Ottawaniantian readers of an arts and culture tabloid picked Harvey’s as the Best Burger? Some californicated sprocket in my brain just went ping.

Generally, I see “the best of” as a measure of what is trendy with the audience. On the Wet Coast, even if a person’s preferred burger was a Big Mac, you’d have to torture them with week long ferry waits before they’d admit it to a poll. They pick the hip eateries that are non-franchised or small-chains. Usually these places *do* have good whatever they’re the best at, but really it’s about being able to say you knew the Spice Girls when they were underground.

Do you Ottawanionianieists have no pomposity? This surprises me. Perhaps you could use a shipment from the coast. We’ll have you besting the hippest places tickity-boo.

With the proviso that this act is not “atonement”, which would imply acceptance of guilt, I shall do so immediately.

Wrong. I am showing my contempt for absurd, extreme “position” (to the extent it can be characterized as a “position” espoused by Scenty, who exemplifies many of the traits I find disturbing among the stupider neo-conservatives. As far as the “ideology of conservatism”, whatever that is, I’m not contemptuous of it, and personally share many of what I take to be its tenets.

“there are many fine conservative writers who are anything but stupid or ignorant, and could very well give you a run for your money in argument any day of the week.”

Absolutely. And they’re being nominated as we speak. Please refer to the excellent list of nominees on the CBA website, and to the final paragraph of my response number 11, above.

“But whatever floats your boat, balby”

Quite. I appreciate your permission to do what it amuses me to do.

To atone, please nominate blogs you feel are worthy of WINNING, not just competing

But whatever floats your boat, balby.

- The Sentinel has been nominated for the CBAs before, and has also been nominated for other blog awards. This delights him and his readership.

- For those awards where he actually gets through the gate, he routinely gets about 1% of the vote. There are folks out there who authentically think his blog is great.

- I personally prefer his site to Kathy Shaidle’s or Girl on the Right, either of whom would, I imagine, be accepted as perfectly credible nominees. Scenty is dim, shockingly ignorant, and hilariously incapable of reasoned thought – but he is not, as far as I can tell, driven by hatred. His dire meditations on the impending collapse of the world leave readers laughing, not feeling defiled.

Bottom line: he IS the best example I can think of of one stratum of conservative thought in Canada. No harm is done to the Awards through his nomination: those who feel he’s an amusing absurdity or an intellection abomination will presumably vote for one of the other excellent conservative nominees, and those who share his views have someone to vote for.

It amuses me to nominate Sentinel. It’s a comment on both his blog and on the stupido-URQ fringe he so ably epitomizes. Sorry it doesn’t amuse you.

I know you’re better than that.

My dear fellow, you do a shocking dishonour to one of your own. If you feel that my good friend and esteemed co-blogger Canadian Sentinel does not merit your support, then I encourage you to exercise your freedom to vote against him. However, he has a large and loyal cheering section here, not unlike the popularity enjoyed by William Hung, late of American Idol, to whom he bears an oblivious resemblance: surely you would not deny us the opportunity of helping him to achieve a summit so earnestly desired by both him and ourselves?

This may be the first time that I’ve had to blog tethered to a desktop computer in several months. I have wireless at home, there was wireless at the motel I stayed at in Kalamazoo (and more such installations seem…