Since Jun 26, 2001
You're not precisely an all-war veteran, either
Since Jun 26, 2001
You're not precisely an all-war veteran, either
Well, this past March marked my fifth year as a registered Freeper. I came here after tiring of the alt.fan.rush-limbaugh USENET group and the constant scatological suggestions from people on both sides of debate.
Something that I have learned over the years is that there are too many different types of people here to expect things to go exactly the way you want them to.
I have seen many folks whose opinions and talent I greatly admire fade from FR after strong disagreements with JimRob or the moderators (Clarity, BluesDuke, and, most tragically, Clinton's a Liar). Others have, in essence, walked across a wooden bridge dragging an open gas can, set the bridge on fire, and stood on the other side waving an extended middle finger (DonMorgan, Jack Thompson, Trixie [bka Lucianne Goldberg]).
Free Republic is probably more ideologically diverse now than it was four years ago, yet its influence as a voice for the right-of-center is greater than ever. While the name of the site was rarely revealed when making reference to the protests and events like 1998's March For Justice rally in favor of impeaching Clinton, now one of the Dixie Chicks' PR people blames the backlash against the trio solely on this site, which -- if you believe that -- is a HUGE deal. On top of that, this past weekend's brilliantly conceived Garofolo Awards ceremony got a lot of mainstream play, much of it specifically mentioning FR.
There are times when I felt like I didn't want to sign on anymore, but there are too durn many crazy things going on in this world, and too few places that are safe for a straight, black, right-of-center San Franciscan to express his opinion.
I guess what I am trying to say is, learn the rules, and don't go nuts. If you run off and think you will find a much better place, happy hunting, but I don't think you will find it.