Freedom to Blog Update September 24, 2014: AmSpec Caves to Vexatious Asshat Brett Kimberlin

Sometimes the bad guys win. Or, sadly, sometimes the good guys cave to the bad guys.

See Popehat, "American Spectator Surrenders to Vexatious Litigant and Domestic Terrorist Brett Kimberlin."

William Jacobson Speaks at Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel, Los Angeles

Following-up, "Professor William Jacobson, 'The Case for Israel and Academic Freedom,' Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel (June 17, 2014)."

I tweeted from the lecture:

.@Liberty_Chick Professor William Jacobson, of @LegInsurrection, now speaking in Los Angeles. #Israel pic.twitter.com/zcVrR1OIfh

— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) June 18, 2014

The presentation was very familiar to me, as I'm an avid reader of William's blog. But check the archives for some of his work on the left's academic boycott of Israel. Also, I expect the talk tonight was quite similar to the lecture William gave at Vassar, where the college's 39 academic boycotters refused to accept William's offer of debate. See, "Vassar College Wins (Update – Video added)."

The folks at CJHS videotaped the event and no doubt the clip will be posted at Legal Insurrection when it's available.

Plus, I had the pleasure to meet Darleen Click of Protein Wisdom, and she was taking notes. So, it's good bet she'll have a review posted right away and I'll update.

Overall, a great event and a nice break from blogging. Conservatives are the best people. I always enjoy meeting up with them.

Mark Steyn Out at National Review — UPDATED! CORRECTION APPENDED

There's an update on the case of Michael Mann v. Mark Steyn, from Jonathan Adler, at Volokh, "Mann v. Steyn – Mann wins round two." (Via Instapundit, who worries about Steyn representing himself in court.)

Basically, there's a new judge, who's rejected Steyn's motion to dismiss and lifted a stay of discovery.

But what struck me is that National Review's apparently thrown Steyn under the bus, "Trial, and Error":

As readers may have deduced from my absence at National Review Online and my termination of our joint representation, there have been a few differences between me and the rest of the team. The lesson of the last year is that you win a free-speech case not by adopting a don't-rock-the-boat, keep-mum, narrow procedural posture but by fighting it in the open, in the bracing air and cleansing sunlight of truth and justice.

I don't read National Review all that often. Indeed, Steyn and VDH are the main reasons I visit the site. I posted on Steyn's December entry, "The Age of Intolerance." It turns out that he came under fire for it. While I recall reading Steyn's response, "Re-Education Camp," I hadn't noticed his dearth posting at National Review. Here's the last one, dated December 24th, "Mumbo-Jumbo for Beginners."

One of the things I've learned about blogging is that when the going gets rough, you're going to tough it out by your lonesome. That is to say, don't expect others to join you in your blog battles, and when they do, be sure to count your blessings and share your gratitude. It's lonely out here sometimes, a lesson Steyn learned sometime ago:

As to his [editor's] kind but belated and conditional pledge to join me on the barricades, I had enough of that level of passionate support up in Canada to know that, when the call to arms comes, there will always be some “derogatory” or “puerile” expression that it will be more important to tut over. So thanks for the offer, but I don’t think you’d be much use, would you?

Steyn's editor had problems with the former's humorous references to left's homosexual fascists as "fruits." Personally, I'm lol at that stuff, but the in-your-face style of freedom-to-blog advocacy often causes self-said allies to turn tail at moment's notice. People simply don't like confrontation, and they certainly don't want to lose followers on Twitter. The horrors!

More a V-Dare, "Mark Steyn Out at NATIONAL REVIEW?"

UPDATE: Jonah Goldberg, who is editor at National Review Online, tweets:

.@irishspy @AmPowerBlog @DirectorBlue news to me. His column is in the current issue.
— Jonah Goldberg (@JonahNRO) January 25, 2014

And here it is, "Yes, We Can (Say That)."

CORRECTION: Just want to be on the record that Steyn is not "out" at National Review. He's not published at "The Corner" for nearly a month, but he's still a columnist for the magazine. Sorry for the mistake.

Freedom to Blog Update: Standing Up to Evil

Every single time I've been the target of left-wing harassment and intimidation --- including the numerous and despicable libel campaigns against my college employment --- it's been the result of blogging the truth about despicable leftists and their depraved ideology of hate, envy, and coercive redistributionism. There's nothing left-wing monsters hate more than people shining the truth on their acts of godless hatred, harassment, and intimidation. I'm proud of everything I've ever done to earn that kind of enmity, because I always stand for decency and right. I won't stop shining that spotlight of truth, ever.

So it's with a deep sense of investment that I link to this piece from Robert Stacy McCain, "The Fact of Evil: @Popehat Describes Brett Kimberlin’s Lawsuit Against Truth." And he writes:

Liars hate truth, and the wicked fear justice. Every honest man must oppose harassment and intimidation intended to silence those who call evil by its right name, because if truth is silenced, the righteous and innocent shall become prey for the wicked and dishonest.

Continue reading.

And following the links, don't miss Popehat, "The Popehat Signal: Help Fight Evil In Maryland."

Don't back down. Speak the truth and stand tall against these f-kers. They're genuinely evil.

Freedom to Blog Update: September 4, 2013

No big long preamble needed.

Robert Stacy McCain has been sued by the Speedway Bomber Brett Kimberlin.

BRETT KIMBERLIN’S PLAN TO AVOID UNWANTED INTERNET ATTENTION doesn’t seem very well thought-out. http://t.co/UYvJUHzr9e - via @instapundit
— Robert Stacy McCain (@rsmccain) September 5, 2013

Click through for updates at the post.

And at Zilla of the Resistance, "Perpetually #ButtHurt Free Speech Hating #ConvictedTerrorist #SpeedwayBomber #BrettKimberlin Sues Bloggers – AGAIN."

The Other McCain Has Now Banned Bill Schmalfeldt From Posting

That's at Hogewash, "Is #BillSchmalfeldt Appealing?"

