I'm getting a bit tired of Capitol Hill Blue. It's an unreliable web site which I'd never read before July 16, and I think it's staffed by sock puppets. John Hawkins had it right in February, when he said:

I wonder if Thompson actually makes up like names for these fake sources? Like ya know, Mr. I. Friend the Secret Service Agent or White House Aide Puff'N'Stuff? Better yet, maybe he makes little puppets out of socks, puts them on his hands, and asks them questions. "Mr. Socko, you saw Cheney drunk, didn't you? Of course you did! That's a good Mr. Socko!"

The fact that there are actually bloggers out there linking to this moronic fraud for reasons other than to laugh at him, even if they are on the left, is a stain on the entire blogosphere. Even liberals should know better than to buy into this sort of garbage...

What I find most remarkable is that it matters very much to some people whether the site is relied on by "liberals" or "conservatives." My assumption has tended to be that because the site is primarily anti-Bush in the extreme, that most of its fans would be on the left. However, not only does Doug Thompson claim to be "non-partisan," before Bush was president much of his wrath was directed against Clinton, and he helped feed the then-popular stream of Clinton conspiracy theories.

Remember, I only wanted to know who George Harleigh was.

The rest just sort of flowed, and when I saw the Harleigh quotes disappear, I was forced to do more work, and that resulted in one of the longest posts I've written. I didn't stop to speculate much about who was reading Doug Thompson, and I really don't much care.

I think it's fair to point out that the site has a number of right wing boosters.

Writing in 1999 for WorldNetDaily (who else?) Lew Rockwell listed Doug Thompson among the "courageous writers and thinkers who have thrown themselves into the battle to stop the bombings and stop the war."

WND's editor Joseph Farah thought so highly of Doug Thompson that he went out of his way to express gratitude to him (and other "journalistic colleagues") in a special 1999 Thanksgiving column:

I'm thankful for a small group of journalistic colleagues, as well. I think, especially, of Bill Gertz, Matt Drudge, Robert Morton, Doug Thompson, and Paul Sperry - all of whom stand up to the establishment, to the conventions of our day, in their relentless desire to seek truth.

Doug Thompson, publisher of Capitol Hill Blue was recently diagnosed with the tumor, but a spokesman from CHB said the publisher confirmed that he is doing well.

"He tires easily," said CHB editor Jack Sharp, "but his doctor is confident of a full recovery."

Sharp told WorldNetDaily that physicians have decided to treat the tumor medically rather than surgically.

"I expect him to be back up to full speed by late September or early October," Sharp said.

Freepers praised Thompson at the time, and wished him well:

I received an email this morning from a friend of mine who works in House Speaker Denny Hastert's office. He reports that that the word on the Hill is that Capitol Hill Blue publisher Doug Thompson is seriously ill with a brain tumor and has been undergoing chemotherapy for the past three weeks.

I sent an email to Jack Sharp, the editor of Capitol Hill Blue this morning to try and get more information, but I thought fellow freepers might want to know. Doug and his web site have been strong supporters of Free Republic and I felt others would want to join my family in our prayers for Doug for a swift and complete recovery.

Sigh.

Here we go again.

Who is Jack Sharp?

Why oh why am I plagued with this infernal curiosity that makes me, simply, want to know?

I am not accusing the left.

I am not accusing the right.

I Want. To. Know.

But I'm afraid that might be asking too much of this wretched imaginary cyber world.

Whoever he is, "Jack Sharp" is the man now said to be responsible for "George Harleigh." Not Doug Thompson! At least, so claims "Editor Bill McTavish":

Doug Thompson is not responsible for George Harleigh's quotes appearing on Capitol Hill Blue. Hareigh was first quoted by former editor Jack Sharp in our series on Congressional miscreants and Harleigh was quoted more often in stories written by others. The only times Doug used a quote from Harleigh in any of his writings was when someone else on our staff passed it on to him because they thought he might find it useful.

(Emphasis added.)

I'm stumped.

Whatever happened to CHB's mysterious "former editor"? Why, the man headed CHB when the site was in its "pioneer" days. Why did he leave? What did he do after he left? I think it's a bit strange that there's no word anywhere. Did he die? (A distinguished Tennessee botanist of that name died in 1997, but nothing in his encyclopedia entry mentioned CHB. There's also a Tennessee assemblyman with that name, but his biography makes no mention of CHB.)

I'm skeptical.

Is there any reason why my skepticism should be labeled right wing?

I'd note that even now -- after the Bush stuff -- the right wing given up entirely on Doug Thompson. For example, he's linked by Chuck Baldwin.

And here's another interesting "factoid": CHB was "sold" in a deal to take effect on April 1, 2003:

"Capitol Hill Blue is a pioneer in web-based journalism," said partnership spokesman William J. Lowrey. "We intend to honor that tradition and improve upon it."

The partnership is composed of working, Washington-based journalists who work for print, broadcast and web-based media outlets.

"We intend to use Blue as a test bed for new techniques and concepts for web journalism," Lowrey said.

