Barrett Brown of The Huffington Post has described the blog as catering to "one of the most collectively cerebral audiences one may find within the right side of the blogosphere". Goldstein's respect for the legacy of Hunter S. Thompson is an enduring theme, as is his sardonic allusions to such popular cult figures as Martha Stewart and the fictional Billy Jack. The blog is known for its bawdy overtones, surrealistic sense of humor, and biting wit.
Controversies
Goldstein vocally opposed the abrupt change of financial arrangements by Pajamas Media in 2009, which deprived him — and other bloggers such as The Anchoress and Ace of Spades HQ — of income from PJM-mediated advertising. He also publicly chastised those he refers to as GOP pragmatists or realists for their criticism of Rush Limbaugh's answer to a question about the coming Obama presidency, once again relying on linguistics and hermeneutics to make the point that "losing more slowly" is still losing, and that there is nothing more pragmatic, as a political strategy, than standing on principle In 2016, he was a vocal critic of the Trump nomination and of the idea of "White Nationalism," likening it to an "identity politics of the right." Recently, however, he has praised the effectiveness of many Trump Administration policies and expressed a willingness to support his re-election campaign under the right circumstances.
Deborah Frisch incident
On July 4, 2006, University of Arizonaadjunct professor Deborah Frisch started writing comments at Protein Wisdom. Two days later, she wrote "You live in Colorado, I see. Hope no one JonBenets your baby." She then added: "I reiterate: If some nutcase kidnapped your child tomorrow and did to him what was done to your fellow Coloradan, JonBenet Ramsey, I wouldn't give a damn." She later resigned and apologized, saying "I don’t think professors should do that. I crossed the line." Her behavior gained nationwide news coverage. Following further incidents, Goldstein obtained a restraining order and preliminary injunction against her. Goldstein has said he took temporary breaks from blogging to deal with continued harassment from Frisch, who has faced continued legal problems since her relocation to the Pacific Northwest. Conservative bloggers have alleged cyberstalking and other strange behavior by Frisch since then. In 2015, Frisch was arrested four times on charges including stalking, menacing, criminal trespass, and initiating a false police report.
