As we sail past Guantanamo Bay at mid-day Tuesday (the ship's captain turned down a request from team TWS to stop there to pay our respects), we thought we'd report who's leading in some of the award categories so far:
Rookie of the Year: Mike Warren, appearing on the panel on "Obama—a Second Term?," for his explanation of why his generation voted overwhelmingly for Obama in 2008—and why fewer of them will make that mistake in 2012.
Fan of the Year: Steve Hayes, for shamelessly injecting pro-Packers triumphalist comments into any and all discussions of any and all subjects.
Sportsman of the Year: Juan Williams, for graciously and eloquently making his case in the face of disbelieving (though friendly and appreciative) expressions from 464 cruisers.
Most Valuable Player: Kate Matus, for hosting a table alone last night while husband Vic was forced to their cabin by sea-sickness.
Playing Hurt: Matt Continetti, who played through panels and dinner despite looking a bit green.
Iron Man: Matt Labash, for being on the go from breakfast with the kids to post-dinner drinks in the Crow's Nest with . . .
Iron Woman: Mary Katharine Ham, full of pep on the cruise fresh off her recent ascent of Mt. Kilimanjaro.
Statistician of the Year: (tie) Scott Rasmussen and Jay Cost. Heading towards a sudden-death playoff.
Comeback Player of the Year: John McCormack, down to his last twenty dollars at the blackjack table, rallying to end up ahead by . . . well, the amount is between him and the IRS.
Best Player Acquired in a Trade: Mark Hemingway, star of National Review cruises past, now a key contributor to TWS.
Best Oldie but Goodie: Bill Kristol, once again telling the story of inadvertently voting for a Communist against Tip O'Neill in 1984.
Highlight Still to Come: When Jonathan Last (accompanied by Hayes and Matus) descends on the craps table.
Manager of the Year: Terry Eastland, for putting it all together.
Coach of the Year: Catherine Lowe, demonstrating tough love in herding and prodding TWS staffers to be in the right place at the right time.
Hall of Famer: Fred Barnes (needless to say!).
Owner of the Year: Phil Anschutz (needless to say!).
Watch this space for information on next year's cruise.
