Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Free Republic 1st Qtr 2024 Fundraising Target: $81,000 Receipts & Pledges to-date: $73,548
90%  
Woo hoo!! And we're now over 90%!! Thank you everyone!! God bless.


Freepathon Question

Posted on 07/03/2009 8:54:28 AM PDT by Rodamala

Edited on 07/03/2009 9:29:33 AM PDT by Admin Moderator. [history]

I'm very new here and don't want to get perceived as a "troll", but I see the Freepathon fund drive meter every day and have a question. I don't even know if posting on the forum like this is the right way to ask.

Every quarter, there seems to be a fund drive for $80,000. I'd donate, but 1) money is tight right now, and 2) where does the $320k/year go?

I really like this place... I finally get to be around people that "get it". I feel I should contribute, but... well, see 1 & 2 above.

Rodamala

Q3 2009 Summary


Q-t-D Receipts
  $4,373.00
(includes monthlies to-date)

Monthlies
  $9,639.26
(pledged, not actual receipts)


* Donate!
* Donors
* Scoreboard
* Budget
* FAQ

* Back to the forum

Free Republic Monthly Budget

Once we get our monthly donations to the point where they will cover all of our expenses, we will not need to have fundraisers.

Est. Recurring Monthly Contributions $9,639.00

Monthly Expenses
  Bandwidth and Colocation $2,430  
  System Administation and Programming 7,000  
  Administrative and Taxes 10,500  
  Legal and Accounting 1,000  
  Bank Fees, Credit Card Fees, Processing Fees 800  
  Equip, Maintenance and Repairs 300  
  Office Expenses, Rents, Insurance, Telephone, ISP, Supplies, Misc. 2,500  
  Travel Expenses 800 25,330.00
 

Est. Monthly Shortfall ($15,691.00)


Est. Recurring Monthly Contributions
This is the amount contributed by the monthly donors only. It does not include one-time donations.

Est. Monthly Shortfall
Amount needed in one-time donations per month or additional monthlies need to meet budget needs.

Source

Who runs FR?
Free Republic, LLC is a non-commercial, limited liability company founded and operated by Jim Robinson, a private citizen of Fresno California.

Free Republic is not a for profit commercial enterprise in the sense of a traditional business selling a product or service at a profit for its shareholders. We sell no product or service. We have no clients, customers or employees. We do not accept paid advertising. Free Republic is not affiliated with any political party, group, news source, government agency or anyone else.

Free Republic is not a traditional business. We are a political discussion forum and independent grassroots conservative activist group supported by donations from our readers and participants. When and if our participants decide we are no longer needed or viable, we will close down shop and go away.

Free Republic operates on an approximate $300,000 annual budget (click for breakdown) which includes equipment costs, bandwidth fees, consulting and labor costs, administrative costs, license fees, insurance, rents, communications costs, office expenses, advertising, travel, professional fees, banking and credit card fees, taxes, etc.

Free Republic is not a charity or IRS non-profit organization. We do not raise funds for charitable purposes or causes. We raise funds solely to cover our operating costs, labor, and all applicable state and federal income and payroll taxes.


TOPICS: Free Republic; Your Opinion/Questions
KEYWORDS: freepathon; freepathonfinances
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-56 next last

1 posted on 07/03/2009 8:54:28 AM PDT by Rodamala
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Rodamala

There’s no free lunch.


2 posted on 07/03/2009 8:56:58 AM PDT by cll (I am the warrant and the sanction)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Rodamala

I’m assuming that the 320k goes into power, servers, to pay Jim’s bro etc. A sizable chunk probably goes to the state of California.


3 posted on 07/03/2009 8:57:11 AM PDT by cripplecreek (The poor bastards have us surrounded.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Rodamala

Freedom is not free.


4 posted on 07/03/2009 8:57:32 AM PDT by cll (I am the warrant and the sanction)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Rodamala; Jim Robinson

I think most of it goes toward popcorn, which JR provides free, for threads like this.