Capitol Hill Blue first appeared on the web on October 1, 1994, as a one-page weekly newsletter published by veteran journalist Doug Thompson. He expanded publication to daily on January 1, 1995, and the site gained fame during the Whitewater and Monica Lewinsky scandals of the Clinton administration.

Thompson left the publication earlier this month to pursue new opportunities.

Terms of the sale were not disclosed. The new owners will take control of the web site on April 1, 2003.

Sigh. Sigh. Sigh. Sigh.

And. Sigh!

Alas there are only three William J. Lowreys on the Internet. (All died long ago.)

Anyway, the autopsy will have to wait, for I'm digressing from the question of whether CHB disinformation is rightist or leftist.

Parenthetically, I should point out that "George Harleigh" is disappearing everywhere. So fast it makes my head spin. Last week there were thousands of Google hits; now they number in the hundreds. I realize that CHB pulled all the Harleigh references, but that alone does not account for the disappearing links. (From over 1400 to about 500 in less than a week.)

This is not meant to be comprehensive, but aside from WND, at least one Huffington Post contributor has relied on CHB, as did Newsmax's Geoff Metcalf.

James Corsi evokes the constitution-as-a-piece-of paper meme, but does not mention Doug Thompson. (Corsi's theories are being systematically debunked by John Hawkins, btw.)

The point is, a lot of people were fooled -- for a long time -- by Doug Thompson, and not all of them were on the left. Some were libertarians. But some libertarians were more skeptical. Like Rand Simberg in 2004, who said he thought Thompson had "gone off the deep end" and was making stuff up.

At this point I doubt very many people will care, but beyond the issue of politics (and made up sources) there are also serious questions of plagiarism. In the comment to a Reason piece on TIA, one commenter raised the issue:

I don't know whether TIA is still running or not, but I am pretty certain Doug Thompson and Teresa Hampton are thieves and plagiarists.

Comparing this CHB piece to an earlier piece from the San Francisco Chronicle, I noticed the same characters, the same quotes, yet Thompson makes it appear that he did the reporting.

Here's CHB:

Dennis Dalbey cuts the hair of Camp Pendleton's young Marines, giving them the regulation haircut before they head to combat in Iraq. His barbershop on the Coast Highway near the base in California is covered with painted yellow ribbons, flags and "We support our troops" banners. But Dalbey, a Republican and a self-described conservative who voted for Bush, says he is fed up with the President's lies.

"Enough is enough," he says. "It's time to bring the boys home."

In San Marcos, retired Navy veteran Herb Ranquist, 77, sits in the local VFW hall and says Bush is a failure.

"I voted for him two times, and I wish I hadn't," Ranquist says. "It was probably one of the worst mistakes I ever made."

Dr. Crossfield says it doesn't take a degree in psychology or advanced training in spotting liars to realize the President plays fast and loose with the truth.

"More and more ordinary Americans see the evidence clearly every day," she says. "It is difficult to ignore."

Must I go there too?

Or is it possible that reasonable people might be able to agree that regardless of who or what it is, or how, or why it originated, Capitol Hill Blue has been so thoroughly discredited, that it should not be relied on by anyone, anywhere, ever again?

(I don't know, but tedious as it is, I feel obligated to return to my stream of thought despite having been so rudely interrupted by "Stephanie Crossfield." I don't have time to debate her existence right now. I just don't.)

The passage about the Dalbey barber shop appears to have been lifted from the San Francisco Chronicle without crediting author Carla Marinucci, Chronicle Political Writer, who wrote this:

Dennis Dalbey, armed with scissors, an electric hair clipper and a steady hand, has given dozens of Camp Pendleton's young Marines the regulation haircut before they head to combat in Iraq.

In his Cut-Rite Barbershop on the Coast Highway, he wears his loyalty to those customers openly -- the business is adorned with painted yellow ribbons, flags and "We support our troops'' banners.

But these days, Dalbey, a Republican and a self-described conservative who voted for President Bush, is not nearly as supportive of the commander in chief.

"Enough is enough,'' he said of the war while showing Lance Cpl. Aaron Kernell, 19, from Tennessee, to a red Naugahyde chair for a cut. "If they haven't got this thing settled by year's end, it's time to bring the boys home.''

I suspect I'll continue to be harangued by anonymous sock puppets who think that I'm maligning "the left" because some people on "the left" relied on CHB sock puppetry.

By that logic, I'm also maligning "the right."

MORE: Back to CHB, March 23, 2006:

"President Bush exhibited symptoms of pathological prevarication," says Dr. Stephanie Crossfield, a psychologist who treats people who have trouble telling the truth and who watched Bush's performances on Monday and Tuesday at my request. "His eye movements, gestures, and changes in voice tone all display traits of consistent evasion of the truth."

FWIW, the quote appears to have been lifted almost verbatim from the earliest citation of "Dr. Stephanie Crossfield" I could find (with "Bush" substituted for "Clinton," of course). And who "hired" Dr. Crossfield? CHB in 1999! So claimed Doug Thompson!

