REPORTING FOR DUTY
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Sep
15
LGF Delinks Pajamas Media! (UPDATED)
September 15, 2009 | 76 Comments
The blog wars are out of control right now. First Powerline Blog made a point to publicly de-link Little Green Footballs:
We have slightly updated our blogroll for the first time time in a long time. We have deleted Charles Johnson’s Little Green Footballs. We long ago stopped reading LGF Suffice it to say (suffice it for me to say, anyway) that Charles’s political inclinations and interests now diverge widely from our own.
At the same time we welcome Gateway Pundit and Big Hollywood.
The public de-linking and addition of Gateway pundit prompted the following comment by Charles in one of his comment threads [emphasis in red added]:
re: #796 Gus 802
OK, I just read his delinking post. He removed LGF and added Gateway Pundit? I started laughing when I read that.
That’s right. Pathetic, isn’t it? They’re hitching their wagon to a borderline illiterate bigot who thinks it’s the height of wit to post pictures of Obama as Hitler.
Good riddance. They’re removed from my links too.
This is on top of a bitter exchange over the alleged racism of Robert Stacy McCain. You can follow that exchange by visiting the following links:
1) A Response to Charles Johnson
2) A Response to Stephen Green (With Link)
3) Robert Stacy McCain’s Angry Departure From the Washington Times
4) Point One: Charles Johnson doesn’t know me from Adam’s housecat
5) Point Two: Charles Johnson is prejudiced, and subscribes to stereotypes
6) Point Three: Charles Johnson will regret it but once, and that will be continuously
Now Charles has reported that he has removed all links to Pajamas Media because, among other reasons, they are headlining a McCain article on their front page:
I’ve removed all links to Pajamas Media from LGF.
Wow. Didn’t Charles co-found Pajamas Media? It is startling to see how much has changed over the years.
We find this whole sordid mess completely depressing. We here at Founding Bloggers consider ourselves friends with almost everyone involved in this fight, and we hate to see all this pixelated blood spilled.
Because Founding Bloggers has, at one time or another, advertised on almost all of the websites involved, and because we have personally worked with many of the people connected to this issue, we have decided that this is an appropriate moment to chime in with at least one point. It is our sincere hope not to inject ourselves into the middle of this, again because we have profound respect for many of the people involved in this fight, including Charles Johnson, but it is our experience with these people that compels us to offer at least one observation.
Jim Hoft of Gateway Pundit is not a “borderline illiterate bigot.” We have worked with Jim on several projects dating back a couple of years, and our personal experience with him is nothing short of a complete pleasure. We have seen exactly zero indication of either illiteracy, or bigotry. Jim has never displayed even the slightest hint of any form of bigotry or hatred, other than towards Jihadis and people who support them (think Code Pink).
Every personal experience we have ever had with Jim Hoft has revealed him to be a world-class gentleman with a terrific sense of humor. He’s a guy who is fun to work with and be around.
If Jim Hoft is a bigot, he is the kind who appears to enjoy the company of Jews, black people, and anti-jihad Muslims. In fact, we would go so far as to say, and others would likely agree, the Jewish and anti-Jihad Muslim community has a tremendous friend in Jim Hoft. That’s some bigot.
As for Robert Stacy McCain, we have met him on two occasions, the second being when he base camped with the rest of the PJTV crew, at the Founding Bloggers HQ in Denver during the Democrat Convention last year.
We would have to echo Steven Green’s comments in his response to Charles:
So, is Robert Stacy McCain a white supremacist? Hell if I know. But he enjoys breaking bread with agnostic half Jews like me, which would certainly make him a different kind of white supremacist.
That being said, we would like to hear more from Robert about his comments on interracial marriage, as well as some of the other accusations made in this article. If the comments attributed to him are accurate, they are disturbing.
“[T]he media now force interracial images into the public mind and a number of perfectly rational people react to these images with an altogether natural revulsion. The white person who does not mind transacting business with a black bank clerk may yet be averse to accepting the clerk as his sister-in-law, and THIS IS NOT RACISM, no matter what Madison Avenue, Hollywood and Washington tell us.”
Yes, you read that right: a “natural revulsion” and “THIS IS NOT RACISM.”
That was posted by Robert Stacy McCain (who has contributed to New York Press in the past) on a website called Reclaiming the South. The Washington Times editor posts a lot on the right-wing FreeRepublic.com as well, using an assumed name (BurkeCalhounDabney) but often linking back to his personal website, where there are photos of him and the rest of his large family of Seventh Day Adventists (and which identifies him by his real name and as a Washington Times editor). Editor McCain, who hails from Rome, GA, is one of those Confederate types who still hasn’t gotten over the Civil War and is trying to get the South to secede. He’s a member of a Southern secessionist organization called League of the South. Here’s a quote from that group’s leader, Michael Hill:
“The day of Southern guilt is over–THE SOUTH WAS RIGHT–and let us not forget that salient fact. NO APOLOGIES FOR SLAVERY should be made. In both the Old and New Testaments slavery is sanctioned and regulated according to God’s word. Thus, when practiced in accord with Holy Scripture, it is NOT A SIN.