Where’s my popcorn, Jim?


5 posted on 07/03/2009 9:01:34 AM PDT by BykrBayb (Somebody should tell those people they voted for this, but still ask God not to punish them. ~ Þ)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Rodamala

Where does it go? It makes FR available to all of us for about 61 cents a minute.


6 posted on 07/03/2009 9:02:20 AM PDT by Tijeras_Slim
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Rodamala

If money is so tight that you can’t contribute $10 to the FReepathon, then why are you on the internet instead of working?

If I had cable TV or a daily newspaper, I’d pay for it, but I don’t. I have FR instead, and I’m willing to pay for it.


7 posted on 07/03/2009 9:02:24 AM PDT by Tax-chick (Seaman Recruit Anoreth broke her foot. Prayers requested!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Rodamala

I’m not certain, I think the mods are also on salary. Then there’s the cost of bandwidth, for all the traffic FR gets it must be fairly hefty.

Sites like The Kos don’t have fund raisers ‘cause they have a sugar daddy to pay all their bills. I imagine Soros is probably paying more than $300k a year to keep the place running, which is pocket change to him.


8 posted on 07/03/2009 9:03:08 AM PDT by eclecticEel (The Most High rules in the kingdom of men ... and sets over it the basest of men.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: cll

PAY-GO? I’ll probablly donate... after I get paid for the last job I did. I need to buy groceries first because groceries aren’t free either. :)


9 posted on 07/03/2009 9:03:17 AM PDT by Rodamala
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: Rodamala

From the FR home page:

Who runs FR?

Free Republic, LLC is a non-commercial, limited liability company founded and operated by Jim Robinson, a private citizen of Fresno California.
Free Republic is not a for profit commercial enterprise in the sense of a traditional business selling a product or service at a profit for its shareholders. We sell no product or service. We have no clients, customers or employees. We do not accept paid advertising. Free Republic is not affiliated with any political party, group, news source, government agency or anyone else.

Free Republic is not a traditional business. We are a political discussion forum and independent grassroots conservative activist group supported by donations from our readers and participants. When and if our participants decide we are no longer needed or viable, we will close down shop and go away.

Free Republic operates on an approximate $300,000 annual budget (click for breakdown) which includes equipment costs, bandwidth fees, consulting and labor costs, administrative costs, license fees, insurance, rents, communications costs, office expenses, advertising, travel, professional fees, banking and credit card fees, taxes, etc.

Free Republic is not a charity or IRS non-profit organization. We do not raise funds for charitable purposes or causes. We raise funds solely to cover our operating costs, labor, and all applicable state and federal income and payroll taxes.


10 posted on 07/03/2009 9:03:49 AM PDT by KansasGirl (I still think Obama is just plain creepy.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Rodamala
Someone has to pay the bills. There are a whole bunch of us who aren't rich, but just a few bucks a month tossed into the hat keeps the lights on and you won't even miss it.

If you check the profiles you will find that a lot of people have been here for years, it's like a family, it's a brotherhood. It's a 24/7 support system, shoulders to cry on, friends to pray for you, Free Republic is unique.

11 posted on 07/03/2009 9:06:22 AM PDT by SWAMPSNIPER (THE SECOND AMENDMENT, A MATTER OF FACT, NOT A MATTER OF OPINION)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: eclecticEel

I guess that’s my question... what does it take to run something like this? I ancient times I was familiar with a couple “free” dialup BBSs... I was always fascinated by the technical aspects of it.


12 posted on 07/03/2009 9:06:38 AM PDT by Rodamala
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: Rodamala; Admin Moderator

Here’s a link to the home page, which has become a little difficult to find. http://www.freerepublic.com/home.htm

Lots of info here, including a link to a general budget. https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/budget I’m not sure how up to date this is, but the general outline wouldn’t change much. When you consider the massive volume of posters and posts here, and the really comprehensive mederation and troll control, it’s really pretty impressive that it can be done for so little money.


