Posted on 07/06/2002 2:31:54 PM PDT by B. A. Conservative
"Founded in 1996 by Jim Robinson, Free Republic is a loosely organized group of grassroots Americans who support our Constitution and look for honesty, integrity and honor from those in government."
What is our mission? "Free Republic is dedicated to reversing the trend of unconstitutional government expansion and is advocating a complete restoration of our constitutional republic." Jim Robinson has listed a great deal more worthwhile information and detail concerning the mission and a description of Free Republic. The current mission statement has been edited from an earlier version to account for past events. The original mission statement included language advocating the impeachment of William Jefferson Clinton, then President of the United States. Free Republic accomplished that portion of its mission statement by playing a central role in the events culminating in the successful vote in the House of Representatives to Impeach William Jefferson Clinton. For its role in the impeachment, Free Republic is an unequivocal and unqualified success.
However in evaluating and measuring Free Republic's performance with regard to the larger and by far the more significant role, "reversing the trend of unconstitutional government expansion and a complete restoration of our constitutional republic", I think the leadership and members of Free Republic need to refocus their thinking. By using any yardstick of your own choosing, there are few if any parameters in which conservatives can claim any improvement. And in any small victories that might have occurred, I would ask that you point out the role played by Free Republic in bringing it about. In short, I think that Free Republic has lost its focus on its most important reason for being.
Before offering my suggestions for getting back on track, I would like offer some thoughts on how and why we have become distracted from the primary focus as so eloquently stated by Jim Robinson:
The two courses of action most likely to offer a speedy and effective return to our Constitutional Republic are political and judicial. The left has used judicial appointments very effectively against the Constitution. Reagan advanced the task of recovering the federal judiciary, but we still have a long way to go in this area. Nevertheless, strategic use of the courts could be a very effective weapon in our arsenal. I think this should be the topic of some very serious discussions on how we can use the courts to attack existing unconstitutional government actions, laws and regulations. It takes someone to bring an action, and some legal thought to make such efforts productive. Forum shopping and plaintiff seeking are actively used by our opposition. I think this is an area where we can do much more than we have been doing.
And that brings us to the area of the greatest interest to us all. And it is in this arena that we are more likely to bring the quick results that we all desire. Well thought out, carefully crafted political activism can be effective. And each election offers opportunities to build on prior successes and to learn from prior mistakes. I will proffer that we have done little more than chat or indulge in wishful thinking. Our attempts at organized planning, coordination or unification of efforts, orderly assignment of tasks and delegation of responsibilities have been largely non-existent. All volunteer labor is hard to harness and effectively deploy. But it is not impossible.
Our computers and the internet provide the means to share and coordinate our efforts. It could also provide the means of choosing our leaders, delegation of tasks and responsibilities, and our most powerful weapon in recruiting new talents. Every human on the planet that has an internet connection has access to our materials and our efforts. It is a means to make our voices heard and to recruit more voices.
Everyone that frequents this site has visions of making their voice heard and making their vote count. Individually our voices are lost in the crowd noise. And even with our dismal lack of voter turnout, there were still more than 100 million votes cast in the last presidential election. It is difficult to know that your vote counted when it constitutes such a small part of the total vote. Political parties make a difference in the outcomes of elections by pooling the votes of like-minded individuals. Political candidates exercise power because each supporter transfers a portion of their individual power to the candidate. Coalitions gain power by pooling the individual powers of their members.
Free Republic can exercise the power of a coalition through uniting behind either common candidates or common issues or both. By acting as a unit, we can multiply our political effectiveness considerably. By recruiting and enlarging or attracting new members or supporters, we can multiply our effectiveness even more. We have proved that we can be effective. Ask the House managers and other members of the House how Clinton came to be impeached in spite of all the efforts of the media to prevent it.
We are approaching another election in a few months. Traffic on this site will increase progressively as we get closer to election day. Our political clout and power will increase exponentially as our viewing numbers increase. No matter what anyone wishes, the polls will be relatively close and the outcome of the election uncertain until the polls are closed. We will only have a good idea of the outcome when the exit polls and returns begin to come in. Before Election Day, the closer the polling data and the more uncertain the outcome of the election, the more our votes and our voices will matter. The more unified we are leading up to the election, the more our voices will be heard, and the more our votes will be courted.
We will have zero influence on Democratic voters or candidates. Any efforts directed at Democratic candidates will be a complete waste of our time and resources. Almost all directed at Democratic votes will have the same sad results. But our efforts directed at Republican voters and candidates can have a tremendous impact on the election and more importantly on the campaign leading up to the election. And surprisingly, our efforts in this election could have an even greater impact on the election of 2004.
FreeRepublic has the power within its grasp to achieve its mission and change the course of history. Organization, delegation, and unity of purpose are the keys to success. On another thread, I have offered what I believe to be one solution to the problem. There may be others. That is what the mission of this forum is about. Let's Roll!
No, they burned themselves to death, and they MURDERED their own innocent children (Well...by their own I mean David Koresh's and a number of his carnal wives), because they didn't simply come out of the building when they could have, just like others had done already...You know, those ones who are ALIVE today??? And they did all this because they believed an even bigger FREAK...David Koresh. They chose their own destiny. And unfortunately the destiny of their innocent children. I'll condemn fools like that everytime.
Don't even start trying to defend that atrocity!
Don't tell me what to do.
And all I am doing is stating the obvious...Those FREAKS in Waco died horrible deaths simply because they were following an even BIGGER FREAK and "his interpretation of scripture.
They're either "Freaks" or "Idiots". You choose.
(Is your church BATF/FBI approved?)
That question does not apply to me. But it makes for a cute catch-phrase!
Conservatism realizes that the individual is part of society - which literally acts as a fluid organic entity and because of this does tend to include social issues in its sphere of issues. Agree or disagree, that is usually how I define the terms.
Remember there is always someone better with a gun than you are. To go around saying you can do whatever you want and then shoot to enforce that attitude is the exact problem with the mindset of the libertarians on this forum.
You are telling me you are going to attempt to shoot an LEO for doing his job and arresting you?
So your answer to laws you don't like is to shoot and kill people instead of trying to change the law? I thought Libertarians didn't believe in violence and force against others. :)
Bill
FF has had a number of sage comments regarding the incidious nature of libertarians. Take heed my friend, take heed.
"Before this forum, opportunities for conservatives and anyone that wasnt left of center to have rational and intelligent discussions were few and far between. But bigger isnt always better. As time goes on and this forum grows, we are bound to get more people who arent necessarily interested in the same issues. You have to deal with it as it comes, but we've been doing okay for now. We do lose however if we allow this to become less an outlet for unheard viewpoints and stories and issues that normally wouldnt break the mainstream. But the fact remains, this forum is still one of the best resources for information and ideas out there. "
Damn.This deserves a rebump. I think you nailed it. We all love to bitch about the ones we love. But that is what FR is for all of us, the disaffected liberals, hard-core conservatives & run-of-the-mill libertarians amongst us.If we have a problem with the "quality" of posters, it's more a reflection on us, and our unpersuasive arguments, not on the medium we have the luxury of spouting off on. So let's just get a grip, and give thanks for what we've got here.
Phillis is worst of the worst. A squirrel without nuts.
BTW, You are a cop? I thought the Village People broke up?
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