by Matt Barr

Watcher's Council best posts week ending November 24

The Watcher's Council selected these best posts from among those nominated for the week ending November 24.

Acute Senatitis at Gates of Vienna won in the Council category on a tiebreaker.

The first thing the practiced diagnostician notices about Senatitis is an inflamed ego. Another symptom is the tendency to speak boiler plate, even in the men’s room. The flight from reality differs in velocity depending on how long an individual member of this ‘club’ has been in office, but at its extremes you find Senators naming office buildings after themselves or proposing pork riders to bills already so laden with fat that they’re about to die from obesity.

A post at your host's came in second.

The fine Murtha's War at Done With Mirrors took the Non-Council category.

I don't know about Murtha, what moved him to switch his position in such a public way. Pennsylvania has had more than its share of casualties: over 100 so far. And because of the structure of National Guard units, they tend to come in clusters -- seven from one community, five from another, all in the same ambush. That hurts.

Maybe the newspaper and TV reporting got to him. Certainly the behavior of the politicians in the Bush Administration had a lot to do with it. According to the AP, "Several times a year, Murtha travels to Iraq to assess the war on the ground, and sometimes he just calls up generals to get firsthand accounts." I hope he remembers that what goes on in the battle zone, among the men and women serving and fighting, is just as real as the politics.

Posts at Michelle Malkin, Cold Fury and The Unrepentant Individual tied for second.

The full voting results, including many other worthy links, are available here.

Are you a blogger looking for more exposure? Who isn't! Watcher has a deal where he'll nominate the two best posts he gets from bloggers to be considered for the weekly Watcher's Council vote. You just have to post some info with some required links to be considered. Helpfully, instructions and even a cut 'n paste post if you'd like to use it can be found here.

The deadline is each Tuesday at 8pm ET. Good luck!

Also, a spot is open on the Council. If you're a blogger interested in a seat, start here for how to go about being considered. I think The Shape of Days, New Sisyphus or Hard Right would be outstanding candidates (though the Council tends to be a little more pro-war than A.C. Kleinheider is).

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