Kevin, amazing lessons and revealed information in this Awards process this year (perhaps in previous years, also, but coming clearly to light this time around).

This is a great example -- if that adjective can be applied here, but, please read on -- of the problem with liberal distortions of ethics, altogether. Or, rather, more specifically, of the PROGRESSIVE-read-PERMISSIVE interpretations that disallow personal responsibility for just about everything.

Examples:

-- the woman/boy/person/victim deserved to be abused/raped/killed/harmed/whatevertheygot;

-- because we provide information on how to make bombs in your kitchen sink, it doesn't mean that people will ever make bombs, just that we're telling them how to do it;

-- because we publish the information about (anynamehere) as to where they live/Social Security Numbers/birthdates/any personally identifying information, it only means we publish it, it does not mean we are responsible when anyone abuses that information;

-- because I was only driving the car, I did not participate in the robbery; and

-- all circular, avoidance logic that reasons similarly.

You know, you were there, but you weren't responsible. And/or, you knew about it but you didn't do anything to prevent it from happening. And/or, you were "only" carrying stolen goods, you didn't actually "take" them, and everything similar.

It's the language and reasoning of the permissive in all the bad/wrong/awful array possible that avoids personal recognition of personal liability in wrongs, and avoids, therefore, accepting responsibility for the wrongdoing that you encourage in others.

This entire Awards manipulation process points out very, very well just why the "progressive" permutation of liberalism, and liberalism itself, fails the ethics test. Because everything and anything is possible in human behavior, does not mean that you are not responsible when you provide the helps to anyone to act badly, abnormally -- it just means that you are not able (or are able but aren't willing) to recognize that you/every one individual bears responsibility for their own actions, as exemplified by that Wampun/Mary Beth response there.

KOS, Wampun, it's the same thing: if they print the access codes to whatever secure information, they are culpable when *someone else* actually makes access to that information. But, to liberals, what they allege is that they were just driving the car, they weren't actually involved in the burglarly, the same old line that judges hear time and time again from two bit hacks before them.

KEVIN, A SUGGESTION:

Is there anyway that you could relaunch the voting process?

The Awards now have received more publicity -- albeit some of it not of the appreciable sort -- and perhaps you could devise some process for the Awards voting that would actually require one logon and one only or, rather, some account process for each vote/voter?

I know that you and others far more knowledgeable than I am would be able to comprehend something along these lines, or, not, but, it's an idea.

If you need hosting, just ask, I'd be happy to donate more services, resources, if needed if there was some extra proces that could be enabled for the voting process this year, such that the Awards could better avoid the denigration that *some users* seem intent upon.

I realize that LittleGreenFootballs and Wizbang are not the general Liberal cup'o'tea -- KOS is certainly not mine -- but all politics aside, if people among the left (that means KOS as motivator in this case) are so willing to amplify dishonest results in the voting process simply to be awarded "best of" (compared with LGF that is actually far more popular to many internet readers and for very good reasons), then shouldn't that "nominee" be removed from the process altogether?

I don't know about others but my single opinion here is that KOS has disqualified his site from the Awards considerations by suggesting dishonest voting.

Meanwhile, had KOS never made such a suggestion -- I consider him hosting the information on his site as authoring the suggestion, since he hasn't taken any means to remove or modify or even caution others about the information nor declare that he as a site/author disagrees with the practice -- that represents to my view that the site/author is certainly NOT qualified to be considered or awarded "Best of", in ANY category.

But, as to modifying the voting process, even if it reduces overall voting participants, it seems that one vote per individual is more than usual, it's expected and that people who misuse the process should be disqualified. Either site, Nominee, Finalist and/or voter.

Last thing (sorry) here is that I perceive this "cheat the Awards process" attitude by some as a genuine ridicule of bloggin in general, by people who seem to require the diminishment of credibility by bloggers: if they can discredit the Awards process and make it about, ahem, THEMSELVES INSTEAD (as has KOS and general liberal naysayers/hackers about the process itself), then they can confirm a bad impression, a lower standard of credibility, if you will, about blogging and authors of blogs in general.

It's a degredation of the standards regarding the internet -- no accountability, lowered expectations, denigrate those noted, the if-they-don't-notice-me-I'll-make-them-notice-me concept of very, very selfish use of shared resources, it's the behavior by losers.

Honestly, the Awards process isn't about KOS nor about liberals, nor about conservatives, and I hate to see it become something memorialized by their bad behavior instead of being a stand-alone process that represents people outside their influence, and even some within it.

