When Jon Stewart announced his October 30th "Rally to Restore Sanity," most of us thought it was about time. The country -- at least the parts of it that get the most attention -- seems to have collectively gone off the deep end. Over at big Salon, rarely a week goes by that we don't find two, three or even four worthy contestants vying for the This Week in Crazy prize. 

So, in spirit of encouraging rational thought, we've decided to flip that feature on its head and launch The Year in Sanity. We want to celebrate the unsung heroes of our days: people in the public eye who behave sanely, rationally and even bravely in the face of unabiding craziness. We want to honor those who have acted in a mature and honest manner when fudging and evasion would be expected. In short, we want to tip our hats to those rare, elusive public figures who did things that made you think, "Hey, you know what? That was a sane, adult and admirable way to deal with that situation!"

Last night, a few Salon staffers kicked off the process by nominating Michael Bloomberg, Jim Joyce, Peter Beinart, Constance McMillen and Jimmy Kimmel.... but we need your help! Sanity is hard to find these days.

Blog your candidates for The Year in Sanity by Friday, October 29th at 9AM ET and be sure to tag your entries theyearinsanity. 

We'll feature our favorites on the cover of Open Salon and rank our top 10 favorites on Salon on the eve of Jon Stewart's rally.