By Guy Page
Hours after Vermont publisher Chelsea Green on June 11 announced its pending release of Small Farm Republic, John Klar’s book on why conservatives should embrace local agriculture, the predictable heap of abuse from Vermont progressive ‘media influencers’ began.
“Chelsea Green has officially jumped the shark by publishing this rancid and racist rabble-rouser,” a former State House reporter and advocacy group leader Dan Barlow tweeted.
Prominent progressive blogger John Walters Twitter-mocked Klar’s Amazon book sale ranking: “Get back to me when Klar’s at the top of any list.”
Note to John Walters: as of today, Small Farm Republic is #1 in Amazon sales for agricultural and food policy books. And it’s in the top 100 of ALL political commentary and opinion books – #74, to be exact.
Small Farm Republic, welcome to the big time.
Klar is a Breaker of Rules. The Brookfield lawyer and farmer painted an indelible target on his book when he sued the City of Montpelier in 2020 for painting Black Lives Matter on State Street in front of the Vermont State House.
Klar lost that battle – not uncommon when you pick fights with Vermont’s progressive Powers That Be – but losing never slows him down. While working a farm, running for office (governor in 2020, state senator in 2022), building grassroots organizations, and writing a steady stream of op-eds, he somehow found the time and creative energy to write a book.
Like its author, Small Farm Republic also breaks the rules. Barlow has a point: Publisher Chelsea Green is the darling of the organic farmer-progressive-David Zuckerman set. For some, Chelsea Green publishing a conservative like John Klar is treason akin to Breitbart endorsing Adam Schiff’s re-election.
Outspoken progressive ‘thought leaders’ like Barlow – former Rutland Herald State House reporter, former executive director of Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility – tried to make Chelsea Green pay for its transgression. He tweeted:
Klar responded sharply: “Perhaps I will sue you for slander. Seems deliberately malicious….I am so sick of nasty haters like you, who know nothing about the issues and just slander people. You need to be held accountable for your fat mouth.”
Most of the comments from Barlow’s Twitter readers echoed his sentiments, although fellow Washington County GOP Senate candidate Paul Bean of Northfield called him out: “Please provide evidence for his racism. Let’s see it Daniel. I bet you can’t find one thing.”
Klar today provided VDC with a final comment on the Barlow kerfluffle: “Foul-mouthed people who try to control others by slandering them might as well use ‘pedophile’ or ‘rapist’ to attack those whose differing (and truthful!) ideas cause them to react like childish thugs. It is only a matter of time before one or more of them pay a hefty legal price, to send a message that this kind of hateful conduct is not only immoral, it is illegal. I for one will continue to freely express my opposition to the overt racism of exactly these same people, who make everything about race, reversing MLK’s creed of judging people on character rather than skin color. These people lack character, regardless of the color of their skin. They are pathetic (mostly white) racists, projecting their own hateful racism onto anyone who dares stand up to them.”
You can see why progressives just love the guy.
Small Farm Republic itself breaks the rules too – and not just for progressives. The cover urges conservatives to “reject climate alarmism” (most already do) but also to “embrace local agriculture” and “lead an environmental revival.” Not exactly goals you’ll hear at a Republican Party platform committee meeting.
The success of Klar’s book faces two enemies: progressives who hate the author, and conservative apathy about local agriculture and environmental revival – a subject he addresses in the forward of the book.
SFR wants Vermonters to reverse – or at least protect themselves from – globalist efforts to control our food supply. Klar expresses hope about “the increasing awareness of Americans of the vital importance of local food and family farms,” he wrote recently. “Especially as globalists seek to slaughter cows to control food supplies, and Bill Gates peddles fake lab meat to save humanity from carbon dioxide, more people are investigating where their family’s food comes from, and how it is processed and distributed.”
Small Farm Republic is available new on Amazon for $17.99 (Kindle) and $24.95 (paperback).
Categories: Agriculture, Media
Congratulations Mr Klar !
Congratulations!
Wonderful news! Chelsea Green, it should be noted, has also published books questioning the official vaccine and covid narratives. They sued Senator Elizabeth Warren for trying to get Joseph Mercola’s book about covid struck off Amazon.
Thank you Mr. Klar for standing up for what you believe in, wish more people had that same spirit in Vermont.
ICYMI: The state of Maine has passed the first in country “right to food” amendment to their constitution.
Citizens of Maine now have a Constitutional right to grow, raise, process, barter, trade and sell their own food without government interference.
Have other states followed suit?
https://apnews.com/article/605019e60df5b3e32bc70c86dcf957b3
Mr. Klar …”‘rancid and racist rabble-rouser,”: Dan Barlow…progressive ‘thought leader“: Now there you have it…apparently Mr. Barlow wants us to see Mr. Klar as a poopooface. Well neighbors, do you feel influenced?
Thank you, John Klar, for this book and the outstanding public service you are providing to our state and our country!
All Hail John Klar! Far Out for the Brookfield farmer/lawyer! Daniel Barlow was NEVER a reporter, he was an editorialist, a carnival barker.
Bravo!
Been living this for decades now…only way to go. William Olenick,Founder,Back to the Land Foundation.
With that kind of attack on John K’s book, I think I will have get a copy to see for myself whether it is a “rancid” and “racist” book. Assaults like that often tell me more about the critic than about the person or book being criticized.
Who is John Walters? Perhaps the guy who wanted 200 miles of wind “farm” on Vermont ridges? The prog who thinks Baruth and Krowinski are “great leaders”? Really the number one spreader of horse manure.
As someone who had the police notified for daring to have a “Klar for Governor sign on their property not that many moons ago, I challenge any Vermonter’s who disparaged John to crack open the book and read the introduction! Ask your local libraries to carry it!
It’s always mystifying in these days of woke intersectionality and elevating oppressed voices that John’s wise words have been silenced. He’s Abenaki, Jewish, and has raised a biracial child in Vermont…he has first-hand familiarity with poverty, our failed healthcare system, and the collapse of our agrarian culture.
Fighting for Vermont values has come at a high cost to the Klar family and the LEAST we can do is to buy several copies of this book. Endless thanks to John and his courageous, selfless journey to defend Vermont from tyranny.
Thank you ,John !!
We surely need to preserve and protect Vermont’s farmland.
John Klar is not a racist. He is an earnest and caring person, and a very hard worker. He is a passionate advocate for small farms and I admire his caring and energy.We should be careful the way we’re using the word “racist”. It is an important word that needs not to be diminished by those using it inappropriately out of what seems to be spite.
The progressive party has and continues to destroy everything that was good and right about Vermont, go against them and they are a violent name calling mob. They claim that they want unity and be all inclusive but only if you tow the liberal/progressive line. If not you’re a racist, bigot,homophobic etc.
Just ordered the book. Looking forward to reading it. It’s amazing how anyone who truly believe in saving the planet would be opposed to have conservative embrace sound approaches to sustainable agriculture. Maybe they’re afraid they’ll have fewer reasons to hate conservatives.
A lot of great comments here. Thanks John for all you do, and/or, try to do. You have my total support, from one who is keeping the family farm in agriculture rather than selling to a developer. It hasn’t been easy, but worth it.