It’s time to leave Free Republic after 25 years

vanity | 06-10-2025 | self

[Jaysin]

Dear Freepers

After almost 25 years of freerepublic.com being a rare bastion of sanity in this crazy world, I will be ending my time as a member of this once great site.

The quality of FR has degraded to the point that I no longer find much usage for the site that I can’t find on other platforms and sources. I have had multiple conversations with many freepers, both in the forum and privately and many of them agree with some of my points of contention:

A) The primary reason I am leaving is the failure of FR to address the rising and blatant antisemitism on here. Yes, a vast majority of freepers call them out and see right through it but the failure of the FR leadership to deal with this issue is not acceptable. There are a few dozen of these posters on here who have a very clear track record of posting their jew-hatred over and over again. Of course they will mask it under the cover of “I’m criticizing Israel, not Jews” or “I’m an American Firster” label or my favorite one “I’m an Appalachian Christian”. But if you look closely at what they comment on and how they do it, it is clear they have a JEW problem. These posters will ignore the atrocities committed by the same types of people who committed 9/11, killed RFK, blew up the USS cole, the marine barracks in Lebanon, shot up a club in Florida and countless other horrific acts that have killed and maimed thousands of people, orphaned many children, and left multi-thousands of grieving loved ones behind. The moral compass of these posters is quite shocking to say the least. And they always use the same tropes–foreign aid, the USS Liberty incident, war-mongering BiBi, AIPAC controls xxxxxx, and my favorite one is when they link to sites like the UN and Amnesty International as their “proof” that Israel is violating some international “law”. Some are more blunt and vicious than others, but it’s come to the point where much of my time is spent responding and commenting to the crazies on here. And of course most of them will deny they hate Jews, they just don’t want American foreign policy dictated by Israel etc….. FR is not twitter and is supposedly a tightly monitored site of like minded conservative individuals. Most of these loonies should be formally warned or banned, but they are not. Whatever happened to zotting?

B) Another significant reason I’m leaving is sadly, the quality of the discourse here. This was a website that was once feared as a threat by the left and helped expose the Dan Rather scandal. Those days are long gone. There was a time when I would come on here to get genuine and insightful opinions on politics and world events from intelligent people. Many of my political understandings and positions over the years were molded from what I read on this forum. Nowadays most of the comments to the real issues facing the USA are nothing more than silly venting comments in the vein of “we should lock up everyone of these rioters and throw away the key” or “Trump needs to fire these judges ASAP” or “It’s time for public tarring and feathering to return” level of quality. I can read through multiple threads without finding a useful insight to glean from it. It is really nothing more than venting and wishful thinking but not really practical–the same level of commentary can be found on a foxnews comments section. The personal assaults and attacks levied against each other don’t bother me so much and are often a natural response and I do sometimes like seeing someone get slammed down. I know I have been guilty of some crude and impolite commenting over the years. It’s the overall value of the content that has declined.

C) As a follow up to B, A vast majority of the articles that are being posted nowadays are from very mainstream fake news sources such as the NYtimes/Reuters/AP/DailyMail/MSNBC/CNN/SFGate etc… with a solid supplement of other almost useless sources such as foxnews/nypost/breitbart. Any halfway intelligent freeper on here KNOWS darn well that there's NOTHING useful published on these websites or articles so the comments turn into nothing more than “this article is such fake news” and similar style comments. It’s the same story over and over and over again and we all point it out. But real thought provoking ideas are not to be found. And of course we have the endless BOMBSHELLS and BOOMS and BREAKING headlines from the gateway pundit and dailymail posted on a daily basis that never amount to anything. Sites like American Thinker / townhall / Sultan Knish and some others are the only ones with real content worthy of real discussion If anyone dares to post some thought provoking article from some small blog or some less-known unfamiliar site, you’re instantly accused of blog-pimping. As a lead on to my next issue, the same news event is often posted multiple times just from a different source.

D) Leadership–I know I’m going to get flamed hard for this but who is steering the ship here at FR nowadays? I have much respect for Jim and what he’s built but I really feel like he only appears when appealing for money. He certainly is not actively involved in leading and guiding the site into the future. Perhaps it is time to pass the torch on to someone else who can keep the site as a useful and relevant place on the internet. Sadly, I feel that there is no one clearly calling the shots and no leadership here anymore

E) My final issue with FR is the functionality of the site. There hasn’t been a single update to this site since I joined. Not a thing. No, we don’t need flashy profiles and avatars and other silly bells and jingles but it’s 2025 and simple features like the ability to edit your comment or even delete it would be nice. A like and dislike option to a post would also be a nice feature and save a lot of the commenting issues I mentioned above. The ability to respond inline to comments would also make the flow much easier–If someone makes a comment at #12 and I dont join in until comment #93, I’m forced to copy/paste what they wrote so my comment can be understood in context. And no in 2025, I shouldn’t have to use html to post a picture. The breaking news is often hours behind an actual event happening. The search features are primitive at best. The site can still be very basic looking but can still be user-friendly.

I would love for FR to become a political powerhouse again that it once was but it will need to look in the mirror and decide what it wants the future to be. Or it can bury itself in the sand pretending that young 27 year olds are jumping on here and using the site (they aren’t!) I’m in my early 50’s and I sometimes feel like I bring down the median user age by 10 years. That’s not a bad thing per se, but what's going to be in 5-10 years? I really wonder how FR is going to make it into the next decade without some type of overhaul.

I truly wish FR the very best going forward and I wish only the best. I genuinely hope something good will come out of this final post. I will not be responding to this thread but will probably read direct freepmails sent to me regarding the thread before I log off for the last time. Some of you will tell me good luck and some of you will me good riddance. I understand.

GOD BLESS THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND ALL FREEDOM LOVING PEOPLE IN THE WORLD.