Robert? [Please see McCain's lengthy rebuttles to the charges of racism, especially this one, as well as update II below]
UPDATE:
We want to add that one of the aspects that is so frustrating about this particular blog war, is what is getting lost in the shuffle. Charles is making some extremely valid points that need to be critically examined.
We do not want our defense of Jim Hoft to serve as an excuse to pile on Charles Johnson. We would rather turn it into a chance to bring some attention to the things LGF has been writing about with which we vehemently agree.
He has devoted more than one post to the Obama-Hitler signs on display at Tea Parties. We, too, find them disgusting and counterproductive, and have said so publicly. See the video below, which we produced from the Chicago Tax Day Tea Party.
Charles is correct about this, and we really wish people would stop it with the Hitler crap.
Also, this blog believes Charles is 100% correct when it comes to teaching creationism as science in public schools. We fully support teaching it as a philosophy, and we also believe private institutions should be free to teach it as science if they want, even if it is not what we consider to be the correct or intelligent choice. But we have backed Charles on this issue in the past, and continue to be against teaching creationism as science in public classrooms.
That being said, creationists should be defended to the end for the right to believe what they want to, so long as they do not tread on me.
People ought to also remember that Charles has been plenty right about a whole lot of things in the past. It seems to us unwise and completely unwarranted to write him off over these disagreements. You may disagree with the behavior of anyone and everyone in the blog war, but in the words of Rodney King: can’t we all just get along? After all Charles has contributed to what we all know as the blogosphere, his opinions about associations with possible fascists, his critique of what he sees in the Tea Party movement, and his criticisms of the Nirther movement, deserve to be weighed with the respect he has earned.
UPDATE II:
We spoke at great length with RS McCain today, and we are satisfied with what he had to say about the above comments. To sum up, here is what he told us:
1) The quote about interracial marriage is taken out of context, and is more about ethnographic-genetic philosophy than race (our conclusion). While we personally do not accept the premise being discussed in the quote, to the degree which we can divine intent, we do not feel that McCain’s motive was any kind of overt racism. It is possible to be wrong on issues related to race without being racist. Some people will probably disagree with that conclusion but there you are.
2) The quote on slavery is not his, and he rejects slavery. Let’s repeat that…RS McCain rejects slavery. So far, if he is a racist, he’s not a proud one like David Duke or Louis Farrakhan, as is evidenced by his extensive attempt to distance himself from the very things he is accused of embracing.
3) RS McCain appears to be an unapologetic supporter of the memory of the Confederacy. We might be naive, but again, his motive appears to have much more to do with a philosophy about the federal government vis-a-vis states’ rights. It is immoral to suggest that the states have a right to hold slaves, and McCain goes out of his way to reiterate he does not support slavery, a point he feels silly making in his own defense. Since we do not believe the Civil War was exclusively about slavery, we can see how someone might sympathize with the Confederate position while not being racist. We here at Founding Bloggers do not have any fondness for the Confederacy, but we very much believe in the rights of others to hold opinions which are at odds with our own beliefs.
Recently McCain has been accused of being a “white supremacist blogger.” We have been looking over his site, and have found absolutely no content that would support this characterization. Please notify us immediately if anyone finds content to the contrary.
We have spent a great deal of time on this matter and spoken with many people to glean their judgment and wisdom on this matter. The consensus from people who know him far better than we do is that RS McCain might be many things (and there were some humorous off color adjectives), but racist is not one that comes to mind of anyone we spoke with.
Lastly, recently we have been asked to de-link this person or that person for various crimes against blogmanity related to this fight. We refuse to de-link anyone. This blog prides itself on staying connected to views and opinions we agree with and ones we do not agree with. Take a look at our blogroll and you will see that we even link to Daily Kos, even though much of what comes out of there is sewage. Please do not look at our blogroll as any kind of endorsement or sanction. We link to lots of people for lots of reasons, and reflexively react negatively to persuasion to de-link anyone.
There you go. We hope this puts the matter to rest, although we are nearly certain it will not.
Comments
76 Comments so far
In the meantime, some lousy Jihadist is plotting to kill me in some horrific way. I think soul-searching is great and all, but perhaps we could postpone our personal journey of discovery until after our common enemies are defeated. This whole “who’s a bigot and who’s not” game isn’t going to mean very much if some martyr blows up a dirty bomb in The Loop. Just sayin’.
I was once a fixture at LGF, but left when Charles started his diatribes against creationists. The dude must have taken the brown acid that Wavy Gravy warned us about…
Wow! I thought LGF had some serious issues when Charles went after Atlas Shrugs, but this is completely off the chart.
Rusty Shackleford said it best, imo.
(I was summarily banned last week, after being slurred by Charles Johnson as a “fascist enabler.”)
Regards,
Brian/snapped shot
The one aspect of Charles that has become apparent over the past year or so is that he is EXTREMELY thin-skinned. I had the audacity to question him in one of his posts, no profanity, no name-calling, and BAM, I’m banned. No explanation. No response. Just instantaneous banning.