And linked there is R.S. McCain, "Imaginary ‘Rights’ You Don’t Have, You Sad and Disgusting Troll, Bill Schmalfeldt."

Yeah, don't let those f-kers use your own comments to harass you.

Asshole leftist trolls.

PREVIOUSLY: "Freedom to Blog Update: June 15, 2013."

Freedom to Blog Update: June 15, 2013

I haven't done a Freedom to Blog update in awhile.

It turns out that Robert Stacy McCain has been updating us on the developments with the ultimate harassment troll Bill Schmalfeldt.

See, "Peace Order Against Bill Schmalfeldt: A Defeat for the ‘Troll Rights’ Movement," and "Hoge’s Victory Lap."

Hoge is John Hoge of Hogewash. And at his blog, "WOOT! Peace Order Granted Against Schmalfeldt," and "My Side, Part 2."

'Some people, ah, are willing to go to jail for their beliefs...' http://t.co/Xo6lcACDgZ @RSMcCain
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) June 15, 2013

'... but I see that as a risk in this, ah, ongoing exploration of Internet First Amendment rights...' http://t.co/Xo6lcACDgZ @RSMcCain
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) June 15, 2013

.As long as Donald Douglas is posting a public blog that accepts comments, I'm going to continue to comment on what he posts...' @RSMcCain
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) June 15, 2013

That's what my troll rights harasser @ Repsac3 wrote after I banned him, and he never stopped, even after I went to the police.
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) June 15, 2013

So, yeah, the Hogewash post hits pretty close to home: https://t.co/ESpsaLxgnJ @RSMcCain
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) June 15, 2013

.@RSMcCain Repsac3 Banned from American Power http://t.co/QCmTjk1xNR @Smitty_One_Each
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) June 15, 2013

'As Stacy McCain has often said, you don't have to let trolls use your own bandwidth against you." via @Stogie2 @RSMcCain
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) June 15, 2013

I've amended this post in response to Mr. Hoge's comment.

Added: Here's a quote from my deranged criminal stalker admitting that he'd been banned from my blog -- but also claiming that since I had continued to comment about about him at my blog, he had a right to continue to harass me in the comments section. This is, in fact, the definition of troll rights harassment:

Donald did very clearly announce that I was banned from commenting on his blog ... As he did not choose to ban himself from attacking me ..., however, I did not take his verbal banning very seriously, and continued to submit comments to those posts where he referred to me or my blog by name or other identifying feature.

Stalkers have no right to directly address you after they have been warned to cease and desist. But left-wing stalkers like Repsac3 are very determined in their vile programs to harm and torment their ideological opponents.

Mr. Hoge has updated his blog, for example, "#BillSchmalfeldt, Anti-First-Amendment Troll":

Let me state this one more time: I fully support Bill Schmalfeldt’s First Amendment right to write whatever he wishes about me so long as he stays within the law’s usual limits regarding threats and defamation. However, I do not wish for him to contact me, attempt to contact me, or harass me, and I will seek enforcement of the peace order if I believe that it has been violated.

More at Aaron Worthing's, "BREAKING: Brett Kimberlin Ally Bill Schmalfeldt Threatens Me (and Mr. Hoge) With a Peace Order (Update: Schmalfeldt Bravely Runs Away!)."

The Death of Collaboration in the Independent Blogosphere

Robert Stacy McCain published an interesting post the other day, "Where Were You in 2002?"

He's asking about where folks were 11 years ago when the independent blogosphere was the vital forum for news reporting and analysis independent of the mainstream media. 2002's a long time ago. I don't think I was reading blogs intentionally at that point. It was still early in my career at LBCC and I was focused mostly on teaching and  research in political science. It was Dan Drezner's 2004 blogging piece in Foreign Policy that turned me on to the blogosphere and there's been no turning back (see, "Web of Influence"). At that time I was reading Drezner and Virginia Postrel. A little later Althouse became my favorite blog, and by 2006 I decided to get my blogging feet wet. American Power went live in October 2007. I've had a good run so far and I expect to be plugging away until I get bored or the progressives are successful in getting me fired. (Hell, that wouldn't stop me anyway, so WTF).

I've never considered myself an influential blogger (although my inbox, filled with all kinds of free books and promotions from publishers and blog newbies, often tells me otherwise). It was during the 2007 GOP primaries when I got really serious about having an impact and in 2008, when John McCain won the Republican nomination, I felt some vindication for my efforts. One result was that I got picked up by RealClearPolitics later that year. But honestly, I've had more fun these last few years following The Other McCain's advice on "How to Get a Million Hits on Your Blog in Less Than a Year." Sure, the babe blogging around here's become a major pastime, but actually, the idea of building community through "reciprocal linkage" has been one of the more important elements of my program. Folks need to exercise the "The Full Metal Jacket Reach-Around":

Reciprocal linkage is the essential lubricant that makes the blogosphere purr with contentment. If somebody's throwing you traffic, you should either (a) give them a link-back update, or at a minimum (b) keep them in mind for future linkage. Because you don't want to end up on the wrong end of a kharmic unbalance in the 'sphere, where you're always taking and never giving.

As blogging has become almost exclusively professionalized in the last few years, the notion of "The Full Metal Jacket Reach-Around" seems kind of quaint. But don't be fooled. We've still got lots of independent bloggers out there doing what the mainstream press refuses to do. For example, Robert mentions Professor William Jacobson's Legal Insurrection as a model of high-impact professional blogging to which we should all aspire. And of course Glenn Reynolds continues to plug away at Instapundit, resisting the lucrative lure of a huge corporate sponsor (even more lucrative, that is, as Glenn's already got great model of monetization). There are lots more examples --- and apologies to some of the great new blogs, like Rebel Pundit and SOOPER Mexican, for not highlighting their work more often --- although it's clear there are increasing sustainability issues for smaller "mom and pop" blogging outfits. Here's how Robert describes the problem at The Other McCain:

This network/community concept seems to have been lost by (or, more likely, was never known to) newer arrivals in the ‘sphere. The idea that each of us is contributing to a common project is not just some kind of “Stone Soup” idealism, but is in fact the only way to build any genuinely meaningful alternative to that pathetic exercise in groupthink we call the Mainstream Media. Bloggers who don’t help build the alternative can complain about the MSM “borg” all they want; they aren’t really making a difference. There are two ways in which bloggers actually help sabotage the blogosphere:

Turn your blog into a series of lectures...

