SoHum Parlance: Quick note on forum civility

I guess it has alot to do with perspective, but I wholly disagree with the statement "the left is in many respects less powerful than it's numbers." In my opinion, the left is in many respects more powerful than it's numbers.

# posted by

Anonymous : Wed Jul 12, 06:28:00 PM

just seeing the venom of michael smith spewed anywhere is enough to scare off many, just look how the green party was disrupted by him, it was growing before he showed up. of course to hide away and pretend there is no opposition is just as delusional like how democracy unlimited practices nothing of the sort. a middle ground between these extremes of leftist incompetence must be found and eric should be thanked for at least recognizing the disease within this movement in humboldt county.

# posted by

Anonymous : Wed Jul 12, 08:30:00 PM

I don't know much about Michael Smith other than the fact that his name keeps coming up in the comments sections of the local blogs. I don't follow local Green Party politics much. But as I noted, the left hardly has a monopoly on nastiness. I just believe that the left, which is trying to propose alternative and progressive social values has a special obligation.

anon 6:28 - I wish I could agree with you, but I think the left has lost most of what power it had, not just in terms of government officials, but also in terms of laws and social institutions. What influence we have left exists because of earlier generations of progressive organizers who fought the good fight, without holding the "average Joe and Jane" in contempt.

Not that it was all rosey. Stalinism had a stranglehold on much of the left for decades, but we seem to have replaced it with other equally rigid approaches.

# posted by

Eric V. Kirk : Wed Jul 12, 09:28:00 PM

Regarding Michael Smith, our friends at Google turn up the following:

It's time to set the Green record straight

Green Secretary Speaks Out About Article

T For Tactical Disruption?

The Eye's divisive, disrespectful disinformation campaign

Let Truth Prevail

The Downfall of Mr. Cobb

Talk about Stalinism, this guy even gives political disruption a bad name.

# posted by

Anonymous : Thu Jul 13, 10:34:00 AM

You keep responding that nicely and I may actually start liking you.

anon 6:28

# posted by

Anonymous : Thu Jul 13, 07:04:00 PM

Eric,

For over a year now, many Greens in Humboldt County have been targeted by a still active disruption campaign.

I am just one of those people.

Your blog and other local blogs are just one medium for this campaign.

I am a non-violent, peace loving activist that has been involved for many years in the social justice movement at many different levels. For the last ten years, all of my work has been as a volunteer.

I know why I am one of the many people in Humboldt County, and across the country, that have been targeted in various ways for our work by various groups and individuals, for many different reasons.

It is simple really, people see what they (disrupters) do to us(activist), and it naturally places limits on their (the people) own political expressions.

I for one am getting really tired of the many forms of threats I recieve.

Copied below is just one of many examples of what I must deal with on a daily basis.

It is a letter sent to local media a few weeks back that slanders me in many ways.

In closing, I also have a message for these people, quit slandering me and leave me and my family alone, now.

**********************************
START OF UNEDITED TRANSMISSION

From: "Charles Douglas"
editor@humboldtsentinel.com
Date: May 29, 2006 10:33:47 AM PDT
To: editor@humboldtsentinel.com
Subject: Pre-Emptive Counter-Advisory

Pre-Emptive Counter-Advisory
By Charles Douglas

I’m putting out my own advisory in advance of Michael Smith’s “local
media alert” scheduled for May 29 at noon because I already know what he will say, as this individual has specialized in spreading false and slanderous stories about me for the last several months, alleging some
sort of mastermind role for me in a grand conspiracy to make his life difficult.

Michael Smith claims I am engaging in “COINTELPRO tactics” in his
warning posted at fairchance.us, a website which has been off-line
several times recently as Smith seems to be having trouble remembering to pay his internet service provider. Previous incarnations of his
fairchance.us website have featured a number of verifiably false accusations against me and against other long-time local residents, which were removed after they were exposed in local publications.

