“I always thought a membership fee is the answer. It would end FReepathons.”
I doubt that it would be an economic “improvement”. What makes you think so? Wouldn’t the membership fee have to be so pervasive that it would dissuade many from participating?
Right now, people that cannot afford “membership fees” and that are at poverty level still need to be able to read and see the truth that FR provides. But if there’s a fee, they would no longer be able to. I think the true Conservative ideology is what this forum and the owners currently represent. What you are espousing... not so much.
What I would suggest is a nominal membership fee of about $10 or so per month for the privilege of posting threads. Replies to those threads would still be free for any member, whether they are a paying member or not.
In addition to the thousands of dollars per month benefit to FR by preferred members, this would also reduce the number of threads and make this place a more streamlined source of news.
And to repeat myself, any registered member is free to post replies, but only privileged members can post threads