As a member of the FT community, I consider him a friend of the FT community and it doesn't have to show up in his post counts on FT. The topics he cares about are topics which the FT community -- myself included until further notice -- cares about and benefits from. Then again I've never been a fan of the "you're with me or you're against me" false dichotomy.

Once an FTer, always an FTer.

That said, when someone has chosen to become a public figure and/or a media personality of sort that covers a topic for print, electronic and/or radio/television/cable/satellite media, critique of such figures' positions -- or even perhaps the person -- are sort of part and parcel of the expected by those who are intelligent and informed and choose to participate in such ways. Intelligent, informed people without thick skin wouldn't get into this game; rather they would try to stay away from it; and even intelligent, informed people with thick skin would perhaps stay away from the game.

I'm glad that Gary Leff has decided to do this and stay in the game in this way; not because he's always right -- often as he is -- and not because his views are a copy or mirror-image of mine -- and often they are -- but because he cares about the subject matter he covers, seeks out facts on the covered topics and is willing to entertain different opinions of substance without censoring them in the public domain. It earned him my respect long ago and his actions still do. I wish I could say the same thing for the management figures of the big cartel kingpins running the airline "loyalty" programs, even as they too are subjects of circumstance as we all are.

bigasiannd's characterization of Gary Leff runs in direct contrast to what I know of Gary Leff.