Never link another blogger. It’s weird that some bloggers would rather link a story in the New York Times or the Washington Post than to link a fellow blogger. Why this is, I don’t know. Sometimes it seems like everybody has the same idea: Grab an MSM headline off Drudge, link it, include a brief blockquote and add some political snark. Not only does this effectively surrender content control to Drudge — so that bloggers are merely replicating the headline selection there — but nobody’s snark ever goes beyond their own readership, because no blogger ever quotes another blogger.

Be sure to read the rest for additional insight.

Those bloggers who "never link another blogger" are the kinds I generally avoid. Sure, few bloggers can worry about linking all their buddies all the time, but throwing some hits to your friends once in a while is the friendly thing to do, especially when you've been a mensch yourself, linking and forwarding your posts with breaking news and so forth. Which is why I was surprised yesterday at popular pro-life blogger Jill Stanek. I woke up about 4:00am and wrote a post on WND's piece on Planned Parenthood's grotesque sex education promotions ("Sex-ed cartoons 'too graphic' for N.Y. Times." I later tweeted it to Robert and cc'd Jill:

.@rsmccain Planned Parenthood Sex Education Graphics Too Grisly for the New York Times is.gd/HBetXJ @jillstanek @directorblue
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) April 29, 2013

Then checking back on Twitter about an hour later I see Jill in my timeline with a new blog post:

Ew, gross! @nytimes,@washingtonpost reject THIS @amerlifeleague ad of Planned Parenthood sex ed images jillstanek.com/?p=122100
— Jill Stanek (@JillStanek) April 29, 2013

Jill's post is time-stamped at 4:14pm in the afternoon, 1:14pm Pacific time, 50 minutes after I tweeted my link to her. Now, perhaps Jill had her entry all queued up or was already familiar with WND's reporting. I don't know. I can say that Jill isn't a big proponent of the Full Metal Reach Around community-building strategy. I've sent her lots of stuff in the past and have been linked perhaps a couple of times at her blog. I don't know. Perhaps she wanted to have this Planned Parenthood "scoop" all to herself, with no hat tip to WND, much less myself. That's how some bloggers roll. It's not the best way to build community, in any case.

Again, maybe Jill got that post going without ever seeing my tweet. But if it were me, I'd probably have replied on Twitter in the first place and then posted a hat tip if I blogged it. Your mileage may vary.

Either way, I couldn't help thinking that yesterday was one good example of the lack of collaboration in the blogosphere. And it's not an insignificant issue. Now more than ever American democracy needs alternative voices. American politics needs citizens to upend the establishment narrative. People frankly need to build on the social media revolution to bring greater accountability to government at at time when the press has abdicated its historic role as freedom's watchdog. Bloggers are upsetting and will continue to upset the accepted memes and force big media to report real news that's important to real Americans. Along with other forms of citizens' social media, blogs promote accountability and deliberation. William Jacobson had something on that yesterday, "If not for prior #Gosnell Twitter campaign, would MSM be covering Bronx and DC revelations?"

But "social" means you can't do it alone. The best of the top bloggers recognize the vital role newbies play in keeping the 'sphere an essential place for alternative reporting. And new bloggers entering the arena might heed the warnings of The Other McCain (and others) on the dangers of the death of collaboration in the independent blogosphere.

Blazing Cat Fur Fighting at Least Three Lawsuits in 2013

I wrote on this previously: "Please Contribute to Blazing Cat Fur Defense Fund."

Now Kathy Shaidle has an update: "Lawfare: Canadian Muslims planning to shut down my husband’s blog."

And at BCF, "Doing It Right: My Support For Israel Has Pissed Off All the Right Radical Muslims":

The Islamist lawfare jihad against me has begun but I will not quit, we battled and defeated Section 13 because we knew that it would be used against anyone who dared speak out against the threat of radical Islam. Muslims from Canada's Radical Shia community are now raising funds for my current lawfare opponent, Canada's leading proponent of Section 13....

I am proud that my work continues to expose the hatred being spread among the Muslim community in Canada.

More at the link.

I'll tell you what: If you're not for Blazing's right to speak out on Islam you're not for freedom of speech. How many progressives are standing up for BCF? I don't know of any, and the lawsuits against him aren't new.

Be sure to hit Blazing's tip jar. I sent some help the other day. He could use it.

Semiautomatic Rifle Was Used in Attack

More details on the Sandy Hook Massacre, and an update to my previous report, "Ghoulish Walter James Casper III Exploits Connecticut School Massacre to Push Gun Control, Spread Lies and Disinformation."

At the Wall Street Journal, "Semiautomatic Rifle Was Used in Attack":

SANDY HOOK, Conn.—The 26 victims who were shot inside a Connecticut elementary school on Friday were each hit by more than one bullet, most of them from the high-powered semiautomatic rifle wielded by the 20-year-old suspect, the state's chief medical examiner said on Saturday.

Authorities worked into Saturday morning at a temporary morgue on the school grounds to identify the bodies, H. Wayne Carver II said, as state authorities released the names of those killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., in one of the worst mass shootings in U.S. history.

On Saturday afternoon, authorities revealed the truth behind the grim numerical toll: a list of names, overwhelmingly female, heart-rendingly young. Twenty of the 26 victims in the school were just 6 or 7 years old.

