LEZGETREAL is not a Gay Gals View of the World it is still Bill Graber’s View of the World
Melanie Nathan's Lezgetreal Article - the Lie and mode of Catching Lisa Miller's co-accused
by Melanie Nathan, Dec 27, 2011, 12.01 am
Safely navigating and sailing beyond the blogging scandal of the year, I am happy to say I can look back and gasp a final farewell at those left behind. That is where this should end.
However, I would be remiss if I did not provide the year its well deserved completion. Let us end this lying to our community by straight men; and hopefully those who are complicit in such lies will realize they are not serving the LGBTI community. Let me explain…
The lie did not die -nor did it snooze- it has been and is perpetuated by the continued involvement of Paula Brooks, aka Bill Graber in Lezgetreal’s operations.
The so called gay gals of LezGetReal may not be so gay after all! LezGetreal’s team currently comprises of Linda S. Carbonbell, aka LaVictoire, aka MacBride and her “daughter” Bridgette MacBride, aka LaVictoire, and here comes the big surprise Mr. Bill Graber, aka Paula Brooks.
At great risk of adding to Graber’s 15 minutes, let me remind those of you with short memories; Bill Graber is the now confessed liar who created a character by the name of Paula Brooks. Paula Brooks became publisher of a lesbian blog called LezGetReal and took many people for a long, long ride, through his want to be a lesbian fantasy, phony storytelling, bullying and manipulation.
The story unfolded when Tim MacMaster aka Amina Araf, “A Gay Gal in Damascus” who Bill Graber’s Paula Brooks claims to have promoted, turned out to be a heterosexual man in Scotland, also posing as a lesbian blogger.
We are reminded by the Bilerico article of June 14th 2011, “For two and a half years, LGBT activist and blogger Melanie Nathan had been working with Paula Brooks as an editor of Lez Get Real. But less than three weeks ago, Nathan resigned from her position at the website. She was livid at the publication’s direction and Brooks’ refusal to consider Nathan’s suspicions that Amina Araff, the “Gay Girl in Damascus” who had been blogging at Lez Get Real since February, was a fraud. Nathan couldn’t have chosen a better time to jump ship.”
Now do you remember? This was a mere 6 months ago! Seems like forever does it not! If you want to read more on the scandal please read it at this link- http://www.bilerico.com/2011/06/melanie_nathans_intense_final_weeks_at_fraudulent.php but do not let me take you from these fine pages as I remind there is more to tell…
The writer/s for Lezgetreal: Linda Carbonell is supposedly a straight woman and mother of Bridgette, who identifies as the forever virginal transgender lesbian.
The ownership of Lezgetreal – the website currently asserts “………………. I, Bridgette, am the owner, and yes, I am a lesbian transsexual and intersexual. So, please enjoy your stay here at LezGetReal. We do not always agree with those around us, but we are reminded all the time of something that Terry Pratchett once said “Pulling together is the aim of despotism and tyranny. Free men pull in all kinds of directions.” Thanks a lot for taking the time to visit and we hope that you come back again soon.”
Behind the Scene Partner: Now we have Bill Graber the self identified heterosexual man, living in Ohio, supposedly with his heterosexual wife whose name, he says, happens to be Paula Brooks, who had no idea she was being used by her hubby to feign lesbian political blogger activities and who knows if even that is real.
Some months ago Bridgette LaVictoire, who now claims to own LezGetReal, after the explosive exposure of the Paula Brooks lie, confessed to me in a written communication that Bill Graber is still working with her on the site. She told me at the time that she had been in love with “Paula Brooks,” and that she really needed the newly revealed Bill Graber, as she was not emotionally able to let go and run the site without him.
Bill Graber is not going to admit he is still involved with LezGetReal, but this blurb from my conversations, continued threats against me by Graber, and the continued footprint on LGR makes it all too obvious:
Graber’s threats toward me reveal a man who is protective of LaVictoire and “his website” as he refers to it on my phone messages. The same attack is likely to show up on these very pages or wherever you may cross post, either via the voice of Carbonell, Graber, LaVictoire or maybe even an unidentifiable, anonymous made up no name third party.
