Not so ‘Free Republic’: The Shot Heard Around the Net

The Conservative Voice ^ | Feb 11, 2005 | by William Gheen, President, Americans for Legal Immigration PAC

[Jim Robinson]

The shot heard around the Internet has been fired on FreeRepublic.com The owner Jim Robinson and his moderators have launched a sniper style purge against members that disagree with the President’s ‘guest worker’ amnesty or support more control of illegal immigration. Free Republic is an amazing tool for those looking for a good debate and news from around the country.

The problem for the administration of the site is that their creation is allowing the participants to learn that the Bush immigration record and plans are shockingly out of line with the views of most conservatives. The management’s answer to this conflict between the majority of conservatives and the influence of the White House on their Web site has become electronic executions and censorship.

Members and readers of Free Republic would be surprised to know that many members of their community have fallen silent on the discussions about illegal immigration lately because free speech is an illusion on FR.com. They are silent because they have been banned from the Web site without warning, cause, or explanation in most cases. For weeks the moderators have been suspending and banning new members that chimed in quickly on the immigration debates.

Now this trend has broadened as the first groups of long-term users were suspended or banned this past week. Although Robinson and his staff removed many members of the Free Republic community in the first few days of the purge, those that religiously support President Bush’s immigration plan, open borders and approve of public benefits for illegal aliens remain on the forum. Those that were banned were the members that wanted more done to control illegal immigration and a strict observance to the President’s Oath of Office.

[MeekOneGOP]

LOL! :^D

[harrowup]

Final note: I do NOT support open borders or illegal immigration. Sincerely doubt there are many on this forum who do.

Well now I know where the poll questions came from.

I OPPOSE open borders and illegal immigration.
I SUPPORT open borders and illegal immigration.

Clearly there are other options which you have negated which might include supporting open borders and LEGAL immigration.

I don't know who supports illegal immigration but I do know who supports open borders.

I realize the accusations start flying but conditioning one's response to the assertion that all immigration is illegal with or without open borders stifles honest differences of opinion.

[postaldave]

ROTFLOL!!! catching my breath now.......hhhhhhhhhhooooo...

[Alas Babylon!]

I didn't know you were a player in the issue...

I'm not and never was! Honest, check my posts!

Why I was Freepmailed is beyond me, but I don't sympathize with the alipac.us crowd. As far as conservative forums go, there's only Free Republic. It's a giant in a world of midgets.

I avoid the flamers from any side, generally. If you can't say it with decency (and maybe a little comedy), you don't need to say it.

There seems to me a lot of projection going on here. Check the rant by asgardshill in post 811: And no amount of foot-stamping and chin-quivering on your part will change these facts.

Does that sound like Jim, or does that sound like the alipac-ers, liberty posters, etc, etc? I can't even envision Jim stamping his foot or quivering his chin, but I got a visual of these guys doing just that!

[Ghengis]

I also want nothing to do with vigilantism so that rules out the so-called minuteman project.

Reason number 1,000,673 I am glad that I'm a 60 minuteman. ;-)

p.s. Jim, Rock on!

[MarketR]

Do you think they'd hesitate to do the same to an unarmed citizen or a citizen armed only with a "sidearm"?

With all due respect, before you criticize others (from the comfort of your armchair, in the finest 'armchair patriot' style) who have the GUTS and temerity to put their asses on the line out of love for this nation I think it is incumbent to know WHATINHELLYERTALKIN'ABOUT

This IS what I'm talking about!!!! You (see Minuteman project) want to put civilians where PROFESSIONALS are needed.

I'm not going to get in a flame war with you, but at least read the full post before you off half-cocked!

[wardaddy]

Go away and quit trying to bait me into a flame war to give the powers that be an excuse to ban me too.

My views being contrary to W's on this are known well enough and that seems to be pretty unhealthy around here right now.

So run along and celebrate with your posse your Pyhrric victory of the day like the little jackal that you are.

[MeekOneGOP]

Thank you, Nic. I appreciate you very much. :^)

[Not A Snowbird]

Bump

[rodguy911]

I guess I should have qualified that a little bit more.

When rats,like Hillary, "talk" about something it's as if they actually "did" something. Hillary will talk and demagogue the issue of illegal immigration(and many other issues) until the cows come home. But, you are right she will never ever do anything at all about it. She wouldn't dare. Hispanics have become yet another minority group the rats take for granted.

Her game-plan is to "talk" her way into the office of Potus promising anyone anything that even remotely seems feasible and then do what she pleases. And that will be a socialist, left/wing agenda for sure.

[Dane]

Go away and quit trying to bait me into a flame war to give the powers that be an excuse to ban me too.

My views being contrary to W's on this are known well enough and that seems to be pretty unhealthy around here right now.

So run along and celebrate with your posse your Pyhrric victory of the day like the little jackal that you are

I'm not celebrating anything, if anything, IMO, you are reveling in some kind of persecution personna, when you aren't being persecuted.

[rodguy911]

It is frustrating F16 you would think secure borders would be a no brainer. We usually follow what the Israelis do maybe we will get lucky and get a real fence. It certainly hasn't hurt their cause. Good fences make.....

[Howlin]

When do you think Joe was banned and when did you say you were out of town.

Is this like a trick quiz or something? Are you gonna copy and paste it over at TOS?

I was on that thread late Thursday night; my last post was to you; I was out of town Friday night; I got Freepmail telling me he was banned when I got back after lunch on Saturday.

Now don't you feel stupid? Why can't you just face the fact that Joe got HIMSELF banned, that I didn't have anything to do with it. You people are pathetic.

[JLO]

"I always try to inject levity and humor"
===
Yes you do, and you do it OUTSTANDINGLY!

[Howlin]

Post the links.

Aren't you funny.

[MeekOneGOP]

LOL!! Yeah, Dave. I think you get the picture now. Nic described it perfectly.

I always was interjecting my "family", pics that I found on the Internet (Google Searches to fit Nic's comments just for grins). It was all just for fun. And fun it was! :^D

[wardaddy]

Today....our side got whacked.

I never even saw it coming....well, maybe if I had been paying attention.

Folks around here that I view as culture destroyers are celebrating and with good reason. They have been validated and prevailed.

It's a damned shame.

A Bonfire of Dancing Hyenas.

And I am as damned broken glass as any of these foolios and unlike most of them I can prove it....over and over. They are mostly just words.

Today Congress edged towards Sensenbrenner (sic) and Delay and we purged that part of that element here. It makes no sense.

Not to me anyhow.

[Howlin]

All I know is that last Friday night,

Well, you can't seem to keep your story straight; when was it? Thursday night or Friday night?

[nicmarlo]

Thank you, Nic. I appreciate you very much. :^)

Aw, thanks, meek. I appreciate you, too!

meekie ---> <--- nic

[nicmarlo]

He got real good at "family" business, dave! : )