Best Blogs of the Year

And now, for the coveted Battlepanda nominations for the Koufax. Drumroll please...

BEST BLOG
Most people either leave out this catagory or nominate one of the big boys like Kos or Atrios, which I don't read often because I favor smaller blogs with manageable comment sections. It's hard to choose a favorite, but I think this year it's gotta be Ezra Klein -- great commentary with a passion for wonkery, and a whole posse of interesting guestbloggers.

BEST BLOG -- PRO DIVISION
Funnily enough, I don't really read many "pro" blogs. For instance, I love Matt Yglesias, but I don't read Tapped. Brad Plumer's own blog is a must-read, but I don't really remember the last time I read the MoJo blog. The exception to this rule is Kevin Drum of the Political Animal, but then, I've been stuck on Kevin since the old Calpundit days. His was the first blog I started to read, and more often than not the first blog I click on the ol' blogroll in the morning. Sensible and solid, Kevin will seldom steer you wrong.

(Well, except for that whole why-no-women-bloggers business. We'll just pretend that didn't really happen.)

BEST BLOG COMMUNITY
Hands down TPM Cafe. With bloggers of note like Yglesias, Mark Schmitt, Nathan Newman and now Max Sawicky joining the Josh Marshall empire, as well as occasional posts by politicians, authors and other newsworthy figures in the non-blog community, it is a force to be reckoned with. However, I have to say I prefer reading all those fine writers on their home sites than on TPM somehow. I don't know why. I just don't like huge gallumping sites, that's all. I think it's because people feel compelled to de-personalize when they're blogging under somebody else's banner. Kevin Drum only recently felt comfortable enough to bring back the Catblogging, for instance.

BEST WRITING
Majikthise. I don't know whether her ability to write so clearly and incisively is due to or despite of her training in analytic philosophy.

BEST POST
Ask me this on ten different days and you'll probably get fifteen different answers. But I've been thinking about Mark Schmitt's post on Miss America Conservatives, and it is as good a choice as any.

BEST SERIES
It's gotta be Radley Balko of The Agitator and his on-going investigative series on Cory Maye. Not only is it noteworthy that a blogger is directly covering a news item rather than providing analysis, Balko is giving much-needed publicity to a case where an innocent man's life is hanging in the balance.

BEST SINGLE ISSUE BLOG
Brad Delong for Economics. No question. Before I started reading his blog I simultaneously ignorant and dismissive of the dismal science. Not a good combination. I have Prof. Delong to thank for sparking my interest in what is now a favorite subject for me.

BEST GROUP BLOG
Lawyer, Guns and Money. It is also the best-named blog, blog with the best rotating graphic and the best battleship blogging.

MOST HUMOROUS BLOG
THE FAFBLOG!

MOST DESERVING OF WIDER RECOGNITION
I've been a huge fan of Elaine Supkis at Culture of Life News for a long time. Her energy amazes me! In addition to being a handywoman and caring for a whole passel of animals, she blogs copiously just about every day, trawling far and wide for interesting news that often escapes the left-blogisphere echo chamber. She also somehow finds the time to illustrate her posts with amusing little cartoons. Incredible.

BEST EXPERT BLOG
I'm going to go way out on a huge limb here and say Juan Cole.

BEST NEW BLOG
John of Dymaxion World is one of my favorite bloggers. His interests are eclectic, but he is especially knowledgable when it comes to energy issues. Full disclosure: John guest-blogged here during the summer, raising the bar considerable here at the Battlepanda blog. I consider his guest-posts an ideal starting point to learning about peak oil issues and our renewable energy alternatives.

BEST COMMENTER
Lawrence Krubner, who blogs at What Is Liberalism, adds immensely to this blog with his always thoughtful and incredibly learned comments. I especially appreciate his knowledge of history as my own is so embarrasingly gappy. Conversations is what blogging at its best is all about, and a great commenter is worth his weight in gold. Thank you, Lawrence.