17 Again

For the third consecutive year yours truly has made it into the top 20 of the Total Politics top 100 left blogs. Sadly the forward march of AVPS has been thrown into reverse, finding itself back where it was when the blog landed in the top 20 for the first time in 2008. Still, I'd like to take this opportunity thank my cat, my ex-PhD supervisor, my microwave, etc. etc. for making it all possible. Without your solid support and that of the AVPS-browsing public I'd never have made it into the blogging establishment (whether that's a good place for a socialist to be I'll leave readers to judge).

Long time viewers know I have a penchant for lists and throwing them down on here, so allow me this further indulgence. Here's the top 20:

1 Left Foot Forward
2 (3) LabourList
3 (1) Tom Harris MP
4 (2) Hopi Sen
5 Liberal Conspiracy
6 (8) Next Left
7 (4) Alastair Campbell
8 Political Scrapbook
9 (5) SNP Tactical Voting
10 (6) Luke Akehurst
11 The Staggers
12 (58) John Rentoul
13 (16) Blog Menai
14 Labour Uncut
15 (27) Penny Red
16 Guardian Politics Blog (Andrew Sparrow)
17 (12) A Very Public Sociologist
18 (10) The Daily (Maybe)
19 Hadleigh Roberts
20 (22) Socialist Unity

Leaving aside whether the likes of Tom Harris and John Rentoul can be regarded men of the left by any meaningful measure, there's still a good showing from proper socialists like Socialist Unity, Jim Jepps, me, and Laurie Penny. Left Foot Forward's top position is thoroughly deserved, so well done to them. A couple of other new entries - Political Scrapbook and Labour Uncut are very good at what they do as well. PS for being Labour's answer to Guido Fawkes, but without the witless bigotry. And LU for a thoughtful (insider-informed) addition to the Labour blogging firmament.

I imagine a few other comrades will be tickled pink by the top 100 too. I'm very pleased to see Harry's Place failing to stain the top 20 with its B52 liberalism, dropping 18 places to number 27. And to rub salt into the wound Socialist Unity came out ahead of them. Likewise Counterfire will be chuffed to best the SWP's premiere blogger in the contest too. Congrats also to Glyn for flying the Socialist Party flag in the top 100 (I don't know if it's me but there doesn't seem to be that many about these days).

In all I reckon there are 20 blogs on the list, inside and outside of Labour, who I'd regard as comrades and socialists, which, if memory serves, is about the same as last year. Will the coming resistance to the cuts effect the composition of next year's lists and propel those arguing a hard line against the cuts up the rankings? We shall see.

Annoyingly, AVPS does not feature in the list of Labour bloggers. This wouldn't matter if it was only a bit of fun, but the TP list is taken by the political and media establishment as a fair summary of the present state of political blogging. By excluding me the top flight is distorted and makes left voices look that little bit more marginal. Using the top 20 left wing blog vote as a guide AVPS should in actual fact be at number 10 (sorry Hadleigh, you only made the top 10 on a technicality). Prior to the closure of the competition I let TP know on three occasions this blog should be included in the Labour category too. When it was published with me missing I let the God-Emperor of political blogging himself know, and was told I'd been placed in the correct category. And still the list stands incorrect. I have no doubt it's a cock up, but getting it changed is proving nigh-on impossible.