A fresh start for the Awards would be great, to a great degree, something that would remove KOS, for starters, from this process based upon his behavior already substantiated, for starters, followed by a cessation of even mentioning people who cheat, but just to disqualify them, without further fanfare. As in, cheat, you're disqualified and that's that.

Because, otherwise, it's another case of trolls getting notice and then pereiving the notice as being reason to up their bad behavior. Trolling/cheating, it's all the same thing, and produces, if people allow it to, more notice for bad behavior and less notice on those who have not behaved badly, but, actually, well, as in the case of those other Finalists.

Although I realize that some actually nominated themselvse, their own sites, something I find a tad too embarrassing.

Kevin --

Screw 'em. Yank the vote for "Liberal Blog," plus yank Kos and the other moonbats from any nominations they've been given.

We are under no obligation to provide the cheaters with personal gratification or self-flagellating entertainment.

I agree with Michael 100%.

I feel bad, Kevin, because this has to be making you unhappy... how about you post a thread for jokes that knock liberals, and we'll all post some to cheer you up? I've got a good one I could add, and I'm sure everyone else has a a few-liberals are such easy targets.

- I don't believe you should "pull em"... a better approach would be to add the category of "best cheat of the year" with them as the sole occupant....They would not be happy puppies if it was my call.....

Liberals obviously know they can't win anymore.... so they cheat.

I agree with Michael and Omni. Pull Wampum, yank them off the list. If they don't want to participate in this VRWC charade of beauty contest, let them wallow in obscurity.

Pretty please with sugar on top.

Its still up because I saw it and then came over here to see what if any response there was to it. This is just unbelievable! Totally irresponsible, not funny, not helpful, and really puts a black eye on KOS for leaving this up. This confirms every bad thing one thinks about liberals. Blatantly cheating on a vote after screaming fraud about Republicans for going on five years now. And then blaming others and denying responsibility. It gives blogging a bad name in general, and gives the MSM one more piece of evidence to slam blogs as irresponsible in general.

I think everyone should stop going to KOS, period, or at least until he apologizes. The way to really make him suffer consequences is for his blog to die from lack of traffic.

I was in the "yank 'em" camp, until I saw Hunter's suggestion. Now I'll second it and call the question.

What Michael said.

I vote to yank Kos (and any other known cheaters) from any categories and put them in the same cheaters category or maybe the "biggest a-hole blog" award.

Those people really make me so utterly sick. What a bunch of pathetic spiritually-bankrupt souless a-holes.

Wampum, if you go to the site. has no interest in anything other than smearing you.

Cheating is only one of the reasons that decent Americans despise liberals. They are a crummy immoral lot. Over-indulged, educated at bastions of stupidty in the Ivy Leagues and absent any understanding of the universal justificaton for fair play. Cheating means that you can only succeed by cheating. I wonder if these moonbats have ever experienced the thrill of victory won through hones effort? I doubt it.

The DU encourage its users to skew the polls for the "Who won the debate?" polls. This only made the libs feel that Kerry would win. It made the victory even more sweet. Remember the libs can not build, they can only ruin.

- That would be even better... A runoff between Wampum and Kos in the "Best of the Cheaters" category....(Oh and Wookie if she had any part in it).... Those two asshats are out there being peraded around like they own and represent the majority of the blogosphere by the MSM liberal lap dogs even as we blog.....

So, from the look of things, the Awards were perceived by liberals as a conservative movement, statement, process. Unfortunately, as in, unfortunately for liberals that they are so nutty.

I don't think that pulling a "best liberal blog" is a good response to this thing that's happened, but I DO believe that sites that are negating the proecss and especially those that are encouraging cheating the process should be disqualified. As in, encourage, promote cheating = cheating itself.

KOS should be disqualified. Wampum should be disqualified. Any site that promotes gaming this Awards process should be disqualified. If THAT disqualifies "all" liberal blogs in that process, then so be it, but as a Category, the 'Best Liberal Blog" should stay (UNLESS all Finalists are removed because they're engaged in denigrating the Awards process/encouraging cheating the process).

Like elections in general, they lose, they lose again and they only have themselves to blame. Up to this point, seems that everyone ELSE has been quite encouraging of the Awards process, for whatever their politics, although politics isn't what the Awards are about, to my view. At least, not to this conservative.

Hunter: I think I'd agree with your idea if it was modified to read:

"THE WORST OF THE CHEATERS" Award

Cheating is never best, golden, superior. So, call it what it is, the lowest of the low, and you get my support for an Award of notice to the worst of the worst cheaters going. With a runner-down Award included.