Capitol Hill Blue hired a psychologist who treats chronic liars and a private investigator who uses voice stress analysis to catch liars. They analyzed the President's press conference live on television and again on videotape.

Their conclusion: The President lied more often than he told the truth. Even when he told the nation that he felt a "scorecard" would show he had been a good President who had told the truth more often than he had lied, he was, in fact, lying.

"The President exhibited all the classic symptoms of pathological prevarication," said Dr. Stephanie Crossfield, a psychologist who treats people who have trouble telling the truth. "His eye movements, gestures, and changes in voice tone all point to a consistent evasion of the truth."

Jonathan Rensley, a private investigator who used a voice stress analyzer to monitor the President's performance during the press conference, agrees.

"In spite of his demeanor, the President's voice patterns showed unusually high levels of stress, consistent with someone who is not telling the truth," Rensley said.

At Capitol Hill Blue's insistence, Dr. Crossfield and Rensley did not make their judgement based on one viewing of the President's performance or by consulting with each other. Both watched the press conference live, then rechecked their findings by viewing a full videotape of the press conference on both Saturday and Sunday to confirm their findings.

Who is Jonathan Rensley?

Um, do I have permission to stop yet?

AFTERTHOUGHT: While I've probably spent way too much time on this CHB business, the time I've spent on it pales in comparison to how long the web site has been cranking out fraudulent nonsense, outright plagiarism, and more.

If this CHB web site is as fraudulent as I think it is, how is it that it has been taken seriously for so long? Why is it that the sources were allowed to go unchallenged for so many years? Is it because of the shortness of human memory? Or is it because so many people are suckers for what they want to believe?

UPDATE (07/23/06 -- 03:06 p.m.): Incredible as it may seem, CHB has just -- in the past hour -- rewrittten the above plagiarized article from the San Francisco Chronicle!

Here's the Google cache:

Venture out beyond the Beltway and you find conservative Republicans shaking their head and wondering the same thing.

Dennis Dalbey cuts the hair of Camp Pendleton's young Marines, giving them the regulation haircut before they head to combat in Iraq. His barbershop on the Coast Highway near the base in California is covered with painted yellow ribbons, flags and "We support our troops" banners. But Dalbey, a Republican and a self-described conservative who voted for Bush, says he is fed up with the President's lies.

"Enough is enough," he says. "It's time to bring the boys home."

In San Marcos, retired Navy veteran Herb Ranquist, 77, sits in the local VFW hall and says Bush is a failure.

"I voted for him two times, and I wish I hadn't," Ranquist says. "It was probably one of the worst mistakes I ever made."

Dr. Crossfield says it doesn't take a degree in psychology or advanced training in spotting liars to realize the President plays fast and loose with the truth.

And here's the now-edited article as it currently appears at CHB:

Venture out beyond the Beltway and you find conservative Republicans shaking their head and wondering the same thing. As the San Francisco Chronicle reports:

Dennis Dalbey cuts the hair of Camp Pendleton's young Marines, giving them the regulation haircut before they head to combat in Iraq. His barbershop on the Coast Highway near the base in California is covered with painted yellow ribbons, flags and "We support our troops" banners. But Dalbey, a Republican and a self-described conservative who voted for Bush, says he is fed up with the President's lies.

"Enough is enough," he says. "It's time to bring the boys home."

In San Marcos, retired Navy veteran Herb Ranquist, 77, sits in the local VFW hall and says Bush is a failure.

"I voted for him two times, and I wish I hadn't," Ranquist says. "It was probably one of the worst mistakes I ever made."

Dr. Crossfield says it doesn't take a degree in psychology or advanced training in spotting liars to realize the President plays fast and loose with the truth. (Italics in original.)

Earlier, some commenters had noticed that the Google caches disappear too; so if you're interested, better check it out now!

Will someone please tell me this is comedy?

UPDATE (07/25/06): Hey, maybe Doug Thompson can go work for USA Today! (Via Glenn Reynolds.)

I should probably point out that the link to the USA Today story goes to Clayton Cramer, whom I stand accused of "hate linking." (Not sure what that means, but I refuse to stop it.)

UPDATE (07/25/06): Doug Thompson replies, sort of. His commenter named "Jonathan Levinson" (I love it!) is questioning my bona fides:

I decided to do a little background checking of my own on Eric Scheie, the blogger who claims he "outed" this situation. I find it odd that someone who demands so much disclosue from others doesn't include a link to any information about himself on his own blog. Make me wonder what he has to hide.

A little additional research shows he claims to have a "criminal law" background as a prosecutor.

He also is the sponsor of an Internet petition to gain a Presidential pardon for convicted Watergate felon G. Gordon Liddy.

That tells me all I need to know about the leader of this pack of liars. I'll stick with DT and CHB.

I'll say this: I exist, and I am who I say I am.

What I'd still like to know is whether "Dr. Stephanie Crossfield" exists.

UPDATE: I've written another post on CHB -- "The psychology of sock puppetry."