It is very important, in this “post-press era” which is characterized by a general “toxic and dysfunctional media and political culture” that we do everything in our power to support journalists and political analysts who rise above the riff-raff and consistently provide reality-based news and analysis that is, at once, informative, enlightening and entertaining.

We can all agree that Chris personifies all that is good about the media and political analysis and that he deserves our wholehearted support for all of his efforts here.

Inexcusably, I have not kept up my end of the bargain here and I intend to rectify that situation with a regular contribution to the cause.

I know everyone here believes as I do that Chris provides us with an invaluable service here, and would agree also that these efforts need to be supported!

Thanks, Chris, for all that you do!

That is a good point. One of the things which makes me shy away from actual awards, though, is the mail screening process for Congress, which can take MONTHS to get a letter through (as a result of the anthrax attacks of 2001). But you make a good point about them noticing stuff.

nypoet22 -

First, let me say: Welcome Back!!

:-)

Secondly, wow, that's kind of a wet blanket on the fire...

Heh. Yeah, I guess I might have to take things a bit more seriously. I do like your "pewter jellyfish" suggestion, though, best I've heard yet.

Chris1962 -

That's kind of the idea, give them something to paper their personal bathroom walls with, so they can joke about it with each other. As for including jpegs, that's just too much work -- you wouldn't believe what goes into formatting the Friday columns, and then reformatting them for DemocraticUnderground. It's all I can do to get them out before midnight as it is! But maybe I should have a generic image of the golden backbone (and a pewter jellyfish) that I could stick inside each award section (into the template, where I wouldn't have to fool with it each week), that might work.

Hawk Owl -

I still think sending the MDDOTW awards out might be a tad bit counterproductive. Salt in the wounds, and all of that.

I should mention that private email with Hawk Owl was what gave me the idea, as he was the one to push "send it out every week!!" So, credit where credit is due and all of that. You've been elevated this week to "trusted advisor"...

:-)

Michale -

Yeah, the purpose of sending the awards out would primarily be to suck up to the staffers, in the attempt to get everyone on Capitol Hill breathlessly awaiting this column each Friday. And the MDDOTW would be counter-productive, I think, at least at first.

I'm thinking do it for MIDOTW as a "test case," see how it goes, and then maybe send out the MDDOTW after a trial period.

Stan -

Now that's an intriguing idea, and might avoid the whole "Congressional mail screening" bottleneck. Hmmm...

Elizabeth -

:-)

(cough, cough...) I direct everyone's attention to the "Donate" button up on the top of the right side of your screen (cough, cough...).

:-)

CWCunningham -

DING DING DING!!! WE HAVE A WINNER!!!

:-)

This is an EXCELLENT idea! Absolutely top notch. Contact the offices of the MIDOTW winners, and offer to send a certificate (and also offer a jpeg or PDF version that they can print themselves). See who responds, and mail them out when asked. This way, the big fish will just ignore it, but the little fish backbenchers will likely jump at the chance. That way, the effort goes to those who will appreciate it the most.

Seriously, this is The Answer. Thank you CWCunningham, your talents obviously run deeper than just the cartoons you so graciously provide this site. I read your comment, and I swear a lightbulb appeared above my head, as you intended (to put the whole thing in the cartoon realm).

Thanks!

dsws -

I'm not 100% positive (haven't done this in a while), but I think (someone correct me if I'm wrong here) that if you change your user preferences to add a website URL to your user info, then your username will appear in comments as a link to your site. But I don't think you can otherwise fool with the formatting of your username.

Thanks to everyone for responding, it helped enormously!

-CW

Meanwhile, I just looked at the commenting tips page,

NO

Don't send the physical awards. Send an email with instructions for how to claim the physical award. It will be informative to see who is paying attention and who actually appreciates the honor. You may even find some who are interested in collecting their MDDOTW award ...?!

But it's your time and your dime.

You just reminded me of something I've been meaning to suggest here.

But, first ... why should it be entirely on Chris's dime?

...Stan

Now THERE's positive framing if I ever heard it! :D

Michale....

On the other hand, given the volatile nature of the blogoshpere, you might get some... er.. aggressive responses..

No guts, no glory, Michale. 'D There's no "Kumbaya" in "The Most Disappointing Democrat of the Week." If ya got the guts to publicly smack pols in HuffPo articles, ya might as well go all the way and market it. The very worst that can happen is ya gain notoriety, your site hits go up, and you distinguish yourself from other writers as the one who "holds their own accountable." Fearlessly. None of that is a bad thing, m'man.

http://www.3dscience.com/3D_Models/Human_Anatomy/Skeletal/Human_Spine

Now THAT was funny!!! :D

Michale.....

I am torn about sending out the DISAPPOINTING award, like most others.

On the one hand, there ain't no such thing as "BAD" publicity..

On the other hand, given the volatile nature of the blogoshpere, you might get some... er.. aggressive responses.. Could I tell you some horror stories..

On the THIRD hand, the people likely getting the MDDOTW award are public officials in office so you would expect that they would be a little thicker skinned...

On the FOURTH hand (like that?? :D) their staff might not be so thick-skinned and might be a tag er.... aggressive in defending their boss..

CW:"Michale, you're so indecisive!!!"
Michale:"No I am not! Well, maybe just a little."

:D

Anyways, that's my 2 cents worth...

Michale....

Definitely for the "Most Impressive" winners, though. I thought about a [cartoon] Donkey kicking its heels to maintain the light-hearted tone, though a photo [head shot] of a thoughtful, determined mule might carry some gravitas . . .

It is great idea. Go for it. After all your whole column is about generating positive reactions . . . why shouldn't you?

It won't start getting noticed or referenced by pols for quite awhile, as it'll take them time to realize that this is an ongoing event. But it will, indeed, eventually catch on. I can easily envision pols razzing each other in the Senate dining room.

I know you're frequently pressed for time, but I recommend issuing both certificates (most disappointing Dem and the most impressive), though featuring only the "most disappointing" jpeg in your HuffPo article, to keep the focus primarily on the thumbs-down Dem. Sending out both, needless to say, reaches twice as many recipients per article, which doubles the effort to create awareness among pols themselves.

As for the award's visual, I would keep it real simple, e.g., the classic Dem Donkey, kicking up its heels, for the "Most Impressive" document, and the reverse of that, e.g., donkey on its back with its legs in the air, for the "Most Disappointing."

anyhow, i tend to skim that section to get from the intro to the talking points. maybe it should be a separate column. if i were running the show, the award would come out less frequently, or at least have shorter explanations. but then, i don't like awards shows in general.

Well, that's why I had to come clean. I've always written about the awards in sheer "delusions of grandeur" style, speaking of non-existent "Golden Backbone" statuettes as if they were real, as kind of an inside joke. But after the second time someone asked "hey, where's my award?!?" I began to think maybe the column has matured enough and grown enough in audience that it may be worth promoting by putting the energy into actually printing them up every week. I'm still not totally convinced, as 2 out of 134 isn't exactly a tsunami of certificate demands or anything. But maybe it would just be "taking the joke to the next level" as it were, I dunno.

Anyway, just had to bounce the idea off you guys to see whether anyone thought it had merit or not, so thanks for responding.

-CW

PS. I never did come up with any sort of catchy idea for what the MDDOTW statuette should look like or represent, so anyone with ideas, feel free to chime in (as it's kind of a nonsense column day, as it were).

Biden and Geithner are kindred spirits in this administration ... in more ways than one! :)

I'm beginning to think Vice President Biden has a rival for your heart :D

I mean, God knows, it would be the only positive recognition that Secretary Geithner ever gets.

:)