"I believe they were all first-graders," Mr. Carver said.

Six adults also were killed in the school, including school psychologist Mary Jo Sherlach, the oldest victim, at age 56.

Mr. Carver said his staff would perform an autopsy Sunday on the two remaining dead in the spree: the suspect, 20-year-old Adam Lanza, who took his own life at the school, and his mother, Nancy Lanza, 52, whom Mr. Lanza shot and killed in the house the two shared in town.

Mr. Lanza's body was found close to the rifle and two handguns he carried, police said, and he is believed to have taken his own life.

Continue reading.

It wasn't until today that the medical examiner could release these details, including the information on finding the suspect's body and the weapons used. As the report continues:

The forcible entry helped solve one of the many unanswered questions about the massacre Friday: how a heavily armed young man was able to pass through the locked security doors of an elementary school.

School staff members saw evidence of forced entry as they were ushered out of the school, said Mary Ann Jacob, a clerk at the school library who hid with others in a storage room during the shooting spree. As they left the building, Ms. Jacob said she saw that the plate-glass window next to the building's front door was broken.

But much remained unanswered, and much of what had been assumed in the rush of the crisis turned out to be wrong. It was incorrect, Lt. J. Paul Vance of the Connecticut State Police said, that Mr. Lanza's mother had had any connection to Sandy Hook Elementary, where early reports suggested she had been a teacher.

Law-enforcement officials initially said an assault rifle had been discovered in a car in the school's parking lot. In fact, said Mr. Carver, the medical examiner, it had been the primary weapon used in the killings.

Robert Stacy McCain live-blogged developments yesterday. In an update he mentions the dramatic shifts in what was known throughout the day, "Chris Rock Was Right":

When I got up Friday morning, live-blogging a mass murder was not part of my plan for the day. In fact, at the end of a post Friday morning about labor union violence in Michigan, I promised further developments on that story. As I was researching that, however, the TV kept updating with news about a shooting at a school in Connecticut and I figured this might be a story worth mentioning on the blog.

The original 12:15 p.m. ET post relayed reports that “three people have been wounded or injured and one person, the suspected shooter, is dead,” but added the caution that “early reports on events like this can be often be confusing and/or inaccurate.”

To say the very least.

By the time I added the first update, NBC was already reporting 20 dead and next it was 24, then 26, then 27, and all these changing numbers were coming amid a welter of confusing (and, as it turned out, largely wrong) details about the shooter, about the victims, etc. And this kept going for about six hours. Everything is still pretty sketchy, but we now have the bare-bones facts of the story.

Well, the actual facts of the story didn't matter to the radical leftists like Angie Coiro and her hate-addled followers like Walter James "Hatesac" Casper III. Indeed, it's not about "gun control" with these people. It's about literally destroying right-wing impediments to statist authoritarianism:

@damkina Because the #NRA is partnered w/ #ALEC, which is fueled by the #Koch brothers. Unending $$$. We can't tackle this in bits &pieces.
— Angie Coiro (@Angie_Coiro) December 15, 2012

RT @leftonmain: NRA Under Twitter, Facebook Attack After Shootings huff.to/U17j8V \\ Only a taste of what's coming to them & #ALEC.
— Angie Coiro (@Angie_Coiro) December 15, 2012

Yes, "Only a taste of what's coming to them."

Stalin couldn't have stated his plans for liquidation of political enemies any more clearly.

The right to bear arms guarantees citizens the individual protection against the state. That's the central liberty guarantee extant in the Second Amendment. Along with freedom of speech, it's perhaps the most important right Americans have to defend against tyranny. And the radical left would strip those rights in a split second, obliterating the civil liberties of millions of law-abiding people who had nothing to do with this massacre or any one before it. Indeed, mass shooting like Sandy Hook are possible explicitly because upstanding citizens obey the law and come to places of work and school unarmed. It's the criminals who violate those so-called gun free zone to wreak unfathomable evil. The left's policies facilitate the killing, and then these sick-fucks exploit the murders to bring about even more draconian policies that will ultimately bring about even more killing. It's the progressive death loop of ever-expanding gun confiscation. This is the evil the Walter James Casper III tweeted out yesterday in his utterly inhumane rush to politically capitalize on the deaths of those innocent children, 16 of them just 6 years old. This is why decent, intelligent and God-fearing people stand up for the truth. This is why decent, law-abiding Americans repudiate the left's lies. They know where it leads. They know the left's policies will bring the reign of terror and the camps. The piles of bodies stacked like cord wood is the "taste of what's coming." The leftists just lay it out there for everyone to see. It would be shocking but we've seen this play before and the millions of piled corpses before the final curtain.

Stand tall against it. Stand for liberty. Stand against the left's program of death and destruction of the individual.

Freedom to Blog Update November 25, 2012

I haven't abandoned my "Freedom to Blog" series. We've had a political campaign and so forth, although there remains considerable activity growing out of the left's summer assault on conservatives online.

For now folks should read Robert Stacy McCain, "The Dishonesty of Bill Schmalfeldt," and "Pray for Ten Thousand Angels."

And here's one more, "@Karoli: Weiner Truther? And Other Questions of Remaining Interest."

Never cave to these fuckers, because it empowers them.

RELATED: "The Lies of Scott Eric Kaufman — Leftist Hate-Blogger Sought to Silence Criticism With Libelous Campaign of Workplace Harassment," and "Progressives Are the Biggest Threat to Freedom of Speech in America."

Freedom to Blog Update September 6, 2012

It's been awhile since I've updated, but this story's as vital as ever.

At Aaron Worthing's, "Twitter Fascists Try to Silence The Blogger’s Defense Team."

And at Bob Belvedere's, "The #BrettKimberlin Report D+103: Chicken Little’s Sky Is Falling."

Previous entries are here.

The Left's Underground Online War

A great piece, from Lee Stranahan, "Digital Dirty Tricks, Part One."

