Fake News Media Give "N-Word Using Andy Marlette" a "Pass"

White PNJ Cartoonist Andy Marlette used the N-Word in a disgusting, racist cartoon--and signed his name to it. It was posted recently on the official PNJ Facebook page and NOT immediately taken down.  It is still up on their site.  Is this acceptable in 2021?

A cartoon created by Andy Marlette of Gate House Media's (Formerly Gannett) Pensacola News Journal was recently posted on the PNJ's facebook website.  A censored rendition captured from a screenshot is above.

In this era of "cancel-culture"--a dangerous practice that I do not condone-- I find it to be astonishing that Andy Marlette gets away with writing the N-Word on his cartoon, and signing his name to it.

No ramifications, no apology, no explanations, nothing.

One media professional with whom I spoke on this recently about this matter specifically told me, candidy, "we tend not to report on other media figures unless it is something really beyond the pale, or unless citizens come forward and press for it"

So while the rest of us apparently have to watch Classic Disney movies be de-platformed, while decades old pictures in Dr. Seuss books get cancelled, while "The Bachelor's" 20-year host Chris Harrison gets canned----and he didn't use the N-Word like Andy Marlette did--- and while many average, everyday citizens who say and do much less get cancelled- "N-Word using Andy Marlette"---a white, privileged liberal elitist--gets to use the N-word in his cartoon, sign his name to it, and carry on smiling in 2021.  

And the FAKE NEWS MEDIA GIVES N-WORD USING ANDY MARLETTE a PASS!

The PNJ is apparently so unabashed about their support for this conduct, they left the facebook post up where this Marlette cartoon was posted.  Look at it here.  Wow!

Andy Marlette is a public figure, just like I am.  Andy frequently accuses others of being racists.  He is a dishonest, toxic fake in my opinion; he has accused me of being a racist multiple times via his cartoons and insinuations in his articles over the last 15 years. 

When he requested a meeting with me, he was frenzied in his rapid-fire, condescending, and harried questioning and accusations.  I was calm, cool, and collected in my rational, cogent responses to him (which he frankly did not deserve)  But boy oh boy, he sure was angry when I looked him in the face and told him I'd continue to manipulate his cartoons whenever I want to.  He shrieked like a squealing pig to his editor about it.  He was unhinged; totally and completely unhinged.  But he is/was a hypocrite who was projecting, apparently.  Because come to find out--He's the one that is racist, apparently, so far as I can tell from his cartoon above.  He uses the "N-Word" freely and nobody says a thing.  NAACP is silent.  BLM is silent.  Gate House is silent.  PNJ is silent.  FAKE news liberal press doesn't report it.  Rooms to Go continue spending massive sums of money advertising with PNJ.  The silence is deafening.

I guess Andy Marlette  must make too much money for his bosses in the liberal press establishment for them to call him out or at least make him offer an explanation and apology for this disgusting racist cartoon.   

Media is biased, and they most certainly condone,  no,  ENDORSE this; it illustrates the double standard they enjoy--which is disgusting and one more reason why more and more people distrust them!  

How is this OK? Why Does Andy Marlette Get a Pass?

Andy Marlette used a disgusting racial slur in his cartoon that was posted on the PNJ Facebook page yesterday by a commenter to his editorial who simply asks--"Wait...Is this Okay, Andy??

Look--I don't support "Cancel-Culture."  I think it is a slippery slope.  Folks are imperfect, and times change.  And people change, as well.  Stuff gets taken out of context, lies are manufactured, inarticulate verbal slips end careers.  It is dangerous, it is scary. "Cancel culture"---It is the anathema of the 1st Amendment and Free Speech.  Especially when it only applies to some.  But when a person writes the N-Word in a cartoon and signs his name to it--and the cartoonist is a white man---wow!  How is this OK?  Why does Andy Marlette and the PNJ get a pass on this?

This disgusting, racist cartoon that is purportedly a product of white, elitist, privileged cartoonist Andy Marlette of the PNJ was posted on Facebook yesterday on the PNJ facebook site under the comments section--and it naturally piqued my curiosity.  Here is a picture from the link, below.

Andy Marlette used a disgusting racial slur in his cartoon that was posted on the PNJ Facebook page yesterday by a commenter to his editorial who simply asks--"Wait...Is this Okay, Andy??

Because when we live in a world where cartoons in books from 5 decades ago, penned by staunch liberals like Dr. Seuss (Theodor Geisel), are now verboten---how does a backwater, hack cartoonist like Andy Marlette get to use the racist N-Word in his cartoon--and NOT face any pushback at all?

I mean, right now many Disney classics from decades ago are being pulled from some screening service platforms because of perceived racist overtones.

Chris Harrison gets booted from the Bachelor after serving as host for 20 seasons with the show-for  not being agreeable enough with a host during an interview.  (Harrison even apologized, profusely, after the fact.  Didn't matter, he's gone, cancelled.)

White spring breakers who get to rap along with big celebrities get chastised by the PNJ and other outlets.

But Arrogant Andy gets a pass--for writing the word??

Look--I don't like and I don't support Cancel Culture.  But a public figure like Andy Marlette, a guy

PNJ Article Twists Facts into a Knot and Mixes in Lots of Innuendo, Lies, and Hearsay....Disgusting

When a newspaper's content is dictated by advertisers and special interests and the resultant output is deliberately built on lies, hearsay, innuendo, and deception----there is a problem.   And truth, integrity, and honesty---along with readers--become  the casualties...

In what will be an upcoming Sunday morning hit-job by the PNJ cartoonist--once again important facts are left out, lies are told, truth is obfuscated, and good reputations are purposely impugned.   Some legitimate reporting by a PNJ columnist is contorted, taken out of context, and then jammed into this rant ostensibly to add a level of legitimacy, and to fit a defective narrative in order  to inflict damage on County Attorney Alison Rogers and multiple members of the Escambia Board of County Commissioners.

It is astonishing to me that they get away with it.  I'll do my part and call a liar what he is, a liar.  Andy Marlette is a dishonest liar. 

