Fast and Loose.

As someone who has read the Alaska Landmine on a fairly regular basis, I’ve mostly found the political writing and investigative reporting to be good work — laid out in a way that makes complicated, convoluted issues easy to understand and dissect.

With that being said, nobody from the Alaska Landmine reached out to me ahead of a “cash prize” being placed on my head. I find the cash prize both concerning and disappointing, to say nothing of the reckless act of naming individuals publicly as the author of The Blue Alaskan with no factual basis to do so.

Critique is one thing, leveling what many interpreted as a bounty on a writer is quite another, even if I have been previously judged "low value."

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled repeatedly that the right to anonymous speech is protected by the First Amendment and that the right to anonymous speech is also protected well beyond the printed page.

A frequently cited 1995 Supreme Court ruling reads:

Anonymity is a shield from the tyranny of the majority...It thus exemplifies the purpose behind the Bill of Rights and of the First Amendment in particular: to protect unpopular individuals from retaliation...at the hand of an intolerant society.

McIntyre v. Ohio Elections Commission, 1995

It's important to note that this right is not limitless, but clearly my voice is unpopular in a state where Progressives are one of the minority voices in a place where political war is being waged against "tyrannical leftists."

While I do not feel obligated to address concerns the Alaska Landmine has raised in justification for their recent actions, I will address some of them, with the full understanding it will unlikely placate the Landmine and some others. I stand hopeful that even in these days where conspiracy theories and distrust are prevalent in a politically charged atmosphere filled with animosity and skepticism, that truth will be recognized.

Concerns: The Alaska Landmine

• For the princely sum of a couple hundred bucks, you too can have a "sophisticated WordPress website."
• A business license is not required to accept donations in the State of Alaska. This was verified with the state well in advance of the donation link going live just recently. There is no exchange of goods, no merchandising, no paywalls.
• The Blue Alaskan is one person, hardly worthy of the title of “elaborate and organized media operation.”
• The Blue Alaskan does not have “high-level institutional support” or “funding.” I have heard rumors that some other Alaska blogs/media outlets have received some form of funding in their formative days. The Blue Alaskan is not one of them.
• The Blue Alaskan is a Progressive Blog, says so right up at the top.
• The Blue Alaskan is not "the work of an Alaska-based or outside PAC, a political campaign (or campaigns), or an individual with political connections that would affect how readers assess the content of articles."
• The Blue Alaskan receives press releases, I would think, because they are sent to an email address that is publicly available on TBA's Facebook page.
• The Blue Alaskan does not have a "personal or professional relationship" with any candidate for political office, nor any affiliation with any company or organization I have written about.

I cannot disclose what does not exist. I don’t find the Alaska Landmine’s underlying argument that they are the moral arbiters in this instance to be compelling, especially in light of their actions this week. None of my personal friends are lobbyists or politicians.

I took it upon myself to begin writing after watching the rise of Save Anchorage, which as I understand it, the Alaska Landmine believes to be just a Facebook group. Save Anchorage is a political Facebook group whose members have come to protests armed, have threatened public officials, and have encouraged others to storm the Assembly Chambers. Identified neo-Nazis and anti-government militia members have associated with the group. A member of the group was arrested for their alleged role in the armed insurrection of January 6 at the U.S. Capitol. Many members of the group celebrated the attack.

I used to publicize the threats I received and stopped, not knowing if the practice was ultimately beneficial. Anchorage Press, I am told, has removed comments deemed as threats made against me from its Facebook page in the past and I have received communications offering to slit my throat, hunt me down, etc. just as I'm sure many of the mainstream media writers have — the subtle difference being that The Blue Alaskan is a blog.

I appreciate Landmine's acknowledgment that The Blue Alaskan has done "some good work" and that they are willing to share Alaska media space. Indeed, there is room for all. I see none of my work as competitive nor am I auditioning for anything.

In closing, as it says up top, "This isn't CNN and definitely isn't Fox. It's a Blog," something that is good to remember as right-wing online "publications" have warped or perhaps even ruined the blogger's role from opining — to something far more sinister.

The Blue Alaskan really is just a person. While Alaska Twitter is somewhat of a progressive echo chamber, they did get this one correct.