Someone who can’t handle a person simply challenging their views and asking questions is someone who is not worth my time. It seems Charles is only interested in an echo chamber. Sad.
I left that site a LONG time ago!
Besides the hatred that was often spewed against Christians and those who hold to the theories of Creation and/or Intelligent Design, LGF also bashed Lionheart at his blog when he was going through a huge struggle against Islamic jihadist takeover in his British town.
Blog wars are so silly. Just ignore them!
LG what? Haven’t been there since Rathergate, the last time they did something right.
I too stopped reading that site long ago. I was actually able to see charles go insane day by day.
LGF and Johnson have become the 4th grade of the blogosphere. He engages in petty playground fights with other bloggers and throws banning tantrums when he can’t do that. According to CJ, everyone who disagrees with him is a liar or an idiot. A couple of well-played race cards and he’d be in perfect sync with the MSNBC mindset.
Charles may be alienating a lot of people — and the blogwar may or may not be necessary (I personally think it is healthy), but Stacy McCain is his own ball of dirty wax and Charles is right in exposing this guy:
Consider:
1) RSM’s writing for Taki Magazine (owned by the self-proclaimed anti-semite Taki Theodoracopulos and edited by by the outspoken white nationalist Richard Spencer)
2) His writing the xenophobic VDARE publication
3) His membership of the League of the South (and other associated neo-confederate groups)
…speaks much louder than any words his pals may choose in defending him.
Charles seems to be seeing neo-Nazis hiding in the bushes everywhere he looks these days. Also, I think he takes a perverse pleasure in deleting posts and banning people while his Lizardoid followers cheer him on.
I stopped reading LGF back in 2007 when he (unfairly, IMO) went after the Gates of Vienna blog about an essay they posted.
You give Charles Johnson far too much credit in my view. He has only criticism and disdain for people on the right. He makes every effort to seek out the worst aspects (for example an Obama as Hitler sign), and uses it to paint everyone as radical extremists. He is intellectually dishonest
I only go to LGF now for the links. Charles does link some interesting videos, music and the like. It has saved me time to see what is the top 25 or 50 links. I rarely read below those but do look for the videos. Tommy Emmanuel is one that he turned me onto. I am relieved to see that so many comments reflect my feelings that Charles has turned sour.
I removed my LGF bookmark months ago when Charles started comparing global warming skeptics to Truthers.
LGF site traffic is probably heading down and Charles is lashing out.
Uh, it IS perfectly natural not to want your sister to marry a black guy, and to end up with little black nephews and nieces that look nothing like you. Or your daughter to marry a black guy, and end up with grandchildren that look nothing like you. (Same goes with brothers and sons, too.)
And it IS true that the mass media is promoting interracial relationships. I’ve seen the borderline mutant Seal and Heidi Klum on the cover of more magazines than Barack and Michelle.
Other than being “politically incorrect,” I don’t see how any rational person can disagree with the above statements of fact.
When Spike Lee spoke out against interracial relationships, no one batted an eye because he’s black, and apparently it’s perfectly fine for blacks to disapprove of interracial relationships. But GOD FORBID a White person publicly admit that he doesn’t want his nephew/grandson to look like a little Barry Obama. Then he’s a hate-filled neo-Nazi Klansman, according to the liberal media.
If you can’t see the double-standard there, you’re either completely blind or terminally stupid.
Greetings.
I always enjoy it when a voice of reason arises amid the fray and attempts to bring peace without compromising on justice. Blessings to you for stepping up to the plate on this.
Speaking of links, I appreciate your link to my blog Why Mommy is a Republican…….but I’m not there anymore. I’m now editor at the Palin Twibe blog over at http://palintwibe.blogspot.com A Twibe is a group application on Twitter. The Palin Twibe is the top political twibe. The blog is primarily to help folks who are not tech-savvy to get started in the blogosphere. We provide training wheels, so to speak. Currently blogging are some notables; namely Shane Vander Hart and Josh Painter along with a few up-and-comers. I hope you’ll opt to link there instead of Why Mommy is a Republican.
Blessings, brothers……..and again, thanks for the commentary. It’s refreshing.
Lisa Graas
Charles Johnson? Blechh. I got sick to f’g death of his ridiculous bike photos… hated those almost more than his nutty system update entries. (Dude, who gives an eff?!? Besides, LGF still has one of the slowest & buggiest comment systems out there — really — it’s crap.)
And oooohhhh!!! Did you ever see that flashing gif of the Rathergate docs? How far do you think he’s gonna try to ride that one?
“RSM’s writing for Taki Magazine (owned by the self-proclaimed anti-semite Taki Theodoracopulos and edited by by the outspoken white nationalist Richard Spencer)”
First, Taki is not a “self-proclaimed anti-Semite.” He misspoke. He called himself a “soi-disant antisemite” which he thought meant “so-called” but actually means “self-styled.” So, he misused a word from a foreign language. THIS is “proof” that he’s an “admitted” anti-Semite? PUH-LEASE.