Interesting these Andy Marlette types proclaim to support free speech--they even put a blurb in their paper, an excerpt of the First Amendment.  Heck---Andy Marlette even uses the "N" Word in  his cartoons with no pushback by anyone to illustrate his ability as a white privileged man to say and do what he wants, whenever he wants, with no ramifications whatsoever.  Crickets....from NAACP and media.   No, wait,  Marlette not only uses the N-word in his cartoon and gives the finger to anyone who would criticize that despicable word choice---He actually gets rewarded with syndication $ for his dumb and non-humorous comic strip. Others get cancelled.  I guess If you're nothing bt a liberal tool that nobody knows about, cares about, or thinks is funny, I guess you are immune from cancellation.  

How about that?

Yet folks like Andy Marlette  hate when they, themselves, are called to task for the putrid tripe they put

Andy Got Catfished! Marlette Manipulation 22.0

In an unusual twist  and a departure from reality and what typically occurs in real life-- Andy Marlette appears to willingly allow himself to be "Catfished"...luckily the rest of us are not quite as gullible......

Cartoonist Andy Marlette just loves to let me rent space in his head.  It is so funny.  Between his never ending barrage of attacks on Christianity, our President, the First Lady, our Congressman, our State Representatives, Well-established and well-respected local employers, and others that are conservative-he still manages to do cartoon after cartoon about me...One after another.  I'm almost like a "regular" in his rotation, LOL.

Apparently--he also likes to be "Catfished", as evidenced by today's cartoon of me that he did and which I have improved above.

You see, Andy's compromised, conscripted.

He takes money from people and does their ideological  bidding.  He intimates in his cartoon of me today that I do likewise.

Of course, this simply is not true.  I have never taken anything of value, not one thin dime, from International Paper.  Nothing, nada.  What I have done is meet with the experts at FDEP who dispute Andy's propaganda about IP.  Then I met with IP executives and toured their facilities and saw the wetlands firsthand. I requested a tour to learn about what was going on (Something, ironically, that neither the PNJ nor Andy Marlette has requested from IP).  I am paying for independent analysis of water samples from the bay in an attempt to validate the findings.  I look into things and I do research, I do NOT let folks just get over on me--because I am an independent free thinker.....

Sadly, the same thing cannot be said of Andy Marlette.  He takes money from his Patron du jour-whomever that happens to be at any given time--- and allows himself to be used like the tool that he is.  Sound's kinda like the world's second oldest profession.   And Andy really likes it!

Yes--he has already been catfished by whomever his "Patron" Du Jour is today--and maybe he doesn't even realize it?

Yes, yes, anyone who he is told to keep the gloves on with----or who pays him--- and Andy subserviently, obsequiously, and like a good boy does just that.  No cartoons. No dumb articles.  He is very, very obedient.

Everyone else is a target though--particularly if Andy's Patron says so and doesn't like the target.

But here is something for Andy's microscopically small brain to ponder:   What if Andy's Patron du jour is/was the real bad guy, or at a minimum an opportunist and a user--or a fake or a phony?  What

Ambush at the PNJ “Corral”

My "Interview" with the 2-person editorial board of the Pensacola News Journal today felt like a total ambush job...read about it below.

My Spidey Sense was telling me something was amiss…  This is/was the first time I have ever been asked to sit down and talk with the entire two-person editorial board of the PNJ.  And what did I do to elicit this invitation?  Well, as I have done dozens of times over the last 13 years, I had emailed in an op-ed for the PNJ’s consideration.  Here is the 600 word guest editorial I sent them on Wednesday evening.

But instead of a yes or no (or pocket veto)—I was asked to come sit down and talk to the two-person editorial board (+Jim Little was brought in as well) earlier today.

Immediately, I was attacked by Andy Marlette.  He had an almost rabid look in his eyes as he began questioning me on a host of topics the second I sat down in the conference room and editor Lisa Savage joined us…

“You wrote on your blog for years that I called you and told you to stop making parody manipulations of my cartoons—but that isn’t true—I never called you!”  he said accusingly.  I told him that Jeremy Knipper from the PNJ called on his behalf and said “Andy doesn’t like you using his cartoons--stop”  Which is a fact.  So yes, there is a distinction; Andy told Jeremy Knipper to call me on his behalf to say I couldn’t use his cartoons.  It is a distinction with no difference.  Nevertheless, I said to Andy’s representative at that time--“you’ve got that wrong, go ask your attorneys.”  And Jeremy called back later to say “Yeah, you can use them.”  Andy didn’t like that part of today’s meeting, I guess….

He then looked over to his editor, in almost a tattle-tale whine, and said “He is taking my cartoons and changing them around and changing the words!”  and he continued “I don’t think it is legal, It’s not legal for him to do this, right?!?”  The editor responded to me “I don’t think you can do that, but we will check, I’ll ask Barbara about this.”  (I assumed this is their lawyer).  I simply stated the cartoons I manipulated were a parody, clearly marked and subject to fair use as such, and that I continue to believe it is legal to utilize them for parody.  (They will probably reach out to a senior attorney within their Gannett organization, probably a sharp conservative lawyer, and they will get their answer which will probably not align with what they think the answer should be, I suspect.)

Meanwhile—the question barrage was about to begin.

Andy started a series of rapid-fire questions.  “What do you think about the small number of minorities in leadership in the county?”  “What do you think should be done about this?”  What do you think I meant when I drew your last name next to a confederate rebel flag in multiple cartoons?”  “Why do you NOT think Senator Philip Beall was a racist?”  “Who said Philip Beall was a white-supremacist?” “Do you blog anonymously?” “Are you homophobic?”

I felt like I was being grilled.  A few times he busted out in an almost nervous bout of laughter.  It was weird.

“Why can’t you tell us about all the important legislation that Senator Beall sponsored while he was in the senate for 7 years?”  (I guess they thought I ought to be able to regurgitate his legislative record on command, on the spot, from memory?)

“None of Beall’s family live in the area any more—what do you make of that?”

“Why should we keep the Beall name on the Bridge—what does it matter?”

I took their gunfire and answered their questions for an hour.  I don’t think they liked my answers or the fact that I would not answer some of the questions the way they wanted me to answer them.  They did not like the fact that I pushed back against their line of questioning and held fast and stood up to them.  Here are some examples of their questions and my answers:

Jeff Bergosh:  “Andy—what did you think of the first bridge committee meeting”

Andy Marlette:  “I don’t know”

Jeff Bergosh: “You were there—what do you mean you don’t know?”

Andy Marlette:  “I guess it just seemed disorganized and not productive”

Jeff Bergosh:  “What do you mean? The elected a chair, set the meeting dates, decided upon goals and objectives, and the format for the meetings—I think they accomplished a lot!”

