What to do? It seems unfair to penalize the GFB voters for leaving a comment without checking the main Wampum page to see that voting had closed. We are liberals. We think that every vote should count. By the same token, it seems unfair to penalize Talk Left and her supporters for not continuing to vote after the voting closed. Once again, what to do?

The principle by which I have run these awards for three years has always been, when in doubt, take the course that honors the maximum number of people. In that spirit, I have decided to award two Koufax’s for Best Single Issue Blog this year. Both Talk Left and Grits for Breakfast are declared winners.

TalkLeft wholeheartedly supports the decision. We're thrilled to win the award and be the only blog that has won the same category three years in a row. We're also delighted to share it with Grits for Breakfast, whom we read every day, because Scott does an incredible job of exposing injustice in the most unjust state of the union.

Congratulations to Scott and Grits for Breakfast.

Winning this year has extra meaning because of TChris, TalkLeft's sole contributing blogger. TChris has been writing on TalkLeft since November, 2003, when I was sidelined for a while by a wrist injury. I'm so glad he stayed on. He's a great writer and he picks interesting topics to write about, many of which I would have missed. Plus, not everyone can claim a lawyer who wins a huge Supreme Court case as their co-blogger. This award is shared with him. (For those of you who are new to TalkLeft, TChris was counsel of record, and argued for Booker in this year's Booker and FanFan decisions that turned the federal sentencing guidelines on their head.)

Enough about us. Congrats to all the winners, we hope you read every single one of them:

• Best Blog: Daily Kos
  

• Best Pro Blog: Talking Points Memo
  

• Best Writing: Hullabaloo
  

• Best Post: "If America Were Iraq, What Would it be Like?" by Juan Cole
  

• Best Series (two winners): "The Rise of Pseudo-Fascism" by David Neiwert and "Cheers and Jeers" by Bill at Daily Kos.
  

• Best Group Blog: MyDD
  

• Most Humorous Blog: Jesus' General
  

• Best Expert Blog: Informed Comment
  

• Best Single Issue Blog (two winners): TalkLeft and Grits for Breakfast
  

• Best New Blog: Mouse Words
  

• Most Deserving of Wider Recognition: Suburban Guerrilla
  

• Best Commenter: Meteor Blades
  

Congrats also to the many finalists in each category. As blogs have become a household word, the number of weblogs has exponentially increased this year, making the competition much, much tougher. Being a finalist is an honor. Winning is just the icing on the cake.

But the real heroes to us are those who voted. Thanks to each and every one of you, no matter who you voted for. You read all of us and you cared enough to take the time to register your thoughts. That's the best prize of all.

None of this would have been possible without Dwight and Mary Beth at Wampum. For three years, they have hosted these awards. They've counted the votes for nominations, determined the semi-finalists, the finalists and counted one last time to determine the winners. They've paid for the the bandwidth. And they have done it for free. Please, send them some heart and show them your appreciation.