Wampum

The top of my list has to be Eugene Volokh.
Dan Drezner is a decent second.

Just One Minute. Second choice... Unqualified Offerings

An Unsealed Room--sensible and witty.

Drezner. I'm all about the Drezner. Second choice: Henley, who I'm bumping down only because I'm less than certain he belongs here.

Honorable mentions: The Agitator and Gene Healy, which surely must have gotten a nomination from someone.

How about "Anybody but Tacitus"?

I have to admit I don't like this category, but if it has to go to somebody I would say Volokh or VodkaPundit.

Despite the previous comment, I will vote for Tacitus. I would be a member of a 'Anybody but Balloon Juice' coallition.

GB

I'm going to break with proprietor tradition, and post a vote for Unsealed Room, in part, because although AKS is conservative by most American Left standards, she pretty much a flaming liberal in Israel, and you know, there aren't enough of those in my estimation. Okay, so I also know her in real life, and know she's a closet American center-lefty. But Shhhh...don't ruin her rep on the center-right.... Oh, and she's smart, witty, and...a fellow WesU alum.

one vote for an unsealed room.
one vote for the talking dog.

Unqualified Offerings is a fantastic blog, but I also have doubts as to whether he belongs in this category.

I would nominate parapundit (who, by the way, runs like 50 other outstanding blogs) and tacitus.

I would nominate Tacitus and Just One Minute.

I'd advance Drezner in this category; I've tried to read Volokh but cannot sustain interest.

I'll vote for "The Light of Reason", though if I were Silber, I would be quite embarrassed to be labelled as a conservative.

An Unsealed Room.

I should note that Obsidian Wings is only 1/3rd a conservative blog; I'm the only Rightie there.

After voting for myself anyway, I'll say Tacitus.

Tacitus.

The Light of Reason and Unqualified Offerings

I am so NOT in the closet! I've never voted Republican in my life and in Israel have voted Meretz or Labor.

True that I line up with Lieberman more than I do with Dean, but does that make me right of center?

It was only when I joined the blogosphere that I was tagged "right-wing" because I supported the war, I think the ball is in the Palestinian's court at the moment and because I do support the fence (though not its current placement)

Anyway, I'll take all the recognition I can get if it means people like reading the blog... Thanks, guys.

Is it unkosher to vote for myself? If not, one vote for my site. If it is, then I'm voting for all the other people who write on my site.

Your Talking Dog link needs fixing? : )

although AKS is conservative by most American Left standards, she pretty much a flaming liberal in Israel, and you know, there aren't enough of those in my estimation

Now that didn't sound at all condescending, did it?

I shouldn't speak for Allison, but as one of her regular readers, I wouldn't describe her as right-wing by either Israeli or American standards. She's further right than that amorphous entity known as "the left," but that doesn't make her right of center; if you pick a centrist American position on any issue including the Middle East, she's probably close to it.

I'll vote for Allison in this category anyway, not because she belongs to the equally amorphous "right" but because she's indispensable reading for anyone who wants an Israeli perspective on things that don't explode. I'll also put in a vote for Jim Henley (although I suspect he wouldn't like being called right-wing either), Dan Drezner and Roger Simon.

Definitely "The Light of Reason" from this list, but Silber is more a genuine libertarian, not a conservative calling himself a libertarian.

I personaly wouldn't categorize The Talking Dog, Unqualified Offerings, or Light of Reason as "conservative". The latter two are pure libertarians, while TTD is a Democrat (and a big Al Gore fan) who leans left.

That said, those are my favorite blogs listed here, with Tacitus coming in next. So those four get my votes.

ME! I vote for me!

I want an award goddamnit.

And since when am I not sensible? :)

The problem isn't (primarily) the nominations; it's the title being given to the category. Calling it "best conservative blog" implies that anyone not "left" or "liberal" must be "conservative," as if those are the only political categories. Which is a pretty, well, provincial attitude for liberals to be taking. Calling the category "best non-liberal blog", or something of the sort, would create a category in which encompasses John Cole, Arthur Silber, Tacitus, and Jim Henley.

Whatever you call the category, though, The Talking Dog really doesn't belong in it; he's no more a "conservative" or a "libertarian" than Atrios.

I'm glad to see this category because I've been wanting to find some good, thoughtful conservative blogs. I've long been a fan of Jay and Jane. They deserve a nomination. I've read The Volokh Conspiracy on occasion and I enjoy it very much. I get so tired of the vitriol, outrageous misrepresentations, and garbage from some of the top tier conservative blogs.

So, thanks for giving me more good things to read and more ways to procrastinate!!

I have to agree with Patrick Hayden- I don't think a lot of these blogs are conservative blogs. Having said that, first vote for Henley, second vote for Silber. Henley in particular usually writes in a manner desinged to elicit dialogue and thought.

In addition, thanks for the nomination. I appreciate it.

Moe at Obsidian Wings. I find myself checking his stuff even before nearly all of my fellow travelers.