Andy Marlette:  “What does the “American Grizzly” and “Bear Magazine ”in your version of my

How is This Okay? How Does Andy Marlette Get a Pass on This? Part II

 

Tonight the Governor's Press Secretary fired back at PNJ Cartoonist Andy Marlette's misogynistic, racist cartoons.  Her tweet was re-tweeted hundreds of times, and has now been subsequently re-tweeted by Matt Gaetz--and that re-tweet has been re-tweeted thousands of times.....

When I wrote part I---I knew it wasn't right.  A white, wealthy man flaunting his use of the "N-Word" in a nationally syndicated (Gannett) newspaper.

The clock might be finally, at long last, be ticking on Andy Marlette and the PNJ, however.

Because many have asked one simple question and received no good answer from Gannett or the PNJ:

How is it that white, priviledged liberal Andy Marlette can write racist, misogynistic cartoons left and right and never be called to task for it.  It is ridiculous!

In fact--he's been rewarded!  He's been given a lucrative, nationally syndicated cartoon strip recently.  Incredible, and unbelieveable.  He must make a TON of money for Gannett.

I know, I know, the first ammendment.

But why is it that Republicans get "Cancelled" for the slightest of infractions---while white, wealthy liberal elites like Gannett's syndicated cartoonist Andy Marlette can use the "N-Word" in cartoons and not be called out?

Well, again, this might be changing.

I've been calling him out for a while now.  

Looks like others are now catching on.  Apparently, Andy has insulted some powerful folks with HUGE online connections.

Late today, my phone blew up with texts about Andy Marlette being called out in the press and on twitter for his apparently racist cartoons.

Folks are tweeting about it--and some have thousands of retweets.  Some are being tweeted to the editor in chief at Gannett and to the Pensacola News Journal.  Good.  He needs to explain how he feels comfortable drawing such cartoons and using the N-Word.

Let's stay tuned and see if the match that's been struck starts a fire.

Andy Marlette Manipulation....7.0

This cartoon is a parody of Andy Marlette's PNJ cartoon from today--where he accuses me of engaging in unprovoked attacks.  In actuality, Marlette is the one that engages in unprovoked attacks!

So two weeks ago Thursday-- I sent in a viewpoint article.  It was rational, measured and balanced.  I was looking to offer a reasonable compromise on the naming of the replacement Pensacola Bay Bridge that is under construction and will be completed in 2021.

What happened next?

PNJ cartoonist Andy Marlette wrote a scathing hit-piece article the Sunday after I submitted my viewpoint.  Instead of disagreeing with me or my position--he instead attacked me personally--calling me a "troll" and a "goober" (they printed my balanced and rational article the next day, on Monday.....low circulation day.  Through their attempts at condensing the piece I submitted--they also created several grammatical errors as well and left them in the version published......)

Marlette's Sunday article--meanwhile---was roundly criticized by posters on the PNJ site.

"Marlette is a dishonest editorialist"  wrote one facebook poster to the story....

"If you don’t agree with Mr. Bergosh, by all means say so. But to personally attack him by calling him a goober and a troll is really a sad commentary on yourself."  wrote another

"Its more like Marlette is trying to take a grain a sand and turn it into something its not..... 
The PNJ could do so much better giving Marlette his walking papers and just leaving his part of the page as "blank space". said yet another facebook poster

"I appreciate Mr. Bergosh speaking up. I don't know him at all but was happy to see his article and him standing up to do what is RIGHT!"...said another facebook poster to Marlette's hit job article"

So now what happens--I get a cartoon in the Saturday edition, today, that is "scolding" me for interacting with constituents on facebook and writing my opinions  there--insinuating I am engaging in unprovoked  "attacks" on my constituents which is rubbish.

Marlette should have drawn this cartoon with himself as the hate spewer----No problem.  I did it for him!

Marlette Manipulation 8.0: Dandy's Dumpster Fire

Marlette Manipulation 8.0:  "Dandy's Dumpster Fire"

As I have done for nearly 10 years, on and off, I have once again found an instance where one of PNJ cartoonist Andy Marlette's cartoons completely misses the mark--so here it comes--Marlette Manipulation 8.0.

I think the one above that I have manipulated is a funny way to fix the one he published in the Friday edition.  He takes a shot at me, I will take one back at him.  After all, this all just humor, parody, and satire, right? It is all in good fun, right?!?  He wants to insinuate stuff about me, so I will take a shot back at him too-- because--- who knows if he actually subscribes to "Bear" and "American Grizzly" Magazines, anyway? I think he might like that sort of wildlife--or maybe he only buys it to read the articles  😉....so....I'll just make a cartoon out of my suspicion like he does about me  😃

He sure dishes out a lot of vicious insults in his very vitriolic, acerbic cartoons, though.  Wow.  particularly toward our President and First Lady.  (Funny how the previous President and First Lady, Barack and Michelle Obama, never really got the same level of hatred and disrespect in the Marlette cartoons about them and their leadership, neither do Pelosi, the Clintons, or Joe Biden....Interesting)

A couple of years back Jeremy Knipper, representing Andy Marlette, called me and said, "Yeah, Jeff, we're going to need you to take

Andy Marlette and Hatchet-Piece "Journalism"

PNJ cartoonist Andy Marlette loves to editorialize about how much he dislikes me and other conservative elected officials locally.  But is it honest to parade these hit pieces as "news" stories, when they are nothing but spin-job editorials?  I think not.  I think it's deceptive and emblematic of the reason most Americans no longer have faith in the media to tell the truth, unbiased with just the facts.

I think my very existence triggers Andy Marlette.  That and the fact that I am conservative.  And the fact that I don't kowtow to his agenda.  And that I don't agree with his biased fake news.  And that I push back when he makes cartoons about me.

But he also hates politicians--especially local ones.  Yes, it is one terrible article after another, with the local politicians being targeted.  He hates that we get paid, and he hates that we exist.  Funny how he never really pushes back against Democratic politicians though...Nope.  Just local and national Republican ones.  We're the bad guys.

But he also hates me because I am a Christian.  He HATES Christians, and people who are religious.  He makes fun of religion with cartoons that mock Jesus in a town that is very Christian and very conservative.  He really hates people that believe in God.

But apparently what he HATES more than anything else is anyone with whom he disagrees.

