Wise beyond my years?!!

Last night I attended the inaugural Slugger Political Awards at W5 in Belfast’s Odyssey complex. Three Thousand Versts had been nominated as one of the three contenders in the Political Blogger category.

In the end the honour went to North Antrim Local Interest List, which satisfied very neatly the criterion Mick Fealty ascribed to any potential winner in the award’s accompanying film. NALIL doggedly worried at the Giant's Causeway / Seymour Sweeney issue last year until it came to prominence in the local media.

The Causeway / Sweeney fiasco provided another winner. Sinn Féin’s Daithi Mckay won the ‘Up and Coming’ gong, despite his relative anonymity beyond commenting on the affair.

Nonetheless it was a good night, with some interesting discussion taking place in the bar afterwards. It was good also to meet some readers and put names to the faces of several Slugger commenters.

Given the competition, I was very pleased to be nominated for the blogger award. The synopsis on Slugger reads as follows:

“3000 Versts has already been picked up and recognised in the Total Politics top 100 UK blogs of the year, coming number 2 to Slugger in the Northern Irish category and an impressive five in the unaligned blogs. It’s considered by some political insiders to be well written and wise beyond the years of its author.”


I’m choosing to interpret that positively, rather than as an inference that many more political insiders / others feel the blog is badly written and foolish! Burke’s Corner made up the trio of nominees, and it comprises erudite and impressive company.

All the winners are detailed on Slugger O’Toole.

Comments

O'Neill said…
Congratulations on the commendation Chekov, well-deserved. The other two blogs you mentioned have (unfortunately) passed under my radar so far, theyll be on my reading list when I get back.

Talking of which...here I am, slurping a Lasko in Glavni Trg (internet cafes have sooo more liberal licensing rules here) in Marabor. Nice enough place, bit provincial, think Cullybackey with a few more squares, churches, coffee-houses and ...actually, thinking about it, its nothing like Cullybackey. Off on a "winetrail" later just to keep Ms ONeill sweet, hopefully our tickets are winging their way over as we speak as its a sell-out. If youre coming over, Ill sort you out with a slivovic.
Anonymous said…
I don't think McKay got the award for the Causeway issue alone but he did carry out a number of FOIs and Assembly questions at the time which uncovered a lot of the dirt, not to mention using the Assembly's "parliamentary privilege" to name Sweeney in the first place.

I think the fact that he stood along with the Reids workers last year whilst other politicians sat on the fence and was in the middle of efforts to resolve a very dangerous situation in Ballymena over the summer all counted toward the award. Hes perhaps the only MLA to have a motion passed in the Assembly which the UUP and DUP voted against - in relation to Nuclear Energy as well.
Anonymous said…
Congrats on the award, a well written blog with lots of comment.

Maybe this will propel you into the ranks of the elected.

Good luck.

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