Allison's An Unsealed Room definitely gets my vote. It's my only semi-regular exposure to blogdom, and I enjoy it, too.

Allison's An Unsealed Room definitely gets my vote. It's my only semi-regular exposure to blogdom, and I enjoy it, too...

What a stupid and, yes, reactionary idea categorizing people is. I find myself in this division although I favor gay marriage and national health insurance. AND the War in Iraq. Hard to deal with those contradictions? Welcome to the real world. Left, right and center are just junk terms for the brain dead incapable of thinking for themselves.

I will be happy to call the category whatever you guys want. I agree that Arthur Silber and Jim Henley are not "conservative" but rather are self described libertarians.

The issue of the label is one of the reasons I chose not to have such a category this year but the comments made clear that people wanted a category in which they could recognize blogs that did not fit on the left side of the blog world.

The entire purpose of these awards is to give folks the opportunity to say nice things about other folks. If anyone thinks being nominated is offensive instead of an honor, I will be happy to remove them.

Oh, and by the way, would it not be great if we had a political spectrum in which the Talking Dog (one of my favorite reads) could accurately be considered a conservative?

Outside the Beltway and Eugene Volokh are my top two from that list.

I'm delighted to be considered amongst such fine competitors, and thrilled to be mentioned in the same story with Don Drysdale. Thanks very much.

Definitely "North Georgia Dogma".

I would consider libertarians distinct from conservatives (although there is some overlap), so this seems like an odd list.

However, Orrin Judd IS conservative, and his Brothers Judd collaboration is one of the smartest unadulterated conservative blogs on the web. If he's not on the list of nominees, it's a decidedly incomplete list. :)

Volokh and Drezner for conservatives; Henley and Silber for libertarians. All four are consistently interesting.

Roger Simon condemns himself out of his own mouth in this very comment thread. Until this country moves to a parlimentary system with viable minority parties, left-center-right is a very useful way of capturing the political spectrum. And there's really no purpose in being so rude.

Oh, and by the way, would it not be great if we had a political spectrum in which the Talking Dog (one of my favorite reads) could accurately be considered a conservative?

There already is - it's called Berkeley. :)
Thanks so much for the nomination. I'm honored.

How about the "Not-liberal" category

or the Et Al category?

It's hard to say really. All the conservative blogs I'd vote for claim they're not so ???

But I've been a longtime reader of Rjwest.com, so I'd vote for him .. and company.

Definitely "Light of Reason" by Arthur Silber -- for those of you who have not read it, it's hands down one of the best written blogs (lefty, righty, libertarian, other) around.

I am always amused when someone complains that the list of Koufax nominees is incomplete. The only requirement to be on the list is that someone leave a comment or send an email nominating a particular blog.

If someone does not leave a comment placing their favorite on the list, it takes a certain amount of brass to complain that no one else did either.

Ricky West at NGD, of course. His writing is first rate, his conservatism is the thoughtful brand, and his style is easy-going.

Right, left, upside down, what can I say, I'm dizzy - since I've been a fairly regular reader of An Unsealed Room and like reading Allison's perspective and how she says it! So, my vote goes to An Unsealed Room by Allison Kaplan Sommer......

Drezner
Silber (if he maintains eligibility)

AB

All that holding forth about categories and I forgot to actually vote. No contest: Jim Henley.

Jay Caruso of Classlesswarefare and Assymetrical Information

Drezner
Tacitus
Volokh

Balloon Juice by John Cole;
Jay Caruso and Jane Finch used to run the Daily Rant. They now hold forth at Classless Warfare. Jane, being sensible, is ineligible in this category;
Dan Drezner;
Tacitus;
The Talking Dog;
The Light of Reason by Arthur Silber;
Unqualified Offerings by Jim Henley;
Eugene Volokh of The Conspiracy - but certainly not all of the other ones.

One for Drezner.

(The Talking Dog isn't liberal??)

Throw Volokh in there too, actually.

No one nominated Oxblog?

By the way, how great is it that hundreds of people posted nominations, and not one of them mentioned the supposed king of the blogosphere, Glenn Reynolds - not even for Best Conservative Blog? Further proof that he's not hated because he's a tough opponent but because he sucks.

Having recused myself from voting on Jay, I'll choose Arthur Silber, North Georgia Dogma and Just One Minute.

the talking dog, because why should a conservative get this award?

Dan Drezner for the Drysdale.

Drezner
Tactius

Dan Drezner

Unqualified Offerings.

Drezner.

Eugene Volokh

Our praises go to:

Vodkapundit

After that, in no specific order

Classless Warfare
Tacitus
Balloon Juice
Light of Reason
Just One Minute

Jim Henley, hands down. (I also enjoy Asymmetrical Information, Volokh, Drezner, and The Talking Dog, but Henley is the best. Esp. the fitness blog posts!)

Jim Henley

1. Light of Reason.
2. Tacitus
3. OTB.
4. Anyone but Volokh.

Unqualified Offerings. Hands down.