Heaven forbid we disagree with him on anything.  Do that, and get ready for the ad hominem vicious personal attacks, unfair characterizations, and cartoons.

So I wrote about the "Ambush" I walked into a couple of weeks ago when I was "invited" to sit with the 2-person editorial board of the PNJ---- I knew there would be an "article" coming out in the PNJ behind that meeting, seeking to run me down.  Yep, knew it was coming.....

.....It arrived today, just in time for the Sunday edition.  A steaming pile of garbage that takes my entire stance on the bridge naming out of context.  Here are the facts:

1.  I disagree with the PNJ's position that the Beall family name should be taken off the bridge, and I have been vocal about that.

2.  I have never once said anything disparaging about Chappie James

3.  I don't attack constituents on social media--I use social media to disseminate information and to interact with citizens--but I do not target people and attack citizens with social media

So this article just goes after me and insinuates that I must be a racist because I don't want to rip one family name off of the bridge and replace it with Chappie James' name, and that I am a horrible person that intentionally targets my constituents for attack on social media.  All of this is a bald-faced, made up lie.  A straight-up, ad hominem vicious personal attack on me because I have the audacity to push back against and disagree with Andy Marlette and the PNJ

But it does not end there....

Because its not always what is said in an article from the dishonest media that is important--often times it is what is conveniently left out.

For instance, in Andy's attack piece on me that will appear in print tomorrow morning, he conveniently leaves out the following facts about my statements at the bridge naming meeting:

1.  I support Chappie James being honored by having the Pensacola Airport named in his honor

2.  I will support the name that the Bridge Naming committee ultimately recommends--even if it is recommended to take the Beall name off and replace it with Chappie James's name.

3.  Regardless of the outcome--I will support naming Pensacola's airport for Chappie James ---and I will contribute to that cause financially--because that would be a fitting tribute to that great American.

The article glosses over those three facts, fully omitting them from the article in order to mislead the readers and frame me in a false light.  Instead-the piece just makes me out to be some kind of a racist--which is absolute garbage.

This is just one example of the reason nobody trusts the activist, agenda-driven left-leaning liberal media anymore.

They are dishonest and they do not tell the truth, and everything is a spin-job to make good people look bad while not reporting stories that do not support their flawed narrative (conservatives bad, democrats good).  Not a peep from any mainstream media--here or nationally--about the fake and destructive "activism" that led to the  Oberlin College case and what happened there. -Nope--stories like these do not support their biased narrative.

Thankfully, most of the voters locally don't buy the garbage PNJ is peddling--they "smell" it coming a mile away and smartly disregard it.

I Normally Don't Do it, But......

.....This time I did.  I Picked up the phone and made the call.

Yes, I normally do not return calls where the citizen is irate and yells at my aide(s) or is rude, threatening, or just plain onry in their call to our office.  I especially avoid the ones where they make a threat or an ultimatum.

Because, what is the point, right?  Obviously this individual--whoever they may be at any given time--has made up their mind and have picked up a phone and taken the time to call my office to enunciate the fact that:

1.) If I vote for "X"--they will never vote for me again or 2.) They will never vote for me again because of some "thing" I purportedly did or 3.) they think I am somehow engaged in criminal conduct or 4.) all of the above.

These are not every day occurrences, but these sorts of calls do come in from time to time.

And I normally don't do it, I normally don't call back--especially when they explicitly tell my staff "not to bother having Bergosh call back."  But this time, along with the "don't bother having him call back" --the individual actually left a name and number.  So I did call back--and I am glad I did.  I actually had a productive conversation with the original caller and one of this individual's relatives who listened in.

The setup was this:  I am apparently not worthy of continued support because of the state retirment plan others on the board take.  And the article in the paper was infuriating to this constituent!

So, again, I called her and asked her about it.

"Look, I read that article in the PNJ, and it made me so angry!  It's not right that the commissioners are taking an extra $40,000.00 per year over and above their $85,000.00 salary for a part-time job--and I am mad!"  She continued..."Look, I know you don't take that plan, but you voted for it and so I am not happy about that either!"

I listened to her speak, and there is no doubt she was angry and worked up.  So I listened, and then we had a back and forth dialogue and she listened as well.

"I understand you are angry, but that was not a news piece you read--it was an opinion piece from the local cartoonist, Andy Marlette.  And, it is full of lies, half-truths, and falsehoods." I stated flatly. 

"Look, that guy is constantly taking shots at me, he has for the last 16 years.  Cartoons, hit pieces, and flat out lies, slander, and libel about me and other elected conservatives.  He is a sack of garbage, a liar, a misogynist,  a racist, and he is not anyone who is trustworthy in any sense of the word" I explained to her.  "I'm astonished you even take the paper locally--it is so bad, they LIE so OFTEN and so many I know have cancelled their subscriptions!" I stated.  Then I asked her how, if I was such an horrible dishonest politician as Marlette insinuates falsely--"how in the world could I not have been ever accused of doing anything unethical, illegal, or immoral in the last 16 years as an elected official where my entire life exists under a microscope for everyone to examine?"

We talked for a while, and I asked her if she has seen the toxic garbage lies this same individual, racist liberal activist and conservative Christian-hater ---Andy Marlette---  puts out about our Governor, Ron DeSantis, and our Senator(s) Marco Rubio and Rick Scott.  "Yes, I have" she conceded.  "And yet you still support those elected officials though?"  At which point she expressed support for these men while also volunteering the fact that she is/was a Democrat that "votes for the person, not the party, and at the last election I voted straight Republican."  

Then I asked a rhetorical.  "So, you support those Republicans, and do not believe what the PNJ says about them---but the Republican Commissioners---you believe what the cartoonist says about us?

Then we talked at length about the FRS, the 401(a) the differences and the costs for both plans.  I went through the plans in meticulous detail, including the fact that these plans have been in existance in the county for 25 years, the commissioners did not "invent" these plans, and I have not voted for these plans.

We talked about all the employees and elected officials who have expensive pensions, the employees who retire with 100% of their pay for life, and also the exorbitant costs associated with the pension plan for constitutional officers like, for instance, clerk of the court Pam Childers--who's FRS pension costs to the taxpayer are nearly DOUBLE every year (nearly $80K) what the county commissioner's plans

Community "Values"

Hack PNJ columnist/cartoonist Andy Marlette  took the opportunity last Sunday to "lecture" me (via his weak cartoon below) about community values.....He actually did an entire gallery of cartoons about me.  Ho hum.  Yes, I rent space in his head.  I believe my rendition, above, of his cartoon is better 😏--and more importantly--funnier!

