It's interesting that 'vampire squid' stuck though. Also his work with Mark Ames in Moscow at 'The Exile' through the 90s was stellar and very funny to read.
However I think you need to take what he has to say with a grain of salt. I'm one of those liberals that won't take their own side in an argument. I like his writing and agree with its sentiment but I do think his writing is more editorial, rather than adhering to the ethics of journalism. It is in the same vein as Michael Moore. He has a perspective, and his content is more about validating his opinion as opposed to doing true investigative journalism.