RELATED: From Bob Belvedere, "The #BrettKimberlin Report D+75: Good News – Kimberlin Gets Served." And Aaron Worthing, "The Blogger’s Defense Team Goes on the Offensive Against Team Kimberlin (Update: Instalink!)."

EXTRA: The "Freedom to Blog" series is here.

Why the Right Wing Blogosphere Doesn't Cover Islam — UPDATE! 'Weasel Zippers' is Mystery Blogger

At Atlas Shrugs, "The Right's Dirty Little Secret."

Actually, it's a big dirty secret.

I could not help but notice, over the past few years, the right wing blogosphere's silence on jihad and Islam. When I started blogging back in 2004-2005, there were literally scores of counter-jihad blogs in an already crowded field. Seven years later, it is a paltry few, save for Jihadwatch, Creeping Sharia, and political bloggers like Logan's Warning, IOTW, American Power blog, Zilla, .....

It's an excellent essay. Continue reading.

IOTW has this: "Creeping Silence – How the Elite Right-Wing Blogosphere is Selling You Out." Big Fur Hat offers some clues as to the mystery blog cited at Pamela's post. Actually, I don't think it's Weasel Zippers. Sounds more like Red State to me, but frankly, I don't care. I'm not a big monetized blogger. I blog for myself and I blog what I believe, which is freedom and American moral leadership in the world. That kind of stuff is actually politically correct even for some on the right, so I don't worry about it after a while. I keep plugging away to take advantage of my right to freedom of speech while I still have it.

Photo: "Pamela Geller Book Signing!" And it's not Robert Stacy McCain either. He pisses off everybody!

UPDATE: Robert Spencer of Jihad Watch confirms the report at iOWNTHEWORLD. According to Robert:

Big Fur Hat over at iOwntheWorld has figured it out: the blogger being discussed below is Weasel Zippers. Zip and I had once been friendly and actually had been planning to meet again for lunch when he wrote me and asked me to stop linking his posts at Jihad Watch, because then when Pamela Geller would link my posts, a link to his site would show up at Atlas Shrugs, and he didn't want to have anything to do with her because of her exposure of Rick Perry's Islam curriculum. When I responded incredulously, he grew progressively more abusive, finally ending up by repeating the Leftist/Islamic supremacist smear that I was responsible for the Norway murders. He still does cover jihad issues at Weasel Zippers, but not in a way that would trouble anyone who buys the propaganda line, purveyed by both Leftists and Fox, that Islam is a Religion of Peace that has been Hijacked by a Tiny Minority of Extremists.

Check Robert's post for the links.

I think I mentioned it at the time, but I was going easy on the right-side blog wars during the GOP primaries. I'd been there done that in 2008, and losing friends during the nomination period isn't worth it. Apparently Weasel Zippers, and Ace of Spades, got into it with Pamela over the Rick Perry curriculum --- and hard feelings remain. I actually blogged the curriculum story and it checked out. See: "Is Rick 'Perry Pro-Sharia'?" Follow the links. Pamela was facing a huge backlash at the time. I had little expectation that Perry was going anywhere, and so I focused on other candidates. I wanted Michelle Bachmann, in any case, who is back in the news for seeking an investigation on Muslim Brotherhood infiltration in the Obama administration. So folks know where my loyalties stand.

That said, if there's been a de-linking campaign against Pamela's it's been a pretty big fail. Her blogs still ranks among the top sites on the right side and she continues to pound the opposition with outstanding coverage. I link her sight regularly, and that ain't enough.

And a funny thing is that Weasel Zippers got hacked last night on Wordpress, and Zip's switched the site over to the old Blogspot address until he gets things taken care of. Strange coincidence, I guess. Someone's not digging the Zip, and it's a bummer he had to deal with it. I read Weasel Zippers pretty regularly too. It's more of a rapid-fire aggregation blog than a commentary site. But it's first rate, in my opinion. I'm sorry to hear of the conflict. I know Pamela and Robert personally, and I communicate with Zip. As always, I"m about getting the truth out, even if it ruffles some feathers. Still, t'was a good idea laying low during the primaries. It's hard out there for a neocon!

Freedom to Blog Update July 21, 2012

I just wanted to post a brief update on Brett Kimberlin and related blogging.

Aaron Worthing continues to push back against the left's repulsive lawfare campaign, "Exclusive: Brett Kimberlin Threatens to File Criminal Charges Against Me, Again," and "Exclusive: My Virginia Complaint Against Convicted Terrorist Brett Kimberlin, Neal Rauhauser and Ron Brynaert."

And the background is at Michelle's, "Going dark to urge congressional action: Who will protect the freedom to blog?", and "Freedom to blog updates: Aaron Walker fights Brett Kimberlin gag order; the Left and endless lawfare."

And at Camp of the Saints, "The #BrettKimberlin Report D+52: Brad Friedman’s Fit."

Now, in related developments, my friend Karen at The Lonely Conservative has been subjected to a vicious hate campaign. Really, it's unbelievable the degree of abuse she's been fighting. See "Connecting the Dots on the Ongoing Harassment." RTWT and see also The Other McCain, "Poison Pen E-Mail and the Harassment of the Lonely Conservative."

And God bless Mare Zilla for her undaunted defense of those under assault: "Because Darkness Hates the Light – ROLL CALL!", and "Oh, Those “Compassionate” Leftists!"

Both Karen and Zilla have links to those joining the call of liberty.

And it this point, I can't recall a more vicious campaign of destruction. Prayers for Karen.

And that's saying a lot, considering:

* "The Lies of Scott Eric Kaufman — Leftist Hate-Blogger Sought to Silence Criticism With Libelous Campaign of Workplace Harassment."

* "Carl Salonen Libelous Workplace Allegations of Child Pornography and Sexual Harassment at Long Beach City College."

* "Intent to Annoy and the Fascist Hate-Blogging Campaign of Walter James Casper III."

