jquery ajax error 404,jQuery Ajax returning 404 Error, but correct Response

I'm posting some data to a PHP script via jQuery AJAX, and everything executes correctly, but it returns a 404 error. In my Firebug console the response from the PHP script is correct. I don't understand how the script can respond, and it is still throwing a 404 error. The jQuery "error" callback method triggers, and the "success" method doesn't.

All statements performed by the PHP script work accurately, because I can see the database being updated, etc.

I'm using jQuery 1.4.2, on a WordPress 3.x website hosted by Dreamhost.

-----------MORE INFO-----------

OK, I've figured out that when I include WordPress's wp-blog-header.php file in the Ajax script, I get the error. Also, once upon a time these scripts work, and I am 90% sure they stopped working after the WP 3.0 update. I'll paste in the Response headers from Firebug.

This header response from PHP that includes the wp-blog-header.php and returns a 404 error in Firebug...

Date Tue, 10 Aug 2010 01:44:44 GMT

Server Apache

X-Powered-By PHP/5.2.6

X-Pingback http://www.learnwake.com/xmlrpc.php

Expires Wed, 11 Jan 1984 05:00:00 GMT

Cache-Control no-cache, must-revalidate, max-age=0

Pragma no-cache

Last-Modified Tue, 10 Aug 2010 01:44:44 GMT

Vary Accept-Encoding

Content-Encoding gzip

Content-Length 36

Keep-Alive timeout=2, max=98

Connection Keep-Alive

Content-Type text/html; charset=UTF-8

This header response from PHP that doesn't include the wp-blog-header.php and returns a 200 OK in Firebug...

Date Tue, 10 Aug 2010 01:44:58 GMT

Server Apache

X-Powered-By PHP/5.2.6

Vary Accept-Encoding

Content-Encoding gzip

Content-Length 36

Keep-Alive timeout=2, max=100

Connection Keep-Alive

Content-Type text/html