Henley. My endorsement probably won't kill him.

I don't get the Talking Dog thing -- he's hawkish on Israel and has questions about right-to-die I think, but that's all I can think of.

Drezner! Maguire! Henley! Tacitus! Ricky West!

i'm with you, jay, vote for yourself, early and often!

and i'll vote for jay, as well as jane galt, stephen green, and i'm dissapointed doxagora by the watchful babbler wasn't on the list (guess i should have nominated somebody in this contest other than my self for most humorous blog, where you can vote for me).

If The Talking Dog is "hawkish on Israel," then I'm Meir Kahane.

Here's another vote for Henley, but I do get peeved that his fitness posts correspond inversly with my sloth posts.

Dan Drezner and Moe*

st

*of Obsidian Wings.

Oh, and Silber at Light of Reason.

Daniel Drezner, Jim Henley, Samizdata (reminder to folks of non-US blogs, er), Arthur Silber (though he has gotten a tad hysterical about the war of late, but I admire his guts and passion).

And er, what about that Andrew Sullivan chap?

Oh, definitely Jim Henley at Unqualified Offerings. And I love The Talking Dog, but I don't think it belongs in this category.

Unqualified Offerings (by Jim Henley) is one of my three favorite blogs of any stripe. If being "not liberal" is enough to qualify a blog for this category, then UO gets my vote.

Among truly conservative blogs, Just One Minute has my vote; Tom Maguire's a good writer, and he isn't pompous. (Heck, he didn't even correct the misspelling of his name!)

I vote for Jim Henley's Unqualified Offerings because it said it would please him to no end and my mission in life is to please Jim Henley to no end.

I hold these truths to be self-evident: Ronald Reagan is not the antichrist (that would be George H.W. Bush); Bill Clinton is a bad man who destroyed the Democratic Party amidst a personality cult of himself; Yasir Arafat is a bad man who should be in jail for stealing aid money and orchestrating terrorism; greedy husbands shouldn't be allowed to murder their semi-comatose wives because its convenient, in Florida or anywhere else. If these views make me "not a liberal", then I plead nolo contendere.

I was writing in to vote for Henley's Unqualified Offerings (who has the "best in show" distinction in my Dog Run of blog capsule summaries), because I actually think he's got the best blog, period, any category.

But I thank the Academy for thinking of a category to put my blog in... and not putting me up against Jeanne D'Arc or Atrios or Kos or someone else I have no chance against!!!

Any chance of a category for "Most Unreliable Blogger?" I'd win that one, hands-down.
I'd vote for Drezner (as best solo blogger) and Volokh (as a group) - I think it's fair to distinguish between solos and group efforts, as the latter should be held to higher standards of consistent output

I vote for Unqualified Offerings. I get to read the comics and the news in one blog, (I skip the fitness).

Michael

My vote goes to Jim Henley. Unqualified Offerings is my first blog read of each day.

Henley! Henley! Henley!

And the wind cries HENLEY!

Another mention for that vote-whore, Henley.

Have to go with Unqualified Offerings, though I must say it's a bit of a stretch to describe Henley as a "conservative" in the usual sense of the word.

Henley would be my offering as non-liberal but qualified as he is not a pure conservative.

You know, its ok to vote for someone BESIDES Jim Henley.

Tied, between The Light of Reason and Unqualified Offerings.

Oh and, now that it's called "non-liberal", shouldn't Max Sawicky be added to the list?

Ballon Juice
Drezner

And a negative vote for Roger Simon. *Shudder*

One vote for Unqualified Offerings! (unless I can make it two)

speaking of jay caruso, how did he and jane not get nominated for best group blog, if two is a group?

Hey. Tim Blair's blog.
timblair.spleenville.com

talking dog, hands down.. (us canines need to stick together)

Unqualified Offerings rules!

TACITUS - Certainly my favourite conservative writer on the net. He's principled and fair-minded.

Next year, I think you should just call this catagory "best non-liberal or non-left political blog."

I'm sorry I missed the initial round of endorsements in this catagory - some of my favorite non-lefty blogs, like Diotima, Julian's Lounge, Eve Tushnet, Crescat Sententia and the Fifty Minute Hour aren't listed.

Nonetheless, lots of great blogs are listed. Of the ones listed here, I'd vote for Light of Reason first (he's just such a powerful prose writer), followed by Volokh, Unqualified Offerings and An Unsealed Room.

Hard to choose between Jim Henley and Arthur Silber, but I think for beautifully written and passionate posts, I rank Arthur first.

Unqualified Offerings
An Unsealed Room, though she probably isn't non-liberal.

Drezner, Volokh, Outside the Beltway.

Of course categorizing people is simplistic and a bit crude, but it can be useful sometimes. I appreciate your offering this category since it's pointed me to a few interesting sites I might not have otherwise discovered.

Of the ones I know, Drezner and Volokh (just him, not those other crazies) are always worth reading.

Just One Minute by Tom McGuire is a S,N! favorite.