i put this same posting on the bugs and diseases section and it is doing a lot better on there. i am pretty sure that i have fungus gnats.

Have you tried neem oil???

no i havent, what i ended up doing is replanting all the affected plants in a mixture of sphagnum moss and perlite, it was the most easily accessible medium that i could find that wasnt just regular potting soil, everything seems to be doing fine.

They sound a lot like Fungus Gnats. They are relatively harmless to plants and humans, just a nuisance to be around. There is an organic insecticide called Bacillus Thuringensis Israelensis designed especially to kill Fungus Gnat (and Mosquito) larvae. You use 1-2 teaspoons per quart of water and drench the soil. You must use it every week for 4-5 weeks as it only kills the larvae in the soil, not the adult flies (who continue to live for 30 days or so and continue to lay new eggs). It is available under the name Gnatrol from Discount Hydroponics over the Internet.

You might also try using Neem Oil at 1/2 tablespoon per quart of water as a soil drench. It is also available from Discount Hydroponics and is a very useful insecticide AND fungicide to have around in general.