Second, I don’t even know who Richard Spencer is. But I DO know that attacking the messenger is an ad hominem logical fallacy, and it in no way refutes the logic of the message. If you disagree with Mr. Spencer’s message, then debate it. Smearing him personally with the label “White nationalist” and not backing that claim up with any evidence just makes YOU look like a slimeball.
“His writing the xenophobic VDARE publication”
Who are you, Morris Dees? VDARE opposes illegal immigration (as do the majority of Americans) and supports limits on legal immigration. That’s “xenophobic?” So I guess anyone who isn’t an open-borders ideologue is a “xenophobe” in your mind? Once again, you engage in cheap ad hominem rather than debating the merits of an argument.
“His membership of the League of the South (and other associated neo-confederate groups)”
Obama was a member of ACORN. So, I guess that means the president supports turning underage Hispanic illegal immigrants into sex slaves, amiright? Your guilt-by-association smears are illogical and disgusting. I don’t know how you and your ilk sleep at night.
As BackwardsBoy mentioned, once LGF went anti-christian I had to leave.
Just a note: I also stopped reading hotair.com because the same kind of anti-christian articles started showing up there. I haven’t gone back there (and won’t). If that hasn’t changed I’d keep an eye on that blog imploding also. I hope michell has reigned that in. If not, I wouldn’t be surprised if that at some time also implodes.
Of all the blogs I’ve read who thought that CJ’s “Everyone who disagrees with me is a nazi” mentality was “…making some extremely valid points…”, you’re the first.
Are you a fan of his ‘guilt by thrice-removed association’ too?
“Charles is making some extremely valid points that need to be critically examined.”
I also have been watching this blog war and even have a category for it. One thing that I see, is that this is a reflection of the divisions in conservationism in general.We are all rather shell-shocked at the moment.
The only (I’m sure I could think of some others)complaint I have with Charles is his excessive banning of people who disagree with him. But, I am still compelled to go to Footballs for information and his perspective on things. Even though I have been tossed out on my ass twice!
Thanks for posting this, you bring up good points! Peace,
Madcap
I want Obama to buy me a Benz not a Fiat, and that makes me racist?
Shock jocks are all good and well on radio and TV, until the right special interest group gets funding. A blog passes sentence on Americans, using such shock jock tactics, to highlight Congressional condemnation is all good and well, until having LGF in their blogroll begs the question of who is looking out for their flank.
Johnson is owed no respect.
As far as LGF goes, I just lost interest. Sorry folks, but Glenn Beck, tea party and townhall protesters, and creationists are not the enemies of this country. Radical islamists, their enablers, and far-left politicians are. When LGF became obsessed with Beck and creationists instead of real threats, I said bye bye. I actually requested that Charles ban me after saying my piece in a final comment. It ended up amusing me, because CJ didn’t like seeing someone leave on their own terms instead of his. I didn’t allow him to bust out the all-powerful and mighty ban stick. I don’t bother reading site at all now. CJ is an egomaniac. I much prefer LGF2 instead. And I still feel Atlas Shrugs is and always was a better source of anti-jihad news.
Good riddance, hippy.
I have visited LGF often over the last couple of years, but to be honest the last 6ix months or so, the postings and discussions have become very strange. LGF seems to think that there is a conspiracy on just about everything lately. His posting are becoming more and more like The Atlantics Andy Sullivan which is at best very strange. I still drop by every once in awhile but not all that regularly anymore.
[...] Founding Bloggers refers us to a counter post by Charles Johnson in response to being de-blogrolled by Power Line: That’s [...]
Like today for example, I have had a blast reading the comments on the Beck 1.7 Million thread….
“I don’t know what’s so hard about getting a good crowd size estimate. You just count up all of the raised fists and divide by two.”
“Glenn Beck Claims 1.7 Million People at Tea Party Yeah, and his penis is eighteen inches long.”
“I’m off to a meeting with approximately 450,000 colleagues. (Give or take.) Later.”
“He got it backwards. His penis is 1.7 inches long, and there were 18 people at the tea party.”
“What have I missed?Just got back from a meeting with 879,224 colleagues.”
http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/34672_Glenn_Beck_Claims_1.7_Million_People_at_Tea_Party/comments/#ctop
Brian,
LGF is not anti-christian per-say… He is more anti-religious altogether. If you cut yourself off over that, you will have a very narrow view. But, it’s your own trip so by all means look the other way.
So it’s OK to do Bush as Hitler but when the La Rouche supporters do Obama as Hitler it’s wrong. Sorry not coming here again. Losers.
The Talkin’ Charles Johnson Paranoid Blues.
[...] 4: McCain throws another right via Founding Bloggers but he is grazed by it as well, Then another blow that one’s a doozy, Johnson doesn’t [...]
You might also want to ask Robert Stacy McCain about a letter published here:
http://www.amren.com/ar/1997/11/
In response to an article published here:
http://www.amren.com/ar/1997/09/
Heh, you can try and defend CJ’s antics and his now well-documented egomaniacal instincts and actions, but most of us are not buying it.
You say you agree with CJ about the Obama-Hitler posters, funny, so does Gateway Pundit. He posts them to show they’re LaRouchies, not conservatives.