Left at Wampum (cc:Wizbang before they delete it)

Typical liberal behaviour: keep cheating until we win. Save the elitist justification "hey, we're so 1337 and better-than we can't help pointing out the flaws in your oh so quaint little awards, which are oh so less-than then ours". That's bullshit mate and you know it.

A simple e-mail to someone who, as I understand it, has been a friend to your site, would have been a better way to point out a flaw that you, in all your wisdom, could see might be exploited. There's such a thing as honor, respect and Christian kindness between webmasters. I'm not as coo as your Einstein coder, but our domain/site has been around since '97 and we always operated in a spirit of cooperation and friendship among webmasters.

Its a big pond, why make enemies, why throw stones, why not help and support each other. You know and I know what you guys were up to. Sure you might not have actively DOS'ed their voting, but you were mounting your high-horse and proving how much smarter you were while at that same time winking at the script-kiddies out there. Woohoo you won, your blogger version of an old-time forum war went swimmingly. You can't have it both ways.

You succeeded in being the know-it-all in the back of the room who builds himself up by pulling other's down, but you didn't make any friends doing it. And you gave lefty bloggers a black eye that won't go down anytime soon. But as one of the KosKiddies said, wear it as a badge of honor. It suits your clothes.

The left loves removing competition from any aspect of life they can control because they just can't compete. Everywhere else, they just cheat.

Kevin,

I realize that you are probably buried in this stuff well beyond your eyeballs but I did want to let you know something. I voted earlier today (around 4 pm Central) and when I've gone back to read comments, I am still given the option to vote...where ordinarily it says "You have already voted today!" I haven't deleted cookies, switched computers, or done anything else that should be allowing me to vote again.

I have not voted again, but wanted to let you know.

Thanks again for your time and efforts on this, and it really blows that some people are screwing it up.

Read the post by the Wampum lady at kos. Now I understand what is going on. She sees the Weblog Awards as competition to her own little awards. My God, can anyone be that petty? I guess MaryBeth can.

Here's a thought: take all the votes fraudulently cast and award them to that blog's "worst enemy."

Or, remove a blog that cheats and put in its place a blog that has been denigrated on the cheating blog, and give them all the votes cast for the removed blog.

I wish this could break out into the MSM, because it shows how hypocritical they really are. Here's my suggestion, email Olbermann, because he is doing this huge thing on GOP fraud in Ohio right now, and he was one of the main recipients of fraudulant votes. I think since he is SOOO concerned about vote fraud he would at least disavow his own votes here and condemn KOS and Wampum for doing this.

anyone?

Good idea, Napablogger. This whole liberal blog voter fraud matter can backfire royally.

I'm with Hunter - use the judo principle - take all their malicious effort and deflect it into a new "Top Cheaters of 2004" Weblogs Awards category. Exposure and ridicule. MSM sharks will smell the blood and eat their own.

Napablogger why not send it to bits of the MSM that your think might be interested. I find the whole cheating thing rather pathetic...the fact they got caught is almost as sad. I mean did they really think you wouldn't notice?

Yes, because some few dumb blog readers cheating for Keith Olbermann in a blog award contest is the same thing as presidential election voter fraud. Way to make the connection.

Olbermann really should disavow the 9,947 votes (probably 12 people) that fixed this relatively small awards because he is currently worried about the election of a president by over 100 million people.

I think something like this was guaranteed to happen. Which is why, for all the hard work you guys have put in, the system looked broken to me from day one.

I think that if you do this again you should rethink. No more option to vote once a day--you get to vote once, period. Tie it to people's email addresses. Yes they could still cheat by using multiple mail addresses but that would be minimal compared to the practically guaranteed major cheating that this current system gets.

- I don't think the object really was to win....I think the object was to torpedo the whole process just in case they couldn't win....I think if you look at the MSM "press effort" going on with Kos and wookette right now you'll see the possible motives....Also the parallel Awards thing with Wampum/mary beth going on at the same time...the party of "peace, love, and tolerence" never misses an opportunity to prove how petty and destructive they are...

Dean, I have to agree with you mate. Well said, exactly what I was thinking. The current system is so open to abuse its cronic. I do, however, feel for Kevin and the gang trying to keep on top of all the cheating wankers out there.

My suggestion is move on to more important things and don't give your enemies the pleasure of seeing you pissed. Whatever you do, DON'T WHINE. Whining is a characteristic of the liberal victimhood, entitlement culture and does not wear well on people who believe in self-reliance and personal responsibility.

Let it go, and forget those small people.