To define this term “COINTELPRO,” I turn to the Wikipedia on-line
encyclopedia. It characterizes COINTELPRO as “a program of the FBI aimed at investigating and disrupting dissident political
organizations within the United States.” I can say with absolute
certainty that I am not now nor have I ever worked on behalf of the FBI or of any other law enforcement or intelligence agency, whether of the United States government or of any foreign power. I have told
Michael Smith this in the past, but apparently the truth, simply told, does little to dissuade him from his myriad delusions.

Brian Glick, author of War at Home, delineates the tactics of
COINTELPRO as: Infiltration of political activist groups, including the exploitation of the fear of infiltration to smear innocent people as agents; Psychological warfare against political activists,
including the establishment of pseudo-movement groups run by
government agents; Harassment through the legal system, including the discriminatory enforcement of tax laws and use of conspicuous surveillance; Extra legal force and violence, where the FBI and local police agencies threaten, instigate and conducted break-ins, vandalism, assaults and beatings, including and up to political assassinations, as a form of state terrorism.

As I am not a government agent, it hardly seems to be within my
capacity to perpetuate the legal prosecution of Michael Smith or
anyone else, nor do I command federal or local police agencies to conduct break-ins, assaults or political assassinations, nor do I have any sway over enforcement of tax laws by the IRS, nor have I
established any groups run by government agencies. I might mention
that the office of the Humboldt Sentinel was broken into last month, with the culprit or culprits still at large after pilfering resources from both my own desk as well as from a real estate company downstairs. I don’t make any outlandish accusations that Michael Smith was behind this break-in, as I have no evidence for this claim, although his latest round of obsessive behavior does make me wonder.

This fairchance.us website claims to be a local news and activist
resource, although a cursory glance reveals that there is nothing there beyond the pursuit of Smith’s own agenda for his personal gratification. It is only too telling to note that, when he was a student there before dropping out, he had been harassing College of the Redwoods officials for quite some time about reducing the campus-
based fees he and his partner should pay because they are on public assistance (as Michael Smith continues to exist without other visible
means of financial support).

It is additionally shameful that Michael Smith would take credit for the tireless work of Anna Young and Moss Bittner on the plan they wrote to obtain reduced bus fares for College of the Redwoods
students. It was Anna Young that put up with numerous meetings of a CR transportation committee to introducer her proposal, and it is Moss Bittner who continues to carry on her legacy while Anna Young pursues her education at the University of California, Davis. I’m quite certain that neither of these individuals want their work associated with Michael Smith’s outlandish accusations.

Doubtlessly my supposed role as the secret controller of everything that ever happens with the Green Party will be further expounded upon with a whole new round of conspiracy theories to replace the previously
discredited ones. Trying to blame me for everything local attorney
Greg Allen says or does will also likely feature in Michael Smith’s
latest tall tale. Of course I’ve only seen Greg Allen twice in the
entire month of May, those being the day of the campaign press
conference he held last week, and at a Coalition for Police Review
meeting I also covered for the Humboldt Sentinel held a couple of
weeks before that. For such grand conspiring to be occurring, one
would think I’d have to be actually interacting with my supposed co-conspirator a little more often.

In case the point hasn’t sunk in yet, let me put it plainly: No one
with any credibility considers Michael Smith to have any credibility. Even The Lumberjack student newspaper removed him from any role in news reporting after his intense paranoia became apparent to them, relegating him to an uncredited role in the sports pages. The only
people who give Michael Smith any credence are David Cobb, his
associates and apologists, as Michael Smith acts as David Cobb’s front man for assaults on any local residents who allow for criticism of David Cobb’s agenda.

******************************
END OF UNEDITED TRANSMISSION

# posted by

Anonymous : Fri Jul 14, 11:53:00 AM

thanks for that input Michael Smith, you prove yourself a real fruitcake with all this evidence you provide against yourself.