As GP notes, LGF has posted many, many BusHitler posters too (making fun of them, just like GP did with the Obama-Hitler ones), do you “vehemently disagree” with CJ over that too?
A reader emailed me the link to your post.
I find your concern about all the Hitler moustaches painted on Obama to be misplaced at best. That was done to death with George Bush, only they usually portrayed him with blooding running down the side of his mouth. What the 9/12 demonstrators did vis-à-vis Obama was far milder than any average Code Pink gathering.
James Lewis at American Thinker said in a Nov 2007 essay that Charles had been suckered by Swedish NGOs (actually govt supported) and Belgian black psy-ops. Lewis was the first one to see the situation for what it was.
After they’d used LGF to smear the bridge-building conference in Brussels, those folks (like Yelloman and Dave in Sweden) tiptoed out of the comments not to be seen again.
I had the singular honor of being the first to get the stick because I showed up in the comments, unawares, after the Anti-Jihad Conference in Europe only to find the Belgian and Swede dissemblers in place, ready for battle.
This was a deliberate set-up. Charles knew about Brussels because he’d been invited several times and never replied. Do you understand what I’m saying?
CHARLES SET THAT UP AHEAD OF TIME. HE WAS READY AS SOON AS I NOTIFIED HIM THAT I HAD OUR POST UP ABOUT THE BRUSSELS MEETING. When I arrived at his blog, the European dissemblers were there, attacking me. It was a total blind-siding because CJ never, ever let on he didn’t agree with what we were doing.
Fjordman had been at the Brussels meeting and he tried to speak up. Same with Pamela Geller. When CJ began to talk about the “smell” we were creating, I backed off. I’ve dealt professionally with people in crisis, and when they deteriorate like that you know it’s best to keep your distance until they recover.
BTW, that October evening was the sea change at LGF: it was there he began appearing in the comments, something he’d seldom done before. Now he was omnipresent. And he never recovered.
The next time I tried to access the site to defend myself against the continuing smears (they referred to me as “Lymphoma”) I’d been blocked. I made note of that on my blog but the commenters at LGF (Sharmuta, I think) accused me of lying and of being afraid to return. I didn’t bother trying again because I knew I’d be setting up another BWHAAAAH situation. First time, shame on you, etc.
The treasurer of the Lund chapter of the Sweden Democrats (one of the 2 groups Charles claimed was anti-Semitic) wrote him to protest LGF’s denunciation. This fellow is Jewish by the way. Charles let the commenters use the emails for target practice.
Charles cost us much time, resources, and money in his 3 month attack. At first I thought it had ruined the American-European link, but he made the bond stronger. However, it did fracture the intramural support of the American group and that never recovered.
After demolishing us Chazzer continued on to other more worthy targets. Now, two years later, we’re recovered. We have many, many European volunteers who translate, who subtitle important foreign videos into English, and who write essays for us. Many of them have met to form coalitions to fight the eroding effect of the EU’s attempts to limit freedom of speech. They are an amazing bunch — from many nations, but united in the cause of freedom.
In a way, Charles can be proud: he’s a small part of the ripple effect that set up the International Free Press Society. IOW, it’s an ill wind, etc.
Wish I had a penny for every email I’ve received from similarly blind-sided LGF commenters who write us in bafflement…”but…but…all I said was…” We’d never have to fund-raise again.
The Charles you liked is gone and he’s been missing in action for a few years now. The golem in his place is not a safe person to associate with if you think for yourself. However, like many others, you may need to find that out for yourself. Come on, the man threw Oriana Fallaci under the bus. How can you be immune if she’s not?
Seems you think you can take a middle-of-the-road approach to this situation.
It.Can’t.Be.Done. Only emnity for his enemies is sufficient.
Sail on. Watch for shoals. You’re in heavily charted waters but some of us must experience shipwreck for ourselves.
Dymphna wrote: “I find your concern about all the Hitler moustaches painted on Obama to be misplaced at best.”
Answer: And why exactly is that? We loathed it when it was done to Bush. We loath it now. Misplace that any way you like.
Why do I find your concern over the Obama posters misplaced? Because the subject is essentially trivial.
Wherever it has been permitted, political satire has always been heavy-handed. That’s the nature of the beast. I’ll bet Bush has saved a few of the more savage renditions; Lincoln certainly did. For those who oppose parties and policies, such creativity is a safety valve, as wise leaders understand.
Surely as the “Founding” bloggers you are aware of the broadsheets and cartoons that our own First Freedoms generation published with great glee? Especially the younger ones. Do you therefore disapprove of the very people you seek to emulate?
In fact, some of the things they put out would not be allowed today. We are much more muzzled than they were back then. Fortunately, not so muzzled as Europe is, but our time is coming if things proceed as they have been for the last thirty years.
Other bloggers have put moustaches on my co-blogger’s picture. He found it amusing. A comparison to Hitler is always ludicruous.
Btw, where do you stand on the MoToons? Do you think the rioting and deaths were a good response to poking fun?
