Calling out the Greenwald tankies at Substack for their horseshoe-theory Gnosticism

The Dissident, often spot-on, had a semi-fail recently in his attack on Eoin Higgins’ new book about Glenn Greewald and Matt Taibbi. Per the header, and per my comments there, I’m focused on Glennwa.d

First, I'd already read Ken Silverstein's take on the book. (Sidebar: Ken and I very much agree in our takes on Glennwald.)

My biggest critique on Higgins' take on Glennwald in particular is that he thinks Glenn was once a leftist. Oh, uh, wrong! Very wrong. Otherwise, Glenn has a history of sexism that goes back to before he was famous and other things. And, that’s what stirred up the tankies. And yes, tankies you are.

So far, we have one horseshoe-theory type New Age lite who reads a Canadian alt-right alt-white MAGAt parallel, one alt-right who reads Chris. Rufo and Bari Weiss as well as Glennwald and is a bit horseshoey but not as much, a non-skeptical leftist or “leftist” who follows Tara Reade (barf), two COVID antivaxxers or just general antivaxxers, and a general “fiscal conservative.” Multiple readers also follow Aaron Maté, whom Ken has taken down before. Aaron's about 50 cents on the dollar. Another, with a comment that has nothing to do with Dissident's comment, reads a Shakespeare authorship Substack (conspiracy theory) and another devoted to American Values 2024 fellating Brainworm Bobby. Another? Reads include Robert Malone (yes, him) and Tulsi Gabbard as well as Tracey. Another follows "Angry Christian Patriot," clearly a Christian nationalist type site, as well as Erick Erickson, and a wingnut State of Jefferson type Oregon blog. Another follows Paul Thacker, conspiracy theorist, antivaxxer, and general pseudoscience peddler, as I have noted.

Another day, more notes. A Michael Shellenberger follower who also follows Leighton Woodhouse, Abigail Shrier and Stacks about Brainworm Bobby, Thomas Massie, a Rand Paul fellator site, an anti-"woke" one and others. (Shrier is half wrong, but not fully, on transsexual and transgender issues. She's also a full-on Zionist.)  A second Shellenberger reader who's also another Rufo and Weiss reader.

Another day? A possible actual leftist — one nutty enough to read the nutbar Rainer Shea. A Taibbi toady who reads all four (hope there's not more!) of Matt's Stacks. A Tracy & Shellenberger reader, who also reads a gun nut Substack and one that rocks a Confederate flag for their logo. Another Shellenberger reader plus reading the Rand Paul fellator site.

It's also, I'm guessing, per responses I've seen to Ken as well, fairly indicative of Glennwald tankies.  In the worse, you have a Michael Tracey follower and someone who looks like a cheap Putin shill at times and is also a bit on the COVID wingnut spectrum. Another of Ken's commenters reads a 9/11 truther triangulationist (yes, the Bill Clinton type triangulation, with said person presenting their own Gnosis about 9/11 "truth"), Joe Mercola and others.  And Ken also mentions "hate mail."

Again, this is why I identify as a SKEPTICAL leftist.

Contra the Glennwald Tankies.

That said, the receipts?

The biggie, to the facts of the matter of the reality of Glennwald and his relationship with the likes of Pierre Omidyar? That’s the total ass-kicking Mark Ames and Yasha Levine gave him back in 2013.

An extraction from that:

Greenwald’s leftist and anarchist fans have always had an almost cult-like faith in his judgment, seeing him as little less than a digital-age Noam Chomsky. But now they’re reeling from cognitive dissonance …

And another:

After we published Mark's piece, I was concerned, based on past experience, that some of Greenwald's supporters might try to divert from the key points raised in our coverage by trying to smear Pando, Mark or others who work here.

Which mirror something in Ken Silverstein’s piece. His words, interviewing Higgins:

Taibbi and Greenwald both insist, preposterously at this point, that they didn’t change, their critics have.

Beyond that?

First, I said Greenwald lied about his support for the Iraq War. Contra the tankie who brushed that off? Per this piece, he then attacked those who called out his lying and then doubled down on his lies. #fact

While I’m here scattershooting, let’s call out Glennwald’s other hypocrisies. Like his hypocrisy about the ACLU when it was censoring its own board of directors.

Or how he can strawman when it serves his libertarian interests. Don’t forget — he’s a libertarian and always has been. He’s not a librul let alone a leftist, and Green types who have made that claim make me barf.

More on him not being a librul let alone a leftist? He and his late husband, David Miranda, in Brazilian terms were not just 1 percenters but 0.1 percenters. Now, yes, rich people can be leftist, but it’s pretty damned uncommon.

Greenwald has also told lies related to the Edward Snowden book. And since I mentioned Matthew Hale at the Dissident for the tankies, he committed grossly unethical behavior related to that. (While I’m here, Snowden’s book is not all that.)

Regarding the various pull quotes? Yeah, the commenters at The Dissident and at Ken’s piece, as far as the Glennwald tankies, are pretty much like that. My experience at the former, in response to me, was a mix of whataboutism, handwaving, and burden-shifting.

Finally? This is why, at least in a modified form, horseshoe theory is true. The left-liberal at best Noah Berlatsky is wrong in claiming it’s not. Of course, since he’s also written for Reason, he has reason to say that.

Not only many of the commenters, but many of the Stacks they follow, illustrate horseshoe theory.

And, yes, I think many of these people, with many of the Stacks they follow, illustrate well my contention that conspiracy theory is a new form of Gnosticism. (Conspiracy theory is also where the tips of the horseshoe theory shoe often meet.)