# posted by

Anonymous : Sat Jul 15, 02:47:00 PM

Okay, the contentious debate I don't mind. But I'm going to ask for some self-restraint in the use of terms like "fruitcake." I happen to know that Smith can take it, because he's been taking it. But you can at least come up with some more creative hyperbole.

# posted by

Eric V. Kirk : Sat Jul 15, 03:08:00 PM

"And if I start acting in any way hypocritical in this policy, please call me on it."

You're a hypocrite. Ok, actually not really. To tell the truth to the rightists lurking about: Eric has always been exemplary in conduct for free speech.

You haven't, however, ever been anything except stupid in how you call people crazy. You've always had a clear bias in seeing nutters on the Right and not the Left. That's been constant since I've known you: you've always seen it one place and not another, a classic example of chosing evidence, what every bad scientist does to produce a false analysis.

Oh, and since you're a friend and you asked me to be restrained in not making names like "fruitcake", well- no. You know damned good and well I immediately want to do what I'm told I may not. For instance, I don't want a ciggarette, but I'm in the library, hence I'm smoking.

# posted by

Darth Versluys : Sat Jul 15, 06:29:00 PM

That's the really strange thing about Michael Smith, he claims to be Progressive but spends all his time attacking Greg Allen and everyone else in the Green Party who won't obey David Cobb.

# posted by

Anonymous : Sat Jul 15, 09:30:00 PM

Jim - you'd do much better than "fruitcake." If it's entertaining enough, it's exempt. Think "redeeming social value."

Now "lunatic" is better than "fruitcake." Don't ask me why.

# posted by

Eric V. Kirk : Sun Jul 16, 12:45:00 AM

wow, one email and michael smith packs up and moves to oregon, only if all leftists in hum co were so effective at exposing the lunatics in their ranks.

# posted by

Anonymous : Sun Jul 16, 08:22:00 PM

i guess michael smith got his payoff from david cobb for a disruption job well done. after that why stick around when theres a growing green party in oregon to disrupt?

# posted by

Anonymous : Sun Jul 16, 11:55:00 PM

Warning: A copy of this thread has been forwarded to the Humboldt County District Attorney's office.

I request the registrant of this blog remove all post in this thread from public view regarding me, Michael Smith, until a legal review is completed.

Also, you or someone representing you should contact me by e-mail as soon as possible.

Michael Smith

# posted by

Anonymous : Mon Jul 17, 10:24:00 AM

Check it out people! Now Michael Smith wants to shut you all down if you even mention his bloody name! We can look forward to swift action from our District Attorney to protect his poor beleagured Oregon-based supporter from the big bad bloggers and their terrorist free speech. Glenn Simmons would be proud.

Michael Smith Threatens Humboldt Blogosphere

# posted by

Anonymous : Mon Jul 17, 02:31:00 PM

As most people well know, there is no lost love between Charles Douglas, Greg Allen and myself, but it sucks to have one's home broken into. When the death threats where posted on Humboldt-Forums.com, and Micheal Smith popped his head in and magically showed up from the same IP addresses (which was later sold off as "I gave a computer to someone, it must be coming from him" sorry, IP addresses don't work that way slick) and the threats to shut down Humboldt-Forum.com flew in left and right.

Want to guess what happened? Nothing.

Infact, I'm now going to sign all my posts "Michael Smith" because I'd like to see Wacky-Ass Michael Smith, prove that my name isn't Michael Smith, one of the most common names in America.

Michael Smith

# posted by

Anon.R.mous : Tue Jul 18, 10:10:00 AM

Well, whoever you are, Anon.R.mous, if you don't like Michael Smith he must be doing something right!

# posted by

Anonymous : Tue Aug 29, 01:07:00 AM

Well, whoever you are, Anon.R.mous, if you don't like Michael Smith he must be doing something right!

More along the lines of I can smell the bullshit from a mile away.

# posted by

Anon.R.mous : Wed Sep 06, 01:56:00 PM

No that's just your own smell.

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