There is much evidence of Graber’s presence. The fact that his new male photo avatar shows up on phone numbers and communications that once had the phony picture of Paula brooks and are still operative in association with Lezgetreal. On the Page where one advertizes for LezGetReal – a recently updated site, you will note the screenshot date 12/21/2011. The phone number to call for advertising via the page is 202-642-5304. This is Paula Brook’s telephone number which is still operative. I have the screenshot with today’s date saved.
Let us take this a little further with this small peep into the ocean of Paula Brooks lies and look at two cases still making the news and exhibiting the Graber footprint.
The Lisa Miller Story: – The current court indictments are citing the Melanie Nathan article on Lezgetreal as part of their evidence. It points directly to this article – http://lezgetreal.com/2010/10/fugitive-child-abductor-lisa-miller-pinned-down-in-quita-ecuador/
It was Paula Brooks (unknown to be aka Graber who fed me the information.) It was s/he who said a tip came in alerting that Miller was in Ecuador. It was Paula Brook’s aka whose girlfriend Stephanie, was purportedly an FBI special agent, had confirmed the location. I was the one who wrote that article, based on the phony source and lies. Now Lezgetreal is trying to claim a prize in helping catch the bad guys. Being proud about a lie and false information- even if it did help catch the bad guys? I smell a rat! And its ghost is Paula Brooks!
I relayed that information to authorities and attorneys. I was the one who wrote that article and I was the one who was fed the lie. How much money was spent because Graber and LEZGETREAL had so many chase a lie
Bridgette LaVictoire is already preemptively defending the tip on LEZGETREAL because Bill Graber has noticed my bait comments that I have left on other sites. They are spinning the look we did good yarn in the hope that no one will notice that they lied:
“According to the AP “Lisa Miller and her daughter were last known to be in Nicaragua in March 2010, but the affidavit cites a website “lezgetreal.com” that says Lisa Miller and her daughter were reported to be in Quito, Ecuador, in the fall of 2010.” We did relay that tip at that time. It is called a lead……” http://lezgetreal.com/2011/12/the-media-and-the-abduction-of-isabella-miller-white-wash-and-clarity/
The Dan Choi Story: Bill Graber fed me sourced information supposedly from within the Pentagon. Paula Brook’s father, General Brooks, was chief of staff to Secretary Gates, or so many of us were told; we were also told to keep the secret. Thanks to dad Brooks had a lot of access. Her kids went to the pre-school at the pentagon so they could be close to dad. While we grapple with the flow of information, we now know Paula Brooks blew this this story into her fabricated balloon too – and while we ponder what was real and what was not, one thing thing that is clear is that Paula Brooks then and Bill Graber now was and is after Dan Choi, determined to discredit him.
Indeed there may well have been a person inside the pentagon feeding files off to Paula Brooks, as according to Paula, s/he received Dan Choi’s military file and Paula Brooks, aka Bill Graber had read the file and knew the reason why Choi decided to leave the military. This so called reason is alluded to in the recent article written by Linda S. Carbonell and quoted below.
Paula said she had the Choi file delivered to a fellow blogger so it would not be seen to come from our site, Lezgetreal. If it came from our site then dad, General Brooks could get into serious trouble. Of course there is no Dad inside the Pentagon, just another mole with another name who has since retired, or perhaps some conspiracy, involving the use of the Paula Brooks fiction to get at Lieutenant Dan Choi.
It is clear from the many articles written on Lezgetreal through 2010 and beyond, some through my own pen, with Brooks and her sources en tow, that Bill Graber had a vendetta for Choi. Well we thought that the Choi bashing would stop with the demise of Paula Brooks. But now we know Paula aka Bill Graber is still powering the Lezgetreal blogs.
The vendetta continues on lezgetreal and it has Paula Brook’s hand writing all over it. See below for a snap shot of an earlier Paula Brooks influenced Dan Choi Article, and the rant includes reference to all the things Choi allegedly did in the military and the current rant that is being delivered here by Carbobnell is almost verbatim to that rant which Paula Brooks had delivered to me via chat when I was with Lezgetreal.