And how about Yale Press’ cowardly decision to eliminate the MoToons from what was to have been an illustrated history of the uproar?
The darwinist rage boy AKA Charles Johnson has lost it. How can anyone not get along with Robert Spencer?
Charles Johnson is a problem, he is not a solution. He takes liberals at their word, yet demands libertarians and conservatives prove their points with articles from the MSM or other leftist sources. He is forgiving of leftists motives and actions, yet is quick to condemn actions of non-leftists he dislikes (which is many of them). He is an Obama apologist, and insults those who are critical of Obama.
There is no room at his site for disagreement, it is his way or the banway. I agree with a number of his logical points, as mentioned in the above blog posting, but can’t stand the way he mistreats people and his hypocrisy regarding the treatment. As a result, there is very little of use at LGF nowadays. It has become a diluted and valueless brand.
It is, indeed, sad to see a once-great mind brought down by paranoia, and/or an over-stimulated sense of self-righteousness. When “Happy Days” had finally gone beyond parody, the culture was given the term “Jumped the Shark.” When a formerly-great blogger goes ’round the bend, I propose we call it “Jumped the Sullivan.” My friends, Charles Johnson has, regrettably “Jumped the Sullivan.”
Can we get back to the important information at hand. You guys are fiddling while Rome BURNS!! Sounds like “much ado about nothing”.
[...] Update: I told Pamela in an email just yesterday a list of bigger blogs and predicted he would be smearing one of them next. Today…it happens. He has delinked Pajamas Media (which he helped found) and calls Jim Hoft of Gateway Pundit an illiterate bigot! [...]
I’ve read both of these blogs. As of right now, they are off my list of “reads.” We DO NOT have time for this shit, we have a country to defend. Now, please get back to business!!
I disagree, Carole. This is pretty serious. A person conservatives and libertarians once thought of as a compatriot in the quest for less government and an increase in freedoms, and an end to islamofascism has begun a massive attack on most of the blogs that support those positions. It’s creepy what happened to Johnson, and that makes it interesting.
What made him decide that everyone who disagreed with him is a nazi, a fascist enabler, an evil Christian or a homophobe? The same thing happened to that daily dish guy. I’m intrigued because I want to know what made both of them go off the deep-end.
Charles Johnson became Dan Rather after the Van Jones thing. CJ hated Glenn Beck SOO much that he sided with Van Jones over Glenn, ever AFTER Van resigned.
Also charles defended Van Jones by saying there was no proof he signed it, even though Jones himself did not offer that excuse. Charles has been booted by and attacked every other blog on the internet.
He alienates Atheist Libertarians like me, who he thinks should be his core audience.
If it is a shame you guys are trying to play this hands off role.
To Charles Johnson, everyone who doesn’t agree with him is either a European Facist or somehow works with European facists.
The man has lost it, and like a crazy person you see on the street, you are best to stay away.
Re: Reggie
I’m still laughing at your original post, defending RSM’s revulsion at interracial marriage as perfectly normal behavior.
As for Richard Spencer, Taki Magazine’s editor — he told me to my face that he was a proud white nationalist — and of course a good friend to the Lew Rockwell/Ron Paul crew.
I wonder what Andrew Marcus makes of these ridiculous commenters, obsessed with Charles Johnson, but happily ignoring (and in Reggie’s case, defending) RSM’s role in all of this.
When Johnson attacked Robert Spencer of Jihad Watch I got off the LGF bus. Nobody displays more integrity in his writings than Robert Spencer.
Until that happened I was at LGF daily and even had an account, which I canceled.
Pity Charles quit his meds.
LGF lost its edge 4-5 yrs ago. It had its 15 mins of fame over co-finding the Bush vietnam war documents. That’s all it was good for. Now move on. LGF is just full of rude and bigoted people who think it is okay to be rude to those they disagree with.
I think that LGF has done some good work, but CJ is very shrill in his attacks on conservatives like Glen Beck and Robert Spencer and Pamela of Atlas Shrugs. Instead of denouncing people that were once his friends, why couldn’t he adopt a softer tone and open up dialogue? He’s on a rampage, and since he isn’t correct all the time (consider the Van Jones incident), it just makes him look petty and mean-spirited.
Sorry, Johnson is over the edge. There is no defending him any longer.
I had a posting account a LGF for several years. I rarely commented but read it several times a day. I noticed that he would have more postings about anti-Intelligent Design each day as time went on. They were boring since I visited his site for his other interesting information. One day, I decided to comment. It went something like this.
I don’t care one way or the other if Evolution and/or Creationism is taught. Teach one, both or none. But please, Charles, enough of this. Get back to doing what you do so well.
My post was deleted after numerous attacks by the “henchmen”, including accusations of my being something like a Nazi supporter, comments about what a loser I was for having only a handful of comments on record, etc etc.
My next posting was something like: “WOW – what a response. Well, I have enjoyed my time here. Time to move along. Good luck, Charles”.
That post was deleted too. Along with a snarky comment by THE ONE himself blocking my account.
