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What's Happening to Conservative Websites?
vanity | 3-7-07 | Bob J

Posted on 03/07/2007 6:57:43 PM PST by Bob J

I have diligently watched the rise in size and influence of conservative websites, including Free Republic, over the last 7-8 years. I have been shocked and concerned over the drop in traffic at the most popular ones over the last year or so. There was good growth up until 2006 but since then there has been a steady downtrend that would crash any other market.

Anyone have any ideas as to what is happening? I'm out of explanations. The deficiencies in alexa.com are noted, but even if the numbers aren't accurate you're still comparing off numbers to off numbers so the decline is consistent.



TOPICS: Free Republic
KEYWORDS: conservative; freerepublic; internet
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To: Dominic Harr

Could your apparent double std be because you are sympathetic to DCP's POV? Nah.


481 posted on 03/08/2007 10:39:40 AM PST by skeeter
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To: Bob J
They won't bolt but will stay home on election day.

I'm not convinced the majority will.

Here, you've got the most devout, most extreme folks spouting off at the mouth. That doesn't mean that they represent all the less extremist folks out there. And it doesn't even mean they will all follow thru on their threats.

482 posted on 03/08/2007 10:40:05 AM PST by Dominic Harr (Conservative: The "ant", to a liberal's "grasshopper".)
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To: RobRoy; Bob J

Many of the "Evo" posters on "Crevo" threads were purged, and/or their posts deleted.


483 posted on 03/08/2007 10:40:51 AM PST by NathanR (Après moi, le deluge.)
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To: Dominic Harr
WHoa. I am looking for the 100% hypothetical completely conservative position on the issues. Just trying to define the End member in the Conservative spectrum, all other positions being more liberal.

I'm not doing this to exclude anyone, just trying to define 100%.

I am a geologist. In describing a sedimentary rock, pure quartz sandstone, for instance, is rare. Pure shale (100% clay minerals) is not as common as rocks which are somewhere in between.

Most rocks of these types fall somewhere in between, as most political viewpoints fall somewhere between Liberal and Conservative. (Yes there are others, but I am trying to describe the concept after working 14 hours, so bear with me, please).

Although a rock which is 49% clay minerals and 51% sand is still a sandstone, it is not the end member in the series.

Similarly, someone who is more conservative than liberal can still be defined as a conservative, even though their views as a whole are more liberal than the person who (hypothetically, anyway) is 100% conservative in their outlook.

What I am trying to do,and inviting others to participate in, is define the pure end member: 100% Conservative.

From there we can go off on all sorts of tangents describing the varying degrees and types of conservatism, but first, it would be nice to define the maximum.

Again, I am not doing this to exclude anyone, just get a better bearing on where we all stand.

484 posted on 03/08/2007 10:40:58 AM PST by Smokin' Joe (How often God must weep at humans' folly.)
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To: NathanR
My fear, is that enough will bolt that the Democrat (whoever he (or she) is) will be able to win.

It's a valid fear.

But I'll tell you, if Rudy does somehow win the nomination, I think he's got a very good shot at winning in a landslide.

485 posted on 03/08/2007 10:41:14 AM PST by Dominic Harr (Conservative: The "ant", to a liberal's "grasshopper".)
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To: Dominic Harr
You may be right.

However, what happens to Free Republic if Rudy wins? Will people here get over it, or will the site implode?

I fear implosion.
486 posted on 03/08/2007 10:43:30 AM PST by NathanR (Après moi, le deluge.)
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To: Pelham; CWOJackson
I pale in comparison to your nastiness, which is legendary.

Chief Jackson is a lot of things, but "nasty" is not one of them. He's a wiseass on FR, much like I am. Unfortunately, people interpret that as mean spirited, hence all of the "comments from fans" on my freeper home page.

Jackson is a friendly guy if you chat with him on threads you agree on.

487 posted on 03/08/2007 10:44:02 AM PST by jmc813 (Rudy Giuliani as the Republican nominee is like Martin Luther being Pope.)
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To: Tribune7
That's pretty close to my view and I consider myself very much pro life.

Exactly, we're not at some big impass here. And yet several times social Cs have told me I must be a liberal, democrat, main-stream-media hack who they don't want in the Conservative camp.

What is up with that?

488 posted on 03/08/2007 10:44:36 AM PST by Dominic Harr (Conservative: The "ant", to a liberal's "grasshopper".)
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To: Bob J

Well personally, if I were a noob and saw so many Rudy threads on here, I'd just assume this isn't the place for me. Same goes for all of the conservative sites that are suffering from Rudy-Spam.


489 posted on 03/08/2007 10:45:41 AM PST by Antoninus (I don't vote for liberals, regardless of party.)
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To: quidnunc
A number, myself included, were threatened with banning when we voiced opposition to the political hukster Alan Keyes

Alan Keyes is a friend of this site. When someone makes untrue accusations against him, such as being a "huckster", expect a bad reaction.