This recent Dan Choi attack,is almost verbatim to all Paula Brook aka Bill Graber rantings over Choi. Bill Graber is still after Choi. http://lezgetreal.com/2011/12/dan-choi-has-lost-it-and-dan-ellsbergs-not-far-behind/ Dan Choi Has Lost It, and Dan Ellsberg’s Not Far Behind, Posted by: Linda Carbonell on December 16, 2011.
“As usual, I’m watching Countdown while I work. I just listened to Lt. Dan Choi calling Bradley Manning “an excellent soldier.” If Lt. Choi’s appraisal is indicative of what his supporters know about Manning, they are fools.”
An excellent soldier does not get charged with assaulting other soldiers. An excellent soldier does not have the firing pins removed from his weapons because he is too unstable to be trusted with a working weapon. An excellent soldier does not provide the enemy with information that they can use to incite attacks on other soldiers. An excellent soldier is not deemed unfit for combat because he is too uncontrollable. .” and the Graber-esque rant continued.
Bill Graber is still involved in LezGetReal and continues to work with Bridgette LaVictoire and no the site is about as much of “a gay gals view of the world” as it is a gays girl view of anything.
Listen up dear readers, bloggers and sources – LezGetReal is not a ‘Gay Gals View of the world’ – it was and still is Bill Graber’s view of the World.
Now let me just say this, there is a lot more that does not meet the eye and you journalists and bloggers may let this die or have a field time.
Brooks was good at a double game and she played that with her writers, her sources and those whom she sought to bully via coment. Paula was never real and nor was anything she did worthy of a handshake, least of all accolade.
While Paula is no more, Bill Graber is still at the pump of the site and everything he does he is doing as a straight man. Because for sure, no matter how hard she tries, he has never been a lesbian no matter what!
For more information kindly contact Melanie Nathan at [email protected]
Twitter @melanienathan1
![speaker mel nathan](http://oblogdeeoblogda.files.wordpress.com/2015/01/africanhrc.png?w=300"%20alt="africanhrc"%20width="300"%20height="300"%20/></a>)
PoochParkWear customizes hoodies and t-shirts, the good, the naughty, the in between, whether proud or quirky let them be seen. We also offer biker jackets, croc or pleather collars, a variety of collar charms, and our special Zinja beaded collars made by a co-op of HIV-positive South African women, the Sisonke women who weave the beads onto the collars.
Melanie,
It seems that you’ll have to start insisting on face-to-face via video chat in order to know (well, probably know) whether you’re actually speaking to another woman before you sign on to things in future? A shame to have to be so paranoid, but I guess given all of this, it’s in your best interests…
Tracy, Yes II have hanged how I do a , lot of things since this happened. At the time I tired to do face to face wth PB akd BG many times. I started the business relationships via Lez Get Real after a 3rd party introduction.
He had spun such a huge yearn and created a huge phony existence.that the persona was in extistence long before I came along. The pretense that ‘she’ was deaf made the form of contact easy to believe., There were many redflags along the way that I see clearly retrospectively. Like the 4 or 5 times I tried to set up meetings or get together with Graber. Remember Paula lived on the East coast and I am on the west coast. I tried skype but s/he rejected that. It was a very sophisticated yarn and trying to explain it here does not cut it.
If you’re angry that Lez Get Real is still online, then blame Bil Browning; after all it was he Graber and Carbonelli went to for damage control.
I am not angry Lezgetreal is still online; I truly do not care. In fact it has 1,400 plus articles of mine up which I still want people to see. I thinnk the site should operate in truth not under continued pretense,. I also think that Bill Graber should find a way to pay back what he “cost” people. Yet he is making and I quote “a small profit” from the site. I find that unconscionable.
That said, I am sad that they are perpetuating the lie to the community. Most of us wanted nothing to do with Bill Graber after the ploy became public. But Carbonell and LaVictoire have embraced him. They continue to lie to the community.
I think it is unproductive to caste blame of any kind on any third party. Only upon the liars.
I don’t think they were successful in their damage control, they lost most of the community of fans, especially those who follow me. They simply have a google news formula for running news cycle and picking up hits. The blogging community does not consider them a worthy source any longer and they have not been trusted for a long time. If you look at then quality of the work, its pretty shoddy. The activism level is gone completely and its just awful. What a shame. I had really hoped Bridgette could be successful on her own, but apparently she is unable to do it alone and it is not very good at that. My opinion., Its sad.