Yes, Charles DID excellent work. He doesn’t do it any longer. Benedict Arnold was a great soldier too, until he lost HIS mind. Past excellence doesn’t excuse current behavior.
http://rsmccain.blogspot.com/2009/09/charles-johnsons-quantum-physics.html
I hope this will suffice as Robert Stacy McCain’s reply to the questions above.
“I’m still laughing at your original post, defending RSM’s revulsion at interracial marriage as perfectly normal behavior.”
Define “normal.” Because most people and cultures around the world are indeed not very big fans of interracial marriage/sexual relationships.
So laugh all you want. But you’re the one who is displaying abnormal viewpoints, not Reggie.
“As for Richard Spencer, Taki Magazine’s editor — he told me to my face that he was a proud white nationalist”
And? While I personally would not define myself as a “white nationalist,” I am a believer that race does matter. Perhaps my views and those of Spencer are outside of the liberal mainstream of acceptability, and you’re counting on that to make your case against him. But self-righteous “outings” of social taboos is not enough to show that such viewpoints are wrong.
Mark Tinder writes:
“It is, indeed, sad to see a once-great mind brought down by paranoia, and/or an over-stimulated sense of self-righteousness.”
Charles Johnson was never a great mind. Yes, he did some good work during Rathergate. But posting article blurbs and links you snatched off your RSS feed while providing little to no original and intellectually-substantial commentary of your own does not a great mind make. Any idiot with a room temperature IQ can start a blog and post other people’s work.
Just a couple of points. I agree with Reggie about the interracial marriage. Somehow, we’ve all been told we’re racists if we don’t want to marry blacks or mexicans or whatever. Tell me this…why is it racist for whites, but not for them? Why does EVERYONE have to believe it’s okay or be called a racist? Why are only white people called racists? And why is racism so bad? I can see discriminating being bad, but that’s the person who discriminates’ problem, or loss. But aren’t we all allowed to feel how we want? So screw you for telling me there’s something wrong with me for not wanting to marry a black person.
Secondly, you can teach Creationism in schools all you want, just as soon as you find ONE SINGLE SCIENTIFIC piece of support for your THEORY. Darwin’s Theory of Evolution has tons of evidence behind it, but you creationists think that by saying it’s not a complete line, you denigrate the validity, but all you do is denigrate your own validity. Science isn’t made up of all the answers, but you have none, and want us to throw our ideas out because we don’t have ALL POSSIBLE MUTATIONS on the table to show you. And if we did? You’d say that didn’t come from that, it’s obviously different.
Mutations happen over a long time or over a short time, depending upon why they happen at all. Without impetus, there would be no change. With impetus, it’s not that the animals themselves change, it’s that their offspring live or die according to how well they’ve adapted, and over time, that larger ear or bigger eye or keener sense of smell allows those who have it to survive and thrive, thereby being over-represented in the collective gene pool, and thereby pushing the species in one direction or another. You ridicule what you won’t study, and say it gives no answers when it gives millions, but because it doesn’t sound as good to you as “God me me”, you reject it. Fine, that’s your belief, and I and millions of others risk, and risked, our lives to protect that every day.
But it’s NOT science, and there’s not one single piece of scientific evidence for it, and until there is, it has NO place in our schools, except in Sunday School, where it’s ALWAYS been.
[...] so that they don’t have to negotiate or plat nice with other, lesser human beings). I think Founding Bloggers explained it best: The blog wars are out of control right [...]
Michael, aka MPH:
Do you and Kejda ever get tired trying to carry CJ’s water for him?
CJ has, at best, has become a tool of the left trying to cause discontent among conservative bloggers.
At the very worst he has indeed lost his mind.
Here’s where you’ll find some of the folks from the old lgf
http://www.littlegreenfootballs2.com
If you want to keep defending Charles Johnson I suggest you pay more attention to what he posts.
He has a post up now about Rifqa Bary that is a blatant and obvious attempt to bait Robert Spencer and Pamela Geller for their involvement in the Bary case.
It’s obvious that CJ is so incensed by everything Robert and Pamela do that he is willing to throw away any knowledge he ever had about Islam, and he’s more than willing to use a 17 girl to attack them again.
Also, CJ’s posts about creationism are not about science. It’s about his hatred of Christians. If you don’t believe me, just read the comments in the Bary post. The vast majority of them are trashing the Christian couple who gave Bary shelter when she ran away in fear for her life. In the case of LGF, you can be sure that Charles knows every comment that is posted and agrees with every comment that is posted.
Why can we all be sure Charles knows and approves of Christian bashing? Because he has banned every single user who even dares to question anything that he says, or disagrees with any other point of view, on LGF.
Charles is out of his mind. He defended Van Jones who is a blant Mumia Abu Jamal supporter and an Israeli hating Jihadi lover, while he attacked Dr. Robert Spencer for allegedly meeting someone who knows someone who once supported a guy who used to hang with euro-fascists.
If you think his 15 minutes of Rathergate glory which were derived of ripping off other bloggers and creating a throbbing gif give him “credibility” to do what he does, you are no less of a lunatic than he is.