490 posted on 03/08/2007 10:45:50 AM PST by jmc813 (Rudy Giuliani as the Republican nominee is like Martin Luther being Pope.)
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To: skeeter
Could your apparent double std be because you are sympathetic to DCP's POV? Nah.

"Double standard"?

One side slapped first. I fault the agressor.

You're trying to blame the victim.

I just don't play that.

491 posted on 03/08/2007 10:45:50 AM PST by Dominic Harr (Conservative: The "ant", to a liberal's "grasshopper".)
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To: NathanR

>>Many of the "Evo" posters on "Crevo" threads were purged, and/or their posts deleted.<<

I remember when a couple of creationists got suspended for spamming the threads a couple of years ago, but at the time I thought a lot of the evos were doing it as well.

The evo spam became intollerable. You would read this volumes of "apparently scholarly" stuff with graphs, pictures and even peer review, but they were the same old tripe filled with phrases like "could have been", "indicates", "appears to be", etc.

I'm glad it all got cleaned up. The True Believers on both sides either got suspended or toned it down.


492 posted on 03/08/2007 10:48:18 AM PST by RobRoy (Islam is a greater threat to the world today than Nazism was in 1938.)
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To: Smokin' Joe
Again, I am not doing this to exclude anyone, just get a better bearing on where we all stand.

I think I understand -- and I'd still say that abortion can't be defined.

It depends on what you mean by 'conservative'. One group believes that means "the conservative use of federal power". We believe in the 'component architecture' of the constitution, allowing states to make their own rules, as componenets of a system.

Another group means 'socially conservative', they want federal rules like the defense of marriage act and a federal law making abortion illegal.

One group believes in a system, a process. The other believes in a set of fixed positions. We agree on certain things, and we had a coalition to fight for those, while we agreed to not take action on the things we do not have agreement on.

493 posted on 03/08/2007 10:49:22 AM PST by Dominic Harr (Conservative: The "ant", to a liberal's "grasshopper".)
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To: Dominic Harr

I took a minute to read some of your posts on a few threads. I think that we agree in spirit if not exactly in degree.


494 posted on 03/08/2007 10:53:09 AM PST by wtc911
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To: NathanR
However, what happens to Free Republic if Rudy wins? Will people here get over it, or will the site implode?

Anybody's guess, but I bet we continue on the same path, fighting for what we believe in, regardless of who's in power.

And a lot of that will depend on how Rudy does, if elected.

495 posted on 03/08/2007 10:53:14 AM PST by Dominic Harr (Conservative: The "ant", to a liberal's "grasshopper".)
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To: jmc813
It wasn't one thread it was an entire night of people pulling out knives and shoving them in the backs of people they had been friendly with for a long time.

Basically, a line in the sand was drawn and people lined up on one side or the other. The same thing was done over Elian and Sciavo is now being done on immigration threads and others.

FR used to be a place for exchanging ideas, lately it seems to be the place to shove them down other peoples throats.

BTW - Don't know how to get them, they're buried deep in the archives somewhere.
496 posted on 03/08/2007 10:53:36 AM PST by Bob J (RIGHTALK.com...a conservative alternative to NPR!)
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To: dan1123; Bob J; John Robinson
FreeRepublic needs a web 2.0 makeover with a better comment system. The community is great but the interface is dated.

NO, NO, and NO!!!!!!!!!!!!

FR has the single BEST messaging software I have ever come upon on the web, and I'm not just saying that to kiss butt. What other messaging system allows you to read a comment, click once to read the comment the original was replying to, click once to see replies to the original comment, and click twice to view the other comments of the poster, all without unnecessary bells and whistles which detract from the content?

497 posted on 03/08/2007 10:54:00 AM PST by jmc813 (Rudy Giuliani as the Republican nominee is like Martin Luther being Pope.)
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To: Dominic Harr

As long as we're clear you're not reeally about bringing the coalition together, but about pointing the finger, just like the 'extremist' freepers you poo-poo.


498 posted on 03/08/2007 10:54:07 AM PST by skeeter
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To: tcrlaf

Except to put us in even more danger.


499 posted on 03/08/2007 10:57:05 AM PST by Let's Roll ("...given the choice between war and dishonor, you chose dishonor - you will have war"- W.Churchill)
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To: wtc911
I took a minute to read some of your posts on a few threads.

And you're still awake? :-D

I think we do agree, in spirit. It's all a matter of detail. And I think a small group of folks who like to use extreme language are having unintended consequences here.

But I hope we'll all unite against the real adversary, once the generaal election is upon us.

500 posted on 03/08/2007 10:57:22 AM PST by Dominic Harr (Conservative: The "ant", to a liberal's "grasshopper".)
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