* "Roundup on Progressive Campaign of Workplace Intimidation and Harassment."

Previous "Freedom to Blog Updates" are here.

Freedom to Blog Update July 12, 2012

Alex Pareene published a ridiculously slimy account of the Brett Kimberlin controversy Tuesday, "Brett Kimberlin versus right-wing bloggers." Pareene is perhaps the prototypical progressive Internet sleezeball. A former blogger at Gawker/Wonkette, he's famous for attacking Michelle Malkin with crude Asian whore ping-pong ball slurs. Patterico has the epic smackdown, "Salon Does Damage Control for Brett Kimberlin":

Pareene describes Kimberlin’s victim’s as people who “receive a great deal of joy from pretending to be the victims of unprovoked and terrible persecution.” Ask Aaron Walker how much joy he received when he and his wife lost their jobs, he was arrested, and spent money defending against frivolous actions from Kimberlin. It was not “joy” I experienced when Kimberlin’s site published photos of my house and my address; when he filed a state bar complaint against me; when he attempted to file frivolous criminal charges against me with the California Attorney General and the stalking unit of my office; or when he complained to my office numerous times about me.

And so on and so forth.

Pareene mentions Kimberlin’s main defense to the bombings — that some of the witnesses were hypnotized — without mentioning the damning evidence against him, such as his possession of timers and explosive materials consistent with those used in the bombings. Nowhere is there a mention of the wrongful death judgment obtained by Carl DeLong’s widow, or the fact that Kimberlin refused to pay it while collecting over a million dollars from the Tides Foundation, Barbra Streisand, and other liberal marks.

There is so much more I could talk about, but I have to get to work.

This piece pretends to be journalism, but it isn’t. It’s cover to Brett Kimberlin, pure and simple. Pareene repeats Kimberlin’s allegations and doesn’t bother to talk to any of his victims.

It’s Gawker-style “journalism,” at Salon.

Pareene interviewed Brett Kimbelin, but not one of the conservatives who claim intimidation by the Kimberlin network. Robert Stacy McCain has more, "East Coast Opium Kingpin Alex Pareene Writes About ‘Standard-Issue Right-Wing Character Assassination’ of Kimberlin."

Plus, Bob Belvedere has an update on the saga, "The #BrettKimberlin Report D+46: Alex Pareene – Amateur."

And Pareene's laughing about it on Twitter, "Liberal bloggers make jokes about SWAT-ting."

I'm still amazed at those arguing that the Kimberlin story isn't partisan. Once again, there are a couple of progressives who see this as a First Amendment fight, but most on the left have blown this off as some conspiracy cooked up by the crazed conservatives on Twitter.

In any case, back over at the source of this, see Aaron Worthing, "Exclusive: The State’s Attorney Has Given Brett Kimberlin a License to Perjure Himself and He Used it in Kimberlin v. Norton."

I've spoken to my attorney and I'll be updating on Scott Eric Kaufman's campaign of workplace harassment and intimidation.

Aaron Worthing Beats Brett Kimberlin on Appeal of Peace Order

Just for the record, I like using Aaron's screen name, "Aaron Worthing," since he continues to use it on Twitter, and to some extent on his blog ("A.W."). His real name is Aaron Walker and he was outed by Brett Kimberlin.

In any case, congratulations to Aaron. His post is here: "Today in Circuit Court, Brett Kimberlin Lost and the First Amendment Won..."

And some of the reactions so far:

* David Hogberg at IBD: "‘Great Day For the First Amendment’: Walker Wins Appeal Vs. Kimberlin Peace Order."

* Hogewash, "WOOT! #BrettKimberlin Loses!"

* Legal Insurrection, "Walker beats Kimberlin in court."

* Matthew Vadum, "‘Great Day For The First Amendment’: Walker Wins Appeal Vs. Kimberlin Peace Order."

* Popehat, "Aaron Walker Defeats Brett Kimberlin, Retains First Amendment Right To Blog About Him."

* The Other McCain, "Aaron Walker (and Freedom) Win Maryland Appeal vs. Brett Kimberlin."

* Twitchy, "Freedom to blog: Judge rules Aaron Walker is free to write about Brett Kimberlin."

Plus, there's a Memeorandum thread.

BONUS: Aaron has an update: "Just a Reminder: Team Kimberlin Still Wants to Ruin My Life."

Freedom to Blog Update July 3, 2012

Apologies up front, but my blogging's been a little off these past couple of days. It's hard to keep up with the left's war on bloggers, but conservatives are fighting back, and there's more today.

First, catch up a bit with Camp of the Saints from yesterday: "The #BrettKimberlin Report D+38: The Madness Of King Sockpuppet."

And then the big news today from The Other McCain, "Brandon Darby Defamed by Kimberlin Associate Neal Rauhauser; Pursues ‘All Legal Remedies’ Against SWATting Charge." And at Robert's previous entry, "Freedom Is Under Attack: Help the National Bloggers Club Fight Back." I commented there, mentioning why I wouldn't be contributing to Ali Akbar, and cited my entry: "Bloggers Against #BrettKimberlin Fracture Over Ali Akbar and the National Bloggers Club." And here's Robert's reply:

Donald: You go into battle with the army you have. The battle has been underway for more than six weeks. Personal criticisms against Ali have been aired widely, but do not detract from the valuable work that the National Bloggers Club has done, and will continue to do, to win this battle. There is a lot of backstory, of which you almost certainly are not aware, and I do not have time or inclination now to explain everything. However, you have my personal assurance that contributions to the National Bloggers Club are crucial to the effort now under way, and will be carefully utilized for that purpose.

