old-fashion publicity trick
We're both participants in a public online discussion regarding the behavior of the CEO of a company which, at least for me, I can say I have no legal vested interest or direct financial dealings.
Fundamentally, this is between Mr. Calacanis, the management of Mahalo, and Google.
We're both mere spectators. By replying personally, Mr. Calacanis chose to make this a personal public issue--in both the original article & this forum. That's entirely within his purview. I'm sure he's experienced enough to know the potential ramifications of those actions.
How do you consider yourself not caught in the "middle" when you potentially change your view about someone based on one source?
And keep in mind Squidoo was not automating and scraping on the scale that Mahalo is today. So Mahalo is far worse.