About "Libertarian Girl"

"Libertarian Girl" was a successful blogger (Original Libertarian Girl blog at Blogspot and renamed Libertarian Man of Mystery blog at Typepad) until the blogging world found out that Libertarian Girl was really a man in his mid-thirties pretending to be a "girl." For a better explanation of the hoax, read If it weren't for you meddling kids. (I have it on word from the hoax blogger that he made up the part about being unemployed and living with his parents. He ways, "It added to the fun. It’s amazing how gullible people are. After being duped, they were so eager to believe the stereotype of the unemployed guy living with his parents.")

Comments

[probligo]

Whatever gets your rocks off...

[Half Sigma]

probligo, the reason I blog about politics and economics is because I like writing about these topics. But it's more fun when people are actually reading what I write. The Libertarian Girl blog was addictively fun. The most fun I ever had blogging.

[Half Sigma]

I should add here that my Half Sigma blog does have a small group of regular readers who often comment, and I am grateful to those of you who enjoy reading what I write even though there are no gimmicks like pictures of hot girls.

Unfortunately, I haven't been updating Half Sigma as much as I used to. Initially, moving to New York City took up a lot of my time and I simply didn't have time to blog. After things settled down, it looks like I never picked up the blogging at the same pace as before.

[Michael H.]

Hi Half Sigma
I remember those blogs and I remember the controversy associated with Libertarian Girl. In a way, it is funny, but in a way, it seems a little sad. If you were 15 and trying to fool people, it would be hilarious. But for someone in his mid 30's to pretend that he is a "Libertarian Girl" or "Liberal Abigail" seems immature.

Half Sigma was very popular for a while. When you were posting 3 times a day instead of once a week, you had a lot of regular readers, and some still come to your blog.

When you write, "I hope my friends in the blogosphere aren’t too mad about being duped," I think that hits on a central question I have here: what friends and what good did any of this do you?

[Half Sigma]

Michael H, I don't think you're ever too old to have a little bit of fun. Benjamin Franklin also impersonated women in some of his writings, so this kind of thing has a long pedigree.

Pretending to be liberal Abigail was an especially enlightening experience, because most people tend to only read blogs of their own political pursuasion. Being Abigail forced me to read all of the lefty blogs and write in a left-wing voice, and I learned a lot about the differences between the two philosophies.

In fact, I'd highly recommend that EVERY blogger try out a hoax blog as someone of the opposite political view, because to really understand the other side you need to walk in their shoes.

[probligo]

HS, I guess that your idea of fun and mine will differ in the same way as some people enjoy a fancy dress party because it gives them the opportunity to dress (for example) in womens' clothes.

"Everyone should try waering high heels at least ONCE, dahling"

For no other reason than it makes me extremely embarrassed, I could (and can) not. For goodness sakes I can't even do Father Christmas without going bright red in the face. Just the way I'm made I guess.

"...because to really understand the other side you need to walk in their shoes".
I recommend that as a practice with EVERY post and EVERY comment.

[christy]

I figured you were libertarian girl a long time ago but i didn´t want to be a spoiler.

[Michael A. Clem]

Personally, I like pictures of hot girls, but it's hard to look at them and think at the same time. ;-)
The idea of writing from a different perspective is an interesting one, but I guess the question is one of intent, not perspective. I'd like to think that the ideas and the arguments made are the important thing, but clearly, background, style, and image also play an important part of communication and persuasion.

[TWM]

I was one of the guys who read Libertarian Girl with interest, although not because she was goodlooking, or at least not for that reason alone.

Admittedly my initial reaction as a man was, "Hey, she is kinda hot, so it might be fun to pay attention to her for awhile" and I had no problem telling her so since I figured that her looks would help her succeed as a blogger. Which it did.

But there are plenty of hot women bloggers out there, so after a time I started coming back just to see how absolutely outrageous her posts were -- and they got crazier every day. It was obvious to me that her posts were written for controversy and it was interesting to see people, including myself from time to time, take the bait.

I always thought she was a fake, although not a fake girl, but a girl with fake opinions that she threw out there to stir up dust. I pictured her with her girlfriends drinking cheap wine, eating Doritos, and giggling at our comments to her posts. Sort of a Washington D.C. version of Girls Gone Bad.

I must admit I feel a little betrayed now, since I read you prior to LG ever being created. I don't know how many readers The Calico Cat had, but it would have been nice if you had clued your readership into what you were doing -- that way we could have enjoyed the fun too.

Now I just feel like the joke was on me.

[David Rossie]

Hey Half Sigma,

I didn't even know of your other legitimate blogs, and I wonder why you only reveal your identity on one of them.

Anyway, I enjoy your stuff. From my view, you seem to fill that strange void between libertarians and the common guy.

[Blog Jones]

You're a loser.

Don't lie to me about who you are, especially if you expect me to care about what you're saying.

[Half Sigma]

"You're a loser."

I suppose you're a loser too because you also have a blog and you also waste a lot of time writing stuff that hardly anyone is ever going to read.

I enjoyed doing Libertarian Girl because writing as someone else was a challenge and involved more creativity.

When I wrote about her personal life, it was almost like I was being a novelist instead of a blogger, which was the closet I've gotten to writing fiction since when I took Creative Writing in high school.

[Blog Jones]

OK, sorry about the loser thing. I was being a jerk, and I'm sorry. Should've thought before hitting the post button.

That said: I've got no problem with fictional blogging, when you disclose that you're not blogging as yourself. But when it was revealed that you weren't who you said you were, I felt like I was lied to, not like I was reading a work of fiction.

I like fiction; I don't like hoaxes.

Again, sorry about the insult in my previous comment. Way out of line.

[Adam]

Wow, you still live. I wondered why Libertarian Man of Mystery stopped updating. I'll have to blogroll you again -- you intend to stay here at this site, right?

[Half Sigma]

Adam, I've been blogging for a long time, and although I go through periods where I get tired of it, I doubt I can ever shake off the strange desire to write stuff.

[Adam]

Works for me. I've added you to the blogroll ("again" I guess).

Your acts are kind of funny, it just leaves me wondering who the hell you really are. (and I STILL want to know how that guy found the russian bride shot and exposed Libertarian Girl)