My maiden name is Carbonell, my married name is LaVictoire and I write under my maiden name because my husband was a Federal judiciary employee and his family were forbidden by judicial ethics rules that don’t apply to the SCOTUS to engage in political activity at the risk of his job. I have never used the name MacBride. Bridgette LaVictoire is my daughter. MacBride is a name she uses on her personal e-mail account and used in the past for the same reason I used my maiden name. Bill Graber no longer writes for Lezgetreal, but he does provide technical assistance and forwards to us communications that he still receives on his old e-mail sites. He’s too freaking busy right now, caring for the real Paula Brooks, his wife, during her battle with cancer. We retained the logo for Lezgetreal because it is primarily Bridgette’s site and she is gay, as are all of our guest writers. I am a gay-ally as is Pat Carbonell, who reports New England stories. As for how the rest of the world responded to the Amina-Paula sock puppet scandal – read our Wikipedia listing….they cited us as the only gay site that covered all the news, so that is the direction we decided to go in – cover everything that might impact or interest lesbians anywhere in the world. But the bottom line was a comment made by a 20-year-old co-worker at my paying job. I was explaining what I do when not caring for patients and she said “That was you!?! Oh, my God, you were on the Daily Show….and Adult Swim….that is so fucking cool!”
Thank you for your comments Linda. Bill Graber is providing you with tips. There are chats between him and Bridgette with suggestions about what to write and what to say. They communicate more than just on technical issues. He is still controlling her and the site! There are so many contradictions and so much proof about what is real and what is not. Bottom line is just come out with the truth, get rid of Bill Graber and I wish you success with Lezgetreal.
I only want to see him out of the lesbian blogosphere and am saddened that you would use him for anything at all – there are so many technicians around – how cold you sink so low? – or that you would be his friend and embrace him and his problems the way you admit to in this comment? He is an enemy of the lesbian and LGBT blog world. He lied to you and me and thousands of people and you have the audacity to associate with him and then embrace a friendship. SHAME on you!
I want him to make amends to those he has wronged. I hope Lezgetreal goes into mega success – but please not with him on board!
Sorry Linda~
The whole thing stinks, no matter how you attempt to justify it all…
I feel awful for Melanie right now, having bought into the whole thing (“hearing impaired”?!) & having placed so much trust, & her own articles, into the site later found to operate under false pretences- that is pure manipulation by LezGetReal, and at a level much lower than the belly of a snake…
Drop Bill Graber & reclaim your reputation…I no longer read your site until you right this blatant wrong…
Thanks for your support Tracy. I am sure most rational people see it your way. Unfortunately many fall for the fluff and the BS. There is no justification for their continued relationship with Bill Graber it is tantamount to perpetuating a fraud one already knows about. Like being an accessory, which they may well have been for a period of time before Graber was exposed. I wish LGR the best of luck, but only in truth and not in lies!
http://ngforequality.blogspot.com/2011/12/why-is-lezgetreal-still-online.html This guy has the audacity to accuse me of still being involved – how warped can you get! Dont you think I took enough shit from the perpetrator if the fraud. Remember I resigned before Graber was exposed as the fraud! I Knew something was wrong – and out of whack but I did not know that Paula Brooks my friend and colleague for two years was a fraud. I have hundreds of hours of chats to prove it!!
Linda I have been reading a series of articles that have appeared on the site since early last year until recently under your name. I KNOW you didn’t write them yourself. I have figured out who really wrote them, actually a married straight woman. How do I know, certain key idiosyncratic phrases and an intimate familiarity and interest in the subject matter of the posts by the person who really wrote them, and possibly even financial rewards from someone else for writing the articles. I don’t know whether you just accept posts from anyone and then post them in your name or whether you are running a much more sinister propaganda conspiracy for certain parties, perhaps under the direction of Bill Graber. And by the way, the series of articles I am onto you about is of no particular interest to lesbians nor about lesbians, so it is clear your site has another purpose that is not clear.
I do not know who you are – re this post- but would love to hear more from you. Please could you visit this site again with more detail or contact me privately at I would love to hear more about your assertions. Thank you for posting here it is much appreciated.