I think that "rule" and the evangelical worshipping of validating websites nowadays is ridiculous. This ridiculousness is shown by the number of high profile sites that exist today that do not refer to this unnecessary rule. Example, facebooks front page has over 30 Errors, yet it is a beautifully crafted site, simple and elegant.
Don't get me wrong, following web standards is very important and it is in everybodies interest to produce sites like this. However, to have it as a prerequisites before a site gets judged on such forums is over kill.
Please critiuqe it and please disregard validation as an assessment factor in this case.