13 posted on 07/03/2009 9:11:10 AM PDT by GovernmentShrinker
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: eclecticEel

That’s a good point, Soros and other leftists are funding the left-wing sites and so you never see up-front fundraisers.

Just like leftists are funding modern art, crappy novels, academia, and a zillion front organizations, all without the pain of fundraising.

Conservatives don’t have any sugar daddies. They’ve all gone over to appeasing the terrifying Great Evil Eye in the White House. They all go to Sugar Daddy cocktail parties at the salons of the rich and celebrated and groom one another like the fat cats they are.

We have to raise our own money from the grassroots. We are poor but proud. Tiny but tenacious. Growing and grim and growling.

So cough up already.


14 posted on 07/03/2009 9:13:44 AM PDT by squarebarb
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: Rodamala; Admin Moderator; Jim Robinson

Part of being a true conservative is believing in pulling your own weight. Money is tight for a lot of people and probably for many thousands of FReepers (there are over 300,000 registered users.)

Running a 24/7 site online is expensive (check it out for yourself), Free Republic does not accept advertising and Jim and staff have a right to earn a living, too. That’s capitalism. Paying what you can supports capitalism and the private enterprise Free Republic before the govt regulates FR out of business and you are stuck with all the “free” govt run media you can stand.

Also, Jim often posts a brief financial summary that tells where all the money goes. It was this openness about the finances that made me decide to put part of my SSDI towards the Free Republic. I’m sure an Admin Moderator can post the financial summary here.

These are just a few reasons. There are more. But paying your own way in the world, to the best of your ability, is always the best and most conservative way to go IMO. :0)


15 posted on 07/03/2009 9:18:24 AM PDT by paulycy (Liberal DOUBLE-STANDARDS are HATE crimes.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: paulycy; Admin Moderator

I already posted a link to the budget at #13


16 posted on 07/03/2009 9:20:52 AM PDT by GovernmentShrinker
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]

To: GovernmentShrinker
I already posted a link to the budget at #13

Thank you. It must have gone up while I was typing.

17 posted on 07/03/2009 9:24:01 AM PDT by paulycy (Liberal DOUBLE-STANDARDS are HATE crimes.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]

To: eclecticEel
I’m not certain, I think the mods are also on salary.

Nope - not even...

18 posted on 07/03/2009 9:24:16 AM PDT by Admin Moderator
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: Rodamala
The money goes to keep Freerepublic operational. That means bandwidth so that access is really great. That means database servers that respond quickly and can handle millions and millions of searches and articles.

That means the physical servers (note the plural) for Freerepublic. This site is run by a handful of people.

It is David against Goliath.

The Democrats/liberals/brain washed friends of Obama/Soros probably pump $1 million a quarter into the Huffington Post in trying to come up with a site that might compete with Freeperland...

No. $80,000 a quarter is small change compared (1) to the stakes we are playing with (huge national debt, flushing the constitution down the toilet. Also, fighting the Democratic controlled Congress is not easy.

Since tomorrow is the Fourth of July, just think of the amount blood shed for this country.

I think that blood is a lot more expensive than $80,000 a quarter...

19 posted on 07/03/2009 9:26:48 AM PDT by topher (Let us return to old-fashioned morality - morality that has stood the test of time...)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Admin Moderator; Jim Robinson

Suggestion for site improvement:

It’s really become oddly difficult to find the FR home page, which is the motherlode of basic information like this, that a lot of sane rational new arrivals would be wondering about. Going to www.freerepublic.com has automatically diverted to the main forum for a long time now. And there’s nothing there showing a clear link to “Home”. The actual link is labelled “Free Republic” in large bold letters at the top left, but that looks more like a page heading than a link. This poster Rodamala, for example, sounds like someone who would have found this information on her own, if it wasn’t hidden away like this.


20 posted on 07/03/2009 9:26:54 AM PDT by GovernmentShrinker
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-56 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson