Free Republic: glass ant farm for zealots

Globe and Mail ^ | 10/27/06 | IVOR TOSSELL

[GSlob]

"is this really how we FReepers want to be perceived - as a crowd of "the most paranoid, xenophobic and reactionary characters the political landscape has to offer"
Does anyone here really care what some barking moonbat thinks of F.R.?"
I'd say that we are not the MOST "paranoid, xenophobic and reactionary characters the political lanscape has to offer". There's always some room for an improvement, and we need to work harder at it, if only for the satisfaction of driving such Ivor Tossels to heart attacks and spontaneous defecation.

[FreedomCalls]

but even the lefty has to admit that it hard not to stare

For a lot of people it's a paraphrase of Caesar: "I came, I stared, I stayed."

[sig226]

Why? If we sat around in pressed Dockers and turtlenecks, writing lugubrious prose and quoting far flung philosophers from Europe and Asia, they would hate us for having an effect rather than an affect. They're going to hate us no matter what we do, so we might as well enjoy ourselves. Regarding a higher standard of conduct, have you ever read the stuff on democratic underground? Profanity is the rule, not the exception.

Now I have to stop thinking. I have to clean my guns. :)

[This Just In]

I don't wear pressed Dockers and turtlenecks. You assume too much when I say we should hold ourselves to a higher standard. Furthermore, I'm not so concerned with whether or not they hate us. Conducting our behavior in a civil manner and showing a level of decency is, in and of itself, honorable, which is something liberals are incapable of exercising. I am quite familiar with their profanity laced indecent and base pontifications. That's what sets us apart, often times.

So, what are you packin'? :^)

[TChris]

How we are perceived is entirely beyond our control. Especially when folks like the author of this diatribe cherry-pick FR posts for the juiciest, most inflammatory language they can find, the perception of FR will depend heavily on what their looking for.

For example, this author entirely ignores the self-policing nature of Free Republic. He doesn't mention that there are plenty of FReepers who will disagree with nearly any position one of us may take. In short, he was interested only in portraying Free Republic as he did: a public haven for right-wing extremist whackos.

Just post and live honestly. How others judge that is really their problem, not ours.

[sig226]

I don't think I assume too much, and I never meant to insinuate that you wear pressed Dockers and turtlenecks. :) But this site is incredibly tame when judged against other message boards, particularly political ones. The liberals come here and see only the few whackos and the exceptional cases of incivility. This place is one of the pinnacles of reasoned debate on the web. Arguments are made with references and facts are used far more than insults. I think we hold ourselves to a very high standard and meet it.

You can probably guess what I'm packing.

[This Just In]

Yes, liberals have their own form of selective service. They are quite selective in the quotes they choose to publish when trying to persuade the uninformed(Similar to sound bites).

Not that I have anything against individuals who wear pressed Dockers and turtlenecks.

I would agree that Free Republic is a site where individuals can engage in civil discourse, although I've noticed more juvenile and sophomoric posts of late. There are other sites that provide equal, if not a more, intellectual level of discussion/debate.

[sig226]

Freepmail me.

[Ninian Dryhope]

"There are other sites that provide equal, if not a more, intellectual level of discussion/debate."

Care to list a few of them?

[This Just In]

The Constructive Curmudgeon

Climate Science: Roger Pielke Sr. Research Group Weblog

[MinorityRepublican]

bttt