Frankly, I don’t want to trust a man who so casually calls others racists, fascists, bigots, and neo-Nazi enablers. These are such serious and brutal allegations, yet Charles throws them around cavalierly. In labeling people such things Charles is actually trying to destroy people. Destroy them, ruin them, and devastate their careers. His utter and absolute intolerance of dissent on his blog, his habit of responding personally and nastily, and too often in the voice of a betrayed and spiteful 15 year old girl, and his willingness to “out” people by sharing their personal information is reprehensible.
“in the words of Rodney King: can’t we all just get along?”
I appreciate the effort, but this assumes Charles would like to “get along”. I don’t think he cares to. He is embarrassed by his forays with the right and is doing whatever he can to disinfect himself from what he probably sees as a big miscalculation. You might say “Charles has been right about a bunch of stuff”. I would propose he considers himself to have mastadonically wrong in ever drifting rightward.
I too am an ex-LGF’er. The attacks on creationists bothered me, but I said nothing. I let it go. then the personal attacks and smears of those who would deign to simply disagree with that sh*t bucket of a blogger pissed me off.
THEN when he posted personal information about a blogger he disagreed with so that others could harass and smear them, I drew the line.
I emailed him and required him to remove me from his blog, then I followed up because I could no longer take him at his word. it’s inexcusable. something straight out of the playbooks of the left wing hate machine.
Once, he did some good things..now? his mind is circling the toilet and I’ll bet you in 5 years he’ll be voting for the likes of Pelosi.
[...] I had hoped that I could stay out of this fray or at least not have to mention said parties name on my Blog. But it seems that Mr. Charles Foster Johnson has got a serious problem. That problem is collectivism; that is blaming of an entire movement for the misdeeds of a slight few. The whole guilt by association game that the far left tries to play against anyone who disagrees with their politics. The end for me, is when Charles Johnson said of the owner of Gateway Pundit; that he was a “Borderline illiterate Bigot.” [...]
[...] fact of the matter is, Charles is out of his depth. Delinking Pajamas Media, (whom I also write occasional articles for) was what really caught my attention on all of this. [...]
Charles Johnson is going through some changes, he is out of his depth, as most people are, dealing with the huge issues of the day.
Johnson was clearly disappointed by the last Presidential election and he blames conservatism. Also, he’s a musician trying to be a webmaster, a blogger and a political scientist, all for free, and it’s a lot of stress for one person.
I predict Johnson will quit blogging over the next year or so. He’s not enjoying it anymore.
[...] a blog founded by Charles Johnson, started to go off the conservative rails over the past year, many dismissed Johnson’s erratic, obsessive rantings as classic signs of blogger burnout, or a perilously [...]
[...] Green Meltdown: “Founding Bloggers posted on Charles Johnson’s meltdown today.I appreciate the kind words they wrote about me at [...]
CJ has always shocked me by his level of ignorance. If you listen to his interviews, you hear a dull, flat, poorly informed person who just regurgitates some talking points.
I was banned for calling Rick Sanchez of CNN a liar!
I don’t know why anyone would listen to Charles Johnson, a self-avowed white nationalist, in the same sense as his own pronouncement, “And he’s a friend of Richard Spencer, a self-avowed white nationalist.”
After all Johnson has aligned himself with the Minutemen border patrol, and any presumed or actual racists in that movement.
Normally I wouldn’t think that such things were any indication of racism but using Johnson’s standards I’d have to consider him an extreme racist.
I have also been saddened by what LGF has become, sort of an insular club of people who feel that they have to defend Obama out of some kind of sense of being “above the fray.” Charles is flat out banning people left and right who make any disparaging remarks about Obama even if they are factually based. It is sad to see how far that once great site has fallen. Sad.
I have been confused about what seems to be a total reversal of ideals at LGF. I posted four or five comments that essentially questioned some of the comments. In a matter of minutes, my account was blocked, my avatar of a medieval knight was criticized (medieval history major), and the same post referred to me as an extremist. No foul language, name calling or rants….just questioning what has happened to that once interesting site. Of course there is no opportunity to answer that accusation or reply to the acolytes. Very fascist tactics from someone who claims to decry that sort of treatment towards others.
[...] meltdown. One moment of startling clarity in last September’s bloggerdammerung was when CJ called Hoft a “borderline illiterate bigot.” If you actually know Jim Hoft, he’s one of the gentlest and most generous souls in the [...]
Just read this post following a link from RS McCain’s site.
I agree with most of this with couple exceptions:
1.) Why is it that when GW Bush was president, it was okay to portray “Bush as Hitler” (or for that matter, as Satan or even make serious assassination threats) but one “Obama as Hitler” sign at a tea party (which, IMO, is a LOT more applicable analogy that the GWB case) suddenly everyone wets themselves with “disgust” over all this vile hatred. I have a suggestion on the reason. Because BHO is Black. There. I said it.
2.) RS McCain stating that white people have a natural aversion to inter-racial marriage is racist? No, he is just stating a fact. Boom, there it is. Discuss it all you want but executing the messenger is clear “stick your head in the sand” denial (“we don’t want to talk about it! It’s too horrible!)