 more recent articles so it would likely go unseen.
Apparently the side of her bread with the butter on it got upset.
I ain’t got a degree in nuthin’, but I understand what “statistically insignificant” means!
new nsidc report is out
http://nsidc.com/arcticseaicenews/
Hey Anthony,
Much thanks for suggesting my blog is worthy of a vote or two – and yes I am currently trailing by rather a large margin!
And, yes, if any of your readers would like to support a blog that tries to take an evidence-based approach to environmental issues in this fun popularity contest then they can vote for me here:
http://2008.weblogawards.org/polls/best-online-community/
PS Congratulations on your huge lead in the Science section – in my opinion well deserved!
Well, Anthony, you are up by over 1200 votes as of the time of this comment. I, voted for you twice now and am going to vote for Climate Audit. If it beats Pharyngula as well as Watts Up With That, the angry rants will be priceless.
Oh, and congrats Jennifer: you are now in second place. May you win as well.
You are nothing but a paid shill for Big Oil!
Well, no. But I’d like to be. Yoo-Hoo! Big Oil? Want a prime shill? I come cheap!
re: Jennifer Marohasy (17:01:49)
Thank you for nice words, you were #3 on my list.
Personally, I vote for WUWT, but too, my personal count is:
every vote for WUWT is a hidden vote for CA and a hidden vote for You.
Thank you, Jennnifer
Allways pleasant to be your
KlausB
@REPLY: Just don’t cheat, the contest rules allow voting once a day. – Anthony
I agree, you don’t need that.
KlausB – FYI Jennifer’s blog is in another category, so you need not worry about voting splits.
Here is the link to Jennifer’s category:
http://2008.weblogawards.org/polls/best-online-community/
Jennifer writes with style and moderates with grace. So give her a boost please.
– Anthony
I don’t know…that Michael Jackson fan forum is awfully tempting.
Oops, Thank you for correcting me, Anthony
Done it.
Oops again, Anthony …
Purge : done it
Replace it by: I did it
I allways have some difficulties with languages, especially when I have English in one
browser window, try to read Russian language in another – I’m not good on that –
and my youngest son is complaining to me in German, parallely.
Jennifer, the leader in your category (Strobist) is a flickr photography blog.
(off camera flash)
It probably should have been placed in the Photography Blog category.
Being the chairman of GOTDV (get out the dead vote) and DDDTV (don’t disenfranchise dead voter), I’ll make sure they will vote every day. Just like in any election.
I was reading some of the comments at RC, pardon me if I giggle at the excuses for them getting less than 5% of the vote… awwwwwwww… I’m gonna send Gavin a box of tissue.
I would like to point out that The Reference Frame (Czech Republic) is listed under, Best European Blog (Non UK). If you have a second or two and know the blog please vote here:-
http://2008.weblogawards.org/polls/best-european-blog/
For those not familiar with the blog see below.
http://motls.blogspot.com/
I encouraged Steve to come out strongly for WUWT, but he’s had the flu hence been rather quiet lately. Its all the snow he’s been shovelling since Al Gore came to Toronto.
Lubos, yer kickin; it! I put in a vote for you and for JenM.
Yes Lubos Motl’s Reference Frame is a real treat – I recommend f.ex to read one of the last posts about “Thermodynamics and Gravity” .
Especially enjoyable if you are also in the QFT (Quantum Field Theory) on top of the climate matters 🙂
Definitely excellent reads by one of the best theoretical physicists out there .
Gets my vote as well as the vote of everybody who really likes physics .
(http://motls.blogspot.com/)
To win the best conservative blog, is that supposed to be a positive achievement? Just kidding!
Though I’m a great Steve fan, and really appreciate what he was doing in those dark days when he stood ALONE for what was right against the might of the entire world’s scientific establishment (pause for Battle of Britain theme tune), I will be pushing WUWT for tactical reasons. I think that Steve has won his battle, and the work that now needs to be done is ‘mopping up’.
I will, however, switch to CA if it looks as if RC are going to beat it. That would indicate that the RC crowd have given up on pushing Pharangula(?) and gone back to the easier task of overhauling a site we are not voting for, in order to retrieve some bragging rights.
Whatever happens in this race, RC are not going to do well….