There's a lot of "backstory" I don't have, actually. But that doesn't mean I'm incapable of an informed opinion on Ali. One lengthy Twitter exchange was really all it took, plus the non-replies to the update I posted: "Update on Ali Akbar and Bloggers Against #BrettKimberlin." Film Ladd posted a couple of times as well: "Good Luck National Blogger's Club: And See Ya Later." "Convicted Felon Ali Akbar: Kneel Before Zod." And I don't know the motive, and I don't know about the author (other than he's on the left), but folks can take a look at this piece, which was linked at The Other McCain and then removed: "Is There Anything Ali Akbar Has NOT Lied About?"

Enough about that. The main thing is that folks are fighting the battle, and with reference to Robert's comment above, I'm reminded of Winston Churchill's famous quote on Britain's alliance with Stalin against Hitler:

If Hitler invaded hell I would make at least a favourable reference to the devil in the House of Commons.

Now, there's been a lot of blogging at Patterico's as well. Check the link. I especially like Patrick's "accuse the accusers" post, "Stacy McCain on Accusing the Accusers":

The post is titled Lying Felon Brett Kimberlin Scores a Draw in Maryland Hearing, but the key part is Stacy’s description of the Rauhauser/Kimberlin strategy of accusing the accusers:

It is genuinely amazing to think that anyone could read that 1981 article by Indianapolis Star reporter Joe Gelarden — please print it out and read the whole thing — without recognizing that Kimberlin’s characteristic modus operandi has scarcely changed in the past 30 years.

By accusing others of wrongdoing, Kimberlin seeks to evade responsibility for his own wrongdoing. What I’ve called the “accuse the accusers” strategy – which is also witnessed in the actions of Kimberlin’s associate Neal Rauhauser — looks very much like obstruction of justice.

And Patterico's own flourish:

Stacy also has an interview with Brandon Darby which is very important ...

See how it works? If they think you’re about to reveal something about them, they start accusing you first so they can portray your reveal as retaliation. If they are going after someone associated with the FBI, they may be trying to set up a pre-emptive defense in case they are arrested by the FBI. “You guys are prosecuting us because we were revealing the truth about your informant Darby!” Something like that.

I posted on this previously: "'Accuse the Accusers': How It Works." Also here and here.

Finally, at Aaron Worthing's, "Exclusive: The Police Report on my SWATting," and "The Story I Couldn’t Tell, Part III: The May 22 Hearing and Brett Kimberlin’s Bigotry Towards Me."

And one more thing. Don't miss this Twitchy entry: "Brooks Bayne targets conservatives with Brett Kimberlin-style tactics." Books will be written later about this latest phase of the blog and Twitter wars, and the stakes have gotten extremely high. I suspect people will be going to jail when it's all done, and I hope that's soon.

Freedom to Blog Update June 28, 2012

First, ICYMI, see "Obsessed Progressive Who Shall Not Be Named Is Ideological Kith and Kin to Brett Kimberlin, And I Suspect He'd Like to Put Me Under Just As Fast."

And in no particular order, here's a few choice bits on developments.

From Laughing Wolf at Black Five, "KIMBERLIN, RAUHAUSER, SWATTING, AND SOME FURTHER THOUGHTS ON FREE SPEECH":

Before I go into more discussion, let me make my opinion clear:  the person (or persons) doing the SWATting is not merely a coward and bully, they are without honor, integrity, and provide the definition of moral and intellectual cripple.  They not only lack significant testes or ovaries, I can state that in my opinion I've met four-year-old girls with a bigger pair than they will ever have.  No one need fear them doing anything face-to-face, for such pathetic creatures would only do so as part of a mob, and even then they will most likely be to terrified to be in the front of the mob.  I sincerely doubt they have the capability to shoot one in the back from a distance, as they must always depend on others for anything other than talk.

That said, this is exactly why I write about the subject here, a military blog.  If you go through military crests, you will see words that often talk about protecting various rights and liberties, and opposing despots and despotism.  If you take your oath seriously, it applies not only overseas, but here at home as well.

Efforts like this are designed to intimidate, to brutalize, and to destroy those who would exercise their right to free speech.  This is the tactic of tyranny, and has no place in the Republic or the marketplace of ideas.  This I am sworn to fight....

Free speech is never free.  It is something bought and paid for in blood by our troops. It is bought and paid for by the blood of those who continue to speak despite threat, pain, suffering, and loss.  It is bought and paid for by the courage of those who stand against thugs and other tyrants.

Do you have it in you to make even a token payment by reading and sharing?

Okay, now see Bob Belvedere, "The #BrettKimberlin Report D+32 33: Ring Around the Rauhauser." And The Web Agents, "The Long Game of Mr. Wint and Mr. Kidd."

Also at Patterico, "Brett Kimberlin Threatens Even More Unconstitutional Peace Orders Against Aaron Walker."

More at Lonely Con, "Brett Kimberlin Used Picture of Glenn Reynolds as Exhibit E in Response to Aaron Walker’s Motion."

And The Other McCain, "‘The Gaped Crusader’: Brett Kimberlin Associate Neal Rauhauser Stalked and Taunted SWATting Victim Patrick Frey."

Plus, at Aaron Worthing's, "Exclusive: Convicted Terrorist Brett Kimberlin’s Associate Neal Rauhauser’s Attempt to Manufacture the Appearance of a Conspiracy." Also, "My Motion and Convicted Perjurer Brett Kimberlin’s Response."

BONUS: From That Mr. G. Guy's Blog, "An Incomplete Transcription of #Webinair By the #FranklinCenter."

More later...

The Lies of Scott Eric Kaufman — Leftist Hate-Blogger Sought to Silence Criticism With Libelous Campaign of Workplace Harassment

ICYMI, here's yesterday's entry: "Scott Eric Kaufman Hates Smokin' Hot Babes — And Negotiated Legal Agreements Too, Apparently." And here's the relevant post at Lawyers, Guns and Money: "Because really important news always involves bikinis."

Hopefully this will be the only update, but SEK continues to lie about everything that went down previously, so as usual, I need to get this out for the record. It's all lies. You have to fight the endless stream of malicious progressive lies.