But his new-found fetish of mocking the salaries of elected constitutional officers is quite interesting, fascinating, and quickly becoming boring.  I addressed that issue already for Andy, he probably just needs to re-read that entry again,  S-L-O-W-L-Y... But the cliff's notes are this:  Our salaries are set by the state, Andy.  If you have Salary envy (which it appears you do) go lobby the state and tell them "all elected officials should work for free."  Good luck with that, Andy. 

A better idea, if money is the issue for Andy-which it appears it is--would be for him to just go get a side-hustle, moonlight, a part-time job.  Andy could go drive for uber or lyft on the weekends, and he could have fun trying to help the millennials he would be shuttling around from club to club understand who he is and how important he is.  Yes, that would be a hoot.  They'd be like "Who are you?  What's a PNJ?"

or, more likely, just "Ewwwwwww..."

they'd probably see his face as the driver and reject the ride on the app, LOL, and pay the $2.00 ride cancel fee.  So maybe Uber or Lyft wouldn't work for Andy....

He's also on a kick lately-- deliberately portraying me as a bigot and racist, even though he knows this is not true and he is purposely portraying me in a false light with this characterization and with actual malice attempting to damage my reputation.  That's his big thing now, Even though he knows I'm not a bigoted-racist--heck he knows I suggested we rename our Airport for Chappie James way back in February!  Andy wouldn't let the truth get in the way of an attack though.  So he dishonestly blows the dog whistle with his cartoons that I am a racist.  Dishonest is all I can say.  Dishonest and disgusting.

And now he's really fixated on our Salaries, --so I wonder if he is having trouble keeping up with his

Thoughts on the Primary Part I: "Tool-Boy" Marlette and PNJ have NO Say, and NO Sway :)

Andy Marlette and the PNJ, although they tried, exerted ZERO influence in this year's elections--mine in particular......NADA, Zilch...Hopefully this holds true in November as well.....

In the waning days of my recent successful primary election campaign, I must admit I was somewhat astonished that the PNJ in general, and their cartoonist Andy Marlette specifically, had not attempted to interfere more openly in my election.  There's a history between me and the PNJ---and after they pulled this disgusting, unprofessional stunt on me earlier this year--I expected more attacks.  

Then came Friday, August 7th and an out of the blue,  non-contextualized attack cartoon by Marlette against me. (below-photograph taken 8-29-20 from PNJ online site of PNJ cartoon published Friday 8-7-20).  

Just out of the clear blue sky this cartoon arrived.  The day they published it was the day before the start of 8 days of early voting for my election.  Now, I chuckled to myself when I saw this garbage cartoon  pop on the Friday before early voting--thinking Andy had probably toured my district and seen one or more of my 19 billboards deployed in D1.  Given PNJ's proclivity for attacking me-- I naturally assumed there would be an attack editorial in the subsequent Sunday paper.  But there wasn't.   Instead--they attacked two different Republican candidates (actually three different Republicans).  Anyhow--I did another Marlette Manipulation (above) and actually succeeded in properly contextualizing the dishonesty and duplicity of this publication and their cartoonist in particular--along with what is really true about them that should be plastered on billboards around this town.

And now that I have decompressed from the primary and I begin serving (if the Good Lord wills it and I do not die) what will be at a minimum the next 51 months as Escambia County's District 1 Commissioner (that's a LONG time PNJ)---I see in today's paper a "letter to the editor" is published "praising" this cartoon from 8-7-20 bashing me from before the primary.

So now is the time to challenge this misplaced "praise."  And to call out PNJ for what they are....

First off---The PNJ and their editorial board are dishonest, fake news.  

Everyone know this. They publish extreme viewpoints that alienate the majority of their ever-dwindling subscriber base--bashing Jesus Christ and Christianity, bashing public officials (exclusively conservative ones) and they promulgate viewpoints that, at least  to my district according to MANY I speak with, come off as extremely left-leaning, liberal, and out of step.  I guess PNJ doesn't understand this, but my goodness--with print-media revenues declining you would think they would at least be a little more covert with their outright contempt for the center-right majority in Escambia County.  

But no.

More troubling, though, are the personal attacks that are unfair and untrue.  For example and #1.) --the cartoon they published on 8-7-20 deceptively misleads the reader to think that I am a pawn of the folks in the community that write campaign checks--the so-called "downtown crowd." I'm not and they know it. I have routinely voted against contributors' wishes and for what was best for the people I represent--and I will continue to do so when appropriate. Meanwhile, though, every other incumbent commissioner--and several challengers in multiple other races--also got contributions from these same folks.  So why attack me exclusively?  More importantly---the only incumbent Democrat commissioner in the race got contributions from the SAME folks who wrote me checks (and he got a LOT more money from them).  The very same donors Andy apparently hates donate to us all.  But the Democrat is not scrutinized and bashed (and he should NOT BE) for taking the same money ----but I am?  That is dishonesty in media.  Dishonesty and duplicity.  (Here's a newsflash for the PNJ....there is a small, small pool of check writers locally that pay attention to politics and actually fund candidates they believe are good public servants--because they have interests affected by our decision making.  Most citizens that could afford to participate and contribute simply do not do so..... PNJ fake-news, failed logic alert:  "If these folks give to Jeff Bergosh--it is BAD!  But when the same donors give money to candidates we favor, this is FINE and we will not cover it."

#2.)  The implication that I am somehow "anti-environmental" is a lie.  PNJ knows this. I grew up fishing on the west side of Pensacola, I was a Boy Scout, and I am an environmentalist at heart!  They attempt to tie me into the issues of International Paper and their FDEP discharge permit---knowing full-well the county has NO play in that permit process--that is a Federal and State-Level Issue.  PNJ also never reported that I independently toured IP's facilities in both Cantonment and Beulah on multiple occasions and wrote extensively about these visits and what I learned.  They also never report the FACT that Perdido Bay's Health is BETTER now than it has been in the last 20 years.  No mention of this from PNJ....nope.  Goes against their narrative.  (Incidentally--when I toured IP's facilities last year, I asked and was told that neither Andy Marlette nor anyone from the PNJ had requested and taken a tour of their facilities and polishing wetlands like I did...)  Not a surprise to me--they have their minds made up already:  IP= Evil Capitalists!