[Lazamataz]

I thought Jewishness (as it were) was matrilineal...?

It is. But if your father is Jewish, you're free to look over the religion.

[texas booster]

Jaysin,

I do not expect you to ever see this, but too have sometimes been disillusioned here at FR, my online home for 30 years. Where was I to go? Fox sNews? Youtube? CNN? They all bear the hallmarks of directed censorship and outright propaganda from the MSM/Dems.

There still has been no one to replace Rush.

Rather than leave I decided to make it better by posting new articles, taking over an abandoned Ping! list (VDH), starting a few more ping! lists and trying to raise the level of discourse on the forum. And I donate more than I used to, or probably should.

Starting a new business required all my free time a couple of years ago. After a stroke severely limited my time on the forum, I still do what I can to help the forum expand and become better.

Hey, maybe you will come back and try to make FR better.

Lord knows that Jim, John and the frequent posters can’t do it all themselves.

[Big Red Badger]

Hey Dan ...
This was in No Way directed at You
FRiend but the Opus in general!
.
Thanks for the Ping with over
300 responses it Very entertaining!

[Big Red Badger]

HA!
.
I’LL start the First!

[grey_whiskers]

Excellent and timely post, sir.

[Zionist Conspirator]

Unfortunately, there have always been anti-Semites at FR (when I joined in '99 it was crawling with them, and many used the names of notorious Nazis as their screen names). There was some relief after 9/11 but there are always anti-Semites here. And unfortunately there have always been anti-Semites in the conservative movement. Even great heroes like Albert Wedemeyer eventually became anti-Semites. And so many conservatives in both the past and present identify the enemy with "Zionism," not a nationalist movement but a plot to rule the world outlined in the "Protocols."

I'm sick of them too, but I still like reading the articles and comments here, so I'm still here although mostly in the background.

There'll be one less Good Guy without you, so I'm sorry to see you go, but that's up to you. Maybe just check on occasionally, okay?

[Macoozie]

“𝑴𝒂𝒙𝒊𝒎𝒖𝒎 𝑳𝒊𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒕𝒚 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒎𝒆𝒂𝒏𝒔 𝑭𝒓𝒆𝒆 𝑺𝒑𝒆𝒆𝒄𝒉, 𝑩𝒓𝒖𝒉.
If you think this site is free speech, you need to reread your constitution.”

Yes of course, it’s Government that can’t restrict speech. FR is a privately owned entity and can do whatever it wants.

My idea here is that FR is a bastion of thought, conversation, and at times, vitriol. Also a great place to meet the enemy. Original poster quitting because of Jew Hatred is silly. It’s been around since the Beginning. It’s on a new rise these past few years.

So why not continue the Fight? Put the Jew Haters back in their boxes by laughing at them, by ridiculing their arguments, by exposing them as the shiiite heads they truly are?

Peace to you my friend.

[HandyDandy]

“ LOL I know. I used it ironically. A lot of FReepers are former Democrats.”

Ok, got it. So, you are aware of its current connotative meaning and used it ironically. Sorry I missed the irony!

[chrisser]

"I found its helps to understand that we are all getting really old and cranky. It isn't easy to reply to snarky and hurtful comments in the same manner. I've been trying really hard to stay on topic when posting, and not to reply harshly. Easier said than done sometimes."

It also would benefit some people to develop a thicker skin and a sense of humor.

I don't have time to go through this entire thread, but I've gone through the first 200 or so comments and there really aren't many I would classify has hurtful. Snarky, perhaps. But that's a inevitable part of open dialog with people who can and will disagree. This site would be even more boring if we all agreed on everything and there would be no reason for discussion.

The OP could have kept his thoughts to himself and left quietly. He instead chose the path of an opus, with all that entails. If he expected everyone to pat him on the back and agree wholeheartedly with every part of his screed, then he's been on the wrong site for 25 years.

[kinsman redeemer]

...first time I’ve heard of you.

Bye.

[boatbums]

I’ve gone on sites like Townhall and Breitbart and had some dialogs with others using Disqus, but never on the same level as Free Republic. This site remains my favorite for news aggregate and comments without having to be bothered by liberal trolls who only want to be nasty and anti-conservative. I haven’t seen “antisemitism” here but I may not look at the same threads as you do.

I do NOT blame Free Republic nor JR for what others post here. It is a FREE site open to anyone who wants to participate and is only as good as what WE make it. I hope you will reconsider and continue to add your own thoughts and knowledge to this site. It benefits everyone.

[wintertime]

I was threatened by way of private reply.

I reported it to Jim and the moderators. Since the threat was thinly veiled enough, the government school defender was given a warning.

I stayed off Free Republic for a few months, and all the government school defenders disappeared. They have never been back to my knowledge.

[frank ballenger]

RE: political news from X....

I am a Luddite but on FR with a laptop.

I know is a means to chat back and forth since all the internet “I’m at the Mall lot now.” “I’m walking inside the Mall.” “Jackie and Kenneth are at Cinnabon.”

How do people “get political news”? Ask for names of famous politicians and see what their posts are?

I’m serious. And thinking about X.

[sopo]

I tried to maneuver you into being the thread killer, but it didn’t work.

[sopo]

I tried to maneuver you into being the thread killer, but it didn’t work.

[af_vet_1981]

Concur with metmom in this case; it is a very bad look for someone purporting to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

1 Corinthians 10:32
Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God:

Ephesians 4:29
Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.

[metmom]

Thank you.

[Big Red Badger]

Funny how Many Times I’m the Very Last...
My Pencil is Very Sharp.

[Freeleesy]

It’s sad that a few bad apples (Dr._MOJO and Angelino97 with his other sock puppet account) spoil the lot.

[Elsie]

Probably not.