SEK has posted a purported "order of operations" in response to commenters. This so-called order of operations is the basis for all of the libelous allegations that both he and Carl Salonen have made. Read the lies here. I'll state the facts:

1) I wrote in 2009 that I used to occasionally use an ACADEMIC BLOG POST as a lecture launcher in class. And IN THE PAST, I placed my blog's URL in the syllabus. But shortly thereafter I stopped making any reference to my blog in writing or in class, because people like Erik Kain had launched campaigns of workplace intimidation at my college.

2) In 2010, SEK began a series of attacks alleging that I had "festooned my virtual office" with pictures of "scantily-clad" women, and that created a hostile work environment for my female students. (This kind of stuff is an obsession, obviously.) By this time, after Erik Kain tried to get me fired, I had already met with my vice president of academic affairs. Blogging WASN'T A PROBLEM for my college, but I chose to no longer make reference to the blog in class. This is a matter of record. In February 2010, libel-blogger David Hillman launched his campaign of workplace harassment, alleging that I was "racist." At that time I had then met with the college's vice president of human resources, who handles civil rights and sexual harassment complaints. It turns out now that BLOGGING COULD BE A PROBLEM, not because any student complained, but because progressives with absolutely no business at the college filed false allegations of racism and sexism.

3) I kept blogging as usual, and in May 2010 I noticed the SEK was awarding points to students in his classes who used profanity in their work. This practice --- awarding class credit for profanity --- is highly inappropriate, in my opinion, and it's clearly not good teaching practice. SEK thought he could blow this off as if I'd caught him "cursing." See: "Busted!" Seeing that, I called bullshit in a follow-up: "Scott Eric Kaufman ASFL!!" As I noted at the entry:

"BWAHAHA!!! 

Only the dolts at LGM would fall for Scott Eric Kaufman's witless dodge, "Busted!" 

And since Scott's a member in good standing of the left's Israel-bashing ASFL cadres, I'll spell it out for the idiots: It's not SEK's deployment of f**king profanity, but his AWARDING students college credit for vulgar language, which for the assignment in question replaced anything remotely requiring hard thinking. In other words, that's sh*tty instruction, if folks catch my drift."

4) Clearly alarmed, SEK decided to take action. Note that he'd previously claimed that he wasn't "actually petty enough" to file sexual harassment complaints (ain't that a laugh riot). But I had drawn blood pointing out his hypocrisy, and SEK apparently had plans to hit the job market for a full-time academic position. He planned on going balls out at the Modern Language Association's annual conference (and I use "balls out" loosely here) and he couldn't afford me blogging about him any longer. So what could he do to protect his job market prospects? He could launch a campaign of lies designed to intimidate and harass me at my workplace. SEK submitted his letter to my department chairman on June 3, 2011 --- exactly 10 days after he'd posted his stupid "Busted!" post. (And ICYMI, the letter of complaint is here.)

5) That's the factual record, not this bullshit "order of operations" SEK's been claiming. The f-ker attacked me because I had blogged the truth about him --- and THAT WAS THREATENING. The timing of his complaint to my college is no coincidence. And I thus ended up dealing with legal issues for the remainder of summer 2011, and of course entered into a (bogus) legal arrangement to stand down from blogging about him. But now it turns out that SEK was locked out of the academic job market --- he apparently can't find a full-time position in the current down-market --- so he's apparently decided to leave academe altogether, or he's at least abandoned any hope of become a tenure-track professor. That's why he's felt free to violate any purported legal agreement to stand down --- he's got no prospects on the tenure-track and any past agreements don't mean jack.

Now, recall that I've had about a half-dozen episodes of left-wing assholes contacting my college in a sustained effort to silence me with threats of loss of employment. That's why I'm extremely firm on my contention that the whole Brett Kimberlin controversy is indeed a partisan fight. And while I agree in principle that it's a matter of free speech, I contend that progressives hold entirely different conceptions of what the First Amendment should protect --- and from that follows Democrat-progressive policy commitments to repeal free speech provisions for conservative political advocacy. It's as simple as that. The Kimberlin affair is of a natural piece of the left's ideological commitments. Conservatives need to think clearly about this point.

And despite the claims of racist ringleader Walter James Casper (commenting at LGM), my battles with the left are intimately related to the attacks to which folks like Aaron Worthing and Robert McCain have been subjected. As Mandy Nagy wrote on Twitter last night:

@AmPowerBlog Glad you wrote about this. Been telling some folks about your own harassment experience, trying to get ppl to see all sides :)
— Mandy Nagy (@Liberty_Chick) June 22, 2012

Mandy wrote a blockbuster piece on the Kimberlin network in 2010: "Flashback: Progressives Embrace Convicted Terrorist." Since that time Mandy's life has been a never-ending nightmare of intimidation, harassment, and threats to her safety. And over the last year, Mandy's been a source of encouragement for me in standing my ground against the left, as has Robert Stacy McCain, who wrote about the left's attacks on Amy Alkon early last year: "Carl Salonen & the Left-Wing Trolls Who Smeared ‘Advice Goddess’ Amy Alkon."

I continue to blog the Kimberlin story, and contribute financially, because I personally know what it's like to have a target on your back. And most of all, I know from personal experience that the left will do anything to stop good people from speaking the truth. It's a simple matter concerning the freedom to blog, as Michelle Malkin has pointed out. Progressives are being beaten badly, online and at the ballot box. And violence and threats of violence and intimidation against conservatives are escalating by the day. But conservatives are rallying. As Ladd Ehlinger pointed out today, "The Best Defense is Offense." To see where that began, recall Aaron Worthing's post from May 17th: "Summary/Preview of my Post 'How Brett Kimberlin Tried to Frame Me for a Crime (And How You Can Help!)'."

For more information, see: "Bloggers Defense Team Goes After the Left's Criminal Harassment Network."

TOP PHOTO CREDIT: Ralph Nowell, SEK's father-in-law.