#3.)  PNJ shadow banned me from writing viewpoints.  I've written dozens of these over the last 14 years and they hate it.  They just do not like it, so they simply started saying NO---- citing a policy that  ".....they do not publish the op-eds of candidates with primary or general election opposition..." [paraphrased].  But wait a second--- they did just that on multiple occasions---allowing viewpoints from at least two (2) other incumbent officeholders during this election cycle to be published in the PNJ--- even though these same officeholders had primary and general election opponents!

There is much more I could say about all of this, and there will be plenty of time for this now that the election is over.

So no, I'm not a fan of PNJ.  But they are here and so am I, so we will simply co-exist.  I'll have to deal with them, and they'll just have to deal with me.

But I will continue to call out their ridiculous partisanship, dishonesty, and duplicity for at least the next 51 months because this is America and I have the right of free speech just like they do.  And I have a platform to do it!

Two Editorial Cartoons in One Weekend!!

 

Andy Marlette Shamelessly plugs his stupid, non-humorous comic strip, Pimp & Twits, at the Pensacola Beach Air Show July 10, 2021--with the same predictably disastrous results as PNJ's news, editorial, and features output and as equally dismal as PNJ's feeble attempts at subscriber growth and retention.....it all just ends in a fiery mid-air disaster......

Wow! PNJ Editorial Cartoonist Andy "Dandy" Marlette and the crack 2-person editorial PNJ team have been  busy little beavers this weekend, once again on the attack, lashing out at the hard working Escambia Board of County Commissioners.  We got two (2) cartoons this weekend, one on Saturday and one this morning.

Andy must be really, really lathered up and exercised to take a "Sunday" slot (the only day PNJ has any circulation over 200 readers) and pivot away from Trump, Rubio, Scott, and DeSantis---to attack us!

It's amusing

But the smaller and smaller number of subscribers PNJ clings on to must be wondering what his anger and venom is all about.  Around town at various social events I attend, I'm always asked "Wow, the cartoonist is always after you--what's up with that?" to which I simply respond, "He's an idiot, he is glib, everyone knows it, and I live rent-free in his head."

So yes, I understand Andy hates those of us that roll up our sleeves and do the difficult yet necessary (and often messy) work of local governance --work he himself couldn't do and couldn't handle---yes, we all get that.  Yes, yes we know he has a fixation on the BCC and yours truly in particular.   Yes we know he has been drawing cartoons about us that are stupid for years now, and yes we know he makes some money for the failing PNJ with his syndicated cartoons which help keep the PNJ financially viable.  (He punched his ticket by attacking former president Trump mercilessly over the last 5 years--which gave him "the creds", apparently, to have a nationally syndicated comic strip given to him--from which he more than likely makes a few bucks).  He uses the N-Word in his cartoons, so what says his employer?   It's not like he's someone that should get cancelled like the Bachelor host, right?  Yes, he hates Trump, makes money for the liberal PNJ, runs a recurring schtick that he's a "Republican" (yeah, right), and does as he is told by his local advertisers---- so they, in turn, ignore that messy piece of nastiness about Andy Marlette, a privileged white man who used the N-Word and flipped the finger to those who wanted to cancel him.  Apparently, he is untouchable unlike so many others who got cancelled for doing the same.  So, yes, PNJ keep him around because of that.  He's nothing but a useful tool.  For the money, and because he does the Patron's bidding unflinchingly.

But when he makes stupid cartoons about me and what I do, I'll continue to manipulate them and make them actually funny.  He really hates that which is also very amusing.  It drives him nuts but he can't do a damn thing about it!   So.............

Introducing "Pimp & Twits"

Introducing "Pimp & Twits!"

And now, with all of this ruckus in the backdrop--- stay tuned for a brand new, actually funny "cartoon" strip of my own based upon Andy's failing, stupid one that nobody reads and that isn't funny.  My version will be titled "Pimp & Twits"  ---Set in the fictional, Florida coastal fishing town known as "Patronville" Starring a meth-addicted, media-obsessed Crocadile who is actually a former human being known as El Patron ---but  who was tragically transformed into a Crocadile/human hybrid in a life-extending, youth enhancing plastic surgery procedure that went haywire in lab in Belize. In addition to becoming a crocodile, his mind became warped and he suddenly, genuinely believed he was loved by all, respected by everybody, and that all people would do his bidding universally. Surrounding the croc, affectionately known as "Pimp"(because he "pimps" everyone around him to do his bidding)  are his cast of cronies that run his deals and his games for him.....  Lisa and Andy, two simpletons that love to dress up like characters from Hogan's Heroes and play-act scenes from that 60's  show, two dimwitted

Who is the Real Dunce?

If Andy Marlette HATES the process of IP garnering their discharge renewal permit so badly--he should prove it by going to congress with his issues--it is a FEDERAL process, something over which the Escambia BCC has no control....

It's easy to shake one's fist in anger and lash out at people.  It's somewhat amusing to watch this happen when such a person who is decompensating and going apoplectic happens to be glib on the subject about which he is so aggrieved.

Fire!  Ready! Aim!  and the shadow-chasing, windmill tilting simpleton takes shots at people who have no say in the issue about which he is so heated and lathered.  Who cares though, right?

"I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it any more" is the tone, as if channeled directly from the 70's cult favorite "Network."  "Dammit--I'll show them!!" is the attitude.

This, folks, perfectly describes PNJ cartoonist Andy Marlette's ridiculous garbage "pieces" in Sunday's paper.  (They preempted Walter Williams' excellent piece on police entrance examinations that should have run on Sunday-and did in most markets--and instead ran Andy's rambling screed about IP and Escambia County on Sunday, relegating Williams' excellent article to the no-audience Monday edition of the PNJ...ho hum)

What's he so worked-up over now--you might ask?!?

Andy is "angry" about International Paper's attempts to get a renewal of their discharge permit under NPDES.

But wait just a minute.

Who is in charge of that process anyway, you might ask?  The County Commissioners??  (here is a hint--it ain't the BCC)

Answer:  it is a FEDERAL program and process, delegated to the States, a product of the FEDERAL Clean Water Act.  And yes, it is a very circuitous, cumbersome, opaque, and  time-consuming process.  And yes, it has layers and layers of processes, procedures, appeals, mitigation strategies, and due process protections for the applicant.  Yes, due process--that thing that progressives like Andy normally really, really support....except when the recipient of such due process is an "EVIL" large and successful Corporation!!!

