Marcus wrote: Maybe it's another strategy to stir up attention. After all, even bad publicity is still publicity
That's what I'm going with. The comment sectioners aren't fans of Midgley or FARMS. They are mostly unhinged right-wingers concerned about politics. They don't care what some old creep's favorite travel spot is. The only explanation for the post is to troll this board for a reaction. And he got it. But, there are some dark implications.
It's much like a hot-head knowingly putting his girlfriend in danger with a rival hothead hoping for a reaction, so that he can then overreact with vengeance against his rival with the justification of protecting his girlfriend. It's all about the justified war, as they say at Interpreter. The plot of every 80's action movie when FARMS was at its peak.
According to the Proprietor, Midgley is a portrait of innocence and goodness. So he's in a fork. His first option, if Midgley really is the sensitive, good man that the Proprietor believes, then he's thrown him under the bus to continue the battle with his online enemies. At the very least, he's guilty of gross negligence. Perhaps the analogous hothead forgot that a couple years ago his girlfriend was put in great danger by his rivals, and so one day he starts throwing pics of his GF on Instagram with notes that clearly reflect back on the past situation, forgetting how that would ignite the anger of his enemies. The other option is that Midgley is just as aggressive if not more than the Proprietor, an epic, revenge-fueled hothead, and is happy to play the victim in order to escalate the conflict so that the Proprietor can make threats banning or even proceed with the bans.
Either way, it makes the Proprietor look bad.