So why the heck is Andy blaming the Escambia Board of County Commissioners for this process, anyway??

Because he apparently doesn't get it.

Andy, listen to me, and check out this logical advice...... 

If you don't like the NPDES process, go to Congress and tell them to modernize the process and protocols under the CWA.  Go yell at them---IT'S THEIR PROCESS!

Otherwise, you are just exercising yourself,  pushing a wet noodle up a hill.  And you look foolish.

  Of course we all want a clean environment.  Nobody likes pollution, and nobody wants the water flea to die. That's why I met with FDEP back in June to learn what is going on--something you obviously didn't do yet...so tell the truth--the toxicity tests on the minnow and the flea come from water at the "end of the pipe"--but water from the "end of the pipe" goes for miles and miles and through a three-berm system within 1200 acres of private "polishing" wetlands---- before it ever hits Perdido Bay.  Did you know that Andy?   Come on man, really?!?

About the Salaries of State Constitutional Officers.....

PNJ Editorial Cartoonist Andy Marlette appears "hung up" over salaries elected officials make.  Someone should tell him the salaries are set by the state---not by us.

Andy Marlette of the PNJ has taken a really cynical, negative tack towards the salaries that commissioners in Escambia County make.  I wonder why, though?

I say this because in this recent cartoon of his from a few months back-- he says I, Jeff Bergosh, "rob" the citizens of an $80K salary.  Which is bogus.  (the basis of that cartoon was also bogus--the claim that I "shriek" at citizens.  Whatever that is, I don't do it.  My much more apropos, honest  version of his lame cartoon can be found here  😏  )

Now in his latest attack piece and cartoon, from just this week, twice he mentions my salary as a county commissioner, insinuating I don't deserve it and I don't earn it.

But I wonder why he is so hung up on our salaries as commissioners, anyway?  Does he not get a comparable salary as the local cartoonist here--could it be salary envy?

Does he possibly make less than we do???     Naah, I doubt that-- but who knows, right.  I'd say he should  knock down at least $46,000.00--$54,000.00 a year as the PNJ cartoonist--.  😏

Or Is he only mad that I get a salary--but other commissioners are just fine receiving theirs?

Is he mad that school board members like I used to be get salaries?  ECUA board members?  How about the City Council members?  I wonder if he is seething with envy about all of these elected

officials getting paid around here?  Somebody PLEASE give Andy a raise already--he's really, really triggered by the elected officials getting paychecks!!

Or is it just me I wonder?

I wonder if he is upset about the salaries of all politicians, state and local (he apparently hates most politicians, particularly and specifically conservative ones)--So this begs the following question: I wonder--does he think all elected officials should work for free?  If so, I wonder if Andy has worked out the fact that if all elected positions were non-paid---only independently wealthy, well-connected and politically savvy individuals could serve---which by and large would mean politicians at all levels would be older and whiter?  What would Andy think of that---I wonder if he has thought that

At Least 2 Florida Newspapers are Apparently Dropping Andy Marlette's Cartoon Strip

 

I read this morning that at least 2 Florida Newspapers are dropping the Sunday edition of Andy Marlette's cartoon strip.  One of them is in Gainesville, very near where Marlette is from.  Panama City is dropping both the daily edition of Marlette's comic and the Sunday version as well.

I don't read the comics regularly--and I never thought his Florida themed cartoon was funny.  Obviously I am not a fan of Marlette--a guy who's done dozens of cartoons of me --inappropriately insinuating I am a racist--while he, himself, is the white, entitled liberal that uses the N-word in his cartoons.  Several news outlets reported on this use of the N-word and his misogynistic attack on female staffers of the Governor a few years back.  Really sickening stuff.  Gannett just swept these scandals under the rug though--I mean he makes them money in his syndication, right?  Plus, he unmercifully and disgustingly attacked President Trump over and over and over for years on end while issuing all Democrats a pass--so this earned him a lot of "street-cred" with Gannett and other liberals who looked past and ignored his use of the "N-Word."  Ho hum is what they said then.

Meanwhile, if his Florida themed cartoon isn't making it in Florida now--I wonder what that means for it's chances elsewhere?

I wonder what happened there?

Gannett and PNJ Ethics Quiz

 

Andy Marlette, the PNJ and parent company Gannett are cashing in on their PNJ cartoonist's newfound "fame" with the publication of his syndicated cartoon shrimp and grits.  He is making the company money---but is it moral and ethical for him to use the "N-word" in cartoons?  What about his despicable, dehumanizing and misogynistic attack cartoon focused on a female employee of  Governor Ron DeSantis---with the intent of attacking the governor through his female employee?  The cartoonist loves to make accusations about members of the Board of County Commissioners' retirement programs--but at least our programs are legal as outlined in state statutes.  And they are moral and ethical---unlike some of the histrionics from Gannett and PNJ via cartoonist Andy Marlette.  And Gannett stands by while these transgressions occur by liberal, white, progressive and privileged Andy Marlette--who spent the last 5 years doing some of the most disgusting portrayals of our former president in the country.  Meanwhile, conservative cartoonist Bruce Tinsley's Mallard Fillmore does a couple of zingers directed at our new President, Joe Biden, and BOOM--he gets IMMEDIATELY Cancelled--with his syndicated cartoon being deplatformed in the Gannett publications.  Talk about double standards, feigned outrage over "morals and ethics" and rank hypocrisy.  These folks are the worst of the worst. 

Moral and Ethical?

Apparently, according to the PNJ, we must ONLY ask if something's moral or ethical if  it's something that suits their ideology and it's something they oppose.  If it's a horrendous practice like killing babies through abortion--something PNJ ideologically support--then the liberal PNJ  shifts away from the moral and ethical implications...and scream "It's Legal!"  See how that works?

PNJ and their "crack" two-person editorial squad are apparently hung up on the question, as it pertains to the county's 401(a) plan, of  "Yeah, well what about the moral and ethical implications of the plan!?!"

Suddenly, apparently, the legality of the plan is unimportant to the PNJ.  They've already determined in their collective pea brains that "they don't like it--legal or not!"

So along comes someone like me that recognizes that the seminal question---the most important question---is whether or not it is legal.  Once we know that--we can take appropriate action going forward to fix the issue if that is necessary.  But now that it is appearing more and more likely that our 25 year established 401(a) is in fact, legal,  the PNJ has a new standard beyond that which they believe we ought to be held to:  Is it moral, and is it ethical??--WHO CARES IF IT IS LEGAL!!

Funny how the liberal PNJ switches stances and standards depending upon the issue.....

Here's an EASY one.  How about abortion?  It is legal, and the PNJ is undoubtedly  pro-abortion based on their uber-liberal bent.  It is currently legal---but never does PNJ ever bother to ask if that practice, the killing of the unborn baby is "moral and ethical"  Nope.  Goes against their politics.  Let's see though--what is a more pressing issue: A.)  greater percentage points in increased dividends on a retirment plan for three county commissioners that ultimately costs the taxpayers no additional funds---or  B.) the killing of millions and millions of babies, legally, in the USA since 1973---including hundreds of thousands in Florida and thousands here in Pensacola?  (You know the answer to this question.....does the PNJ?)

What about this one.  PNJ Cartoonist Andy Marlette, a white liberal, privileged individual, uses the N-Word in his cartoon and there is no backlash.  In fact, he gets monetarily rewarded with a nationally-syndicated cartoon as he even goes after female staffers in Governor DeSantis's office with misogynistic, disgusting personal attacks designed to damage the Republican, conservative governor through and via these very staff members.  Are these actions moral and ethical, PNJ?  I mean, your parent company Gannett de-platformed the creator of the conservative cartoon strip, Mallard Fillmore, because of far less--and then did a gobldygook- laden, gibberish editorial attempting to rationalize and support this cancellation----but Liberal Andy Marlette does far worse and gets a pass?   Is this moral and ethical?  Or is this where liberals get conservative and say  "Yeah, but it IS LEGAL!"

And then there's this:  PNJ and their editors love President Joe Biden, even as his mental decline is accelerating while being actively hidden by the left leaning media.  Under Biden's disastrous leadership at the Texas Border--we now see a spectacle unlike anything I have ever seen in my entire lifetime.  I literally saw Biden's Border police, on horseback, whipping unarmed, helpless black people in a river, beating them back away from the border with what looked like whips (they were leather horse reins, apparently).  These desperate migrants were just trying to cross a river to get to America--and they get treated like this?  Now, all the black migrants are being shipped back to their home countries on planes while the other migrants, the caucasian ones, pour over the border and get asylum in America.  And Biden and the liberals fall over themselves to say this is LEGAL.  And compliant press fellow-travelers like Lisa Savage and Andy Marlette don't question this.  They say "It's legal!!"   (But hey, is it moral and ethical, PNJ?)  Imagine if president Trump had done this--would PNJ totally ignore this?  answer, NO.  But they love Biden, so he gets a pass on this reprehensible spectacle...

Hypocrites and frauds.  Ladies and Gentlemen ---I give you the two-person PNJ Editorial Squad and their patron along with the parent company Gannett!

Andy Marlette Manipulation

PNJ Cartoonist Andy Marlette is very talented and often his cartoons can be manipulated to fit a different scenario.  Case in point-yesterday's edition was a play on Rick Scott, showing Alex Sink as a police woman, stopping Rick Scott (Sink received the PBA endorsement)

Okay, that was funny. 

But the same cartoon can be manipulated to be a Play on the Amendment 8 issue.  Andy Ford, president of the FEA and Rick Scott look similar enough that I can add a scruffy moustache and beard and some glasses to the character in the above cartoon and turn Rick Scott into Andy Ford, and change the whole nature of the cartoon to make it a play of Alex Sink against the Florida Education Association.

Presto!-Marlette Manipulation

(FEA has endorsed Alex Sink for Governor, but FEA strongly opposes Amendment 8.  Alex Sink supports Amendment 8)

Tallman McKay Circles the PNJ "Wagon" with Fake News

Andrew "Tallman" McKay ignores and does not support the real reason I strongly support depriving the PNJ of legal ad revenue.  He lies by omission.  But why?  Why does he fail to report the main reason I never want to spend a nickel with the PNJ again is because of the racist cartoons of their cartoonist, Andy Marlette.  Why circle the wagons around the PNJ and cherry pick my blog post and fail to mention the MAIN reason this is happening?  Fake news fecklessness

I'm out of the county for a couple of days, attending a conference, relaxing, getting some tennis and golf in, and enjoying beautiful weather in the 80's in south-central Florida.

It's great to get away from time to time.

But I've now heard that Andrew "Tallman" McKay on AM 1620 is making hay over the county's new practice of no longer spending tens of thousands of dollars yearly on legal ads in the PNJ.

He is really, really uptight about it, according to some folks who have reported he's talking a lot about it during his radio shows.  And apparently he did a facebook post on it as well.  (Interestingly, a majority of commenters on this topic on the other hate site SUPPORT this move by the county.  Even folks that would love nothing more than to see me drawn and quartered support this new protocol, LOL)  

That must mean something to Tallman, if he is as smart as he wants us to think he is?

Why are people negative about the PNJ and lining up in disagreement with Andrew Tallman Mckay on his own site?  

Because they know Marlette, Savage, and the PNJ are corrupted, biased, and controlled--that's why.  

Their editorials are garbage, their cartoons are horrible, and they don't cover important stories, and the stories they do cover are slanted.  This is a known fact of reality.

But here's where Tallman really gets shifty and FAKE.  He posts selected snippets from my first blog post about this new practice of depriving PNJ of revenue----but he totally ignores the main reason I support this boycott----the racist cartoons that Andy Marlette has drawn where he uses the "N-Word."  

McKay cherry picks some of my post--but ignores the most important reason why I dislike the PNJ and support yanking their revenue.  Racist cartoons by Marlette where he uses the N-word.

I havn't edited that post---read it for yourself and see for yourself.  It is my main reason for supporting the pullback of ad revenue from PNJ.

So why is Tallman so afraid of reporting this?  It was the centerpiece of my blog post that he quoted.

It's why he isn't a real journalist, he's an entertainment/talk show guy.  Because to compliantly run to the defense of the PNJ while ignoring important aspects of the story is what Fake News is all about.

Weak.

You want to quote my posts--tell the whole truth about them--otherwise you are biased, partisan, feckless and fake.