What is more likely, that 86% of Free Republic are idiots because we don’t see Mitt Romney as a conservative or that you are wrong/biased/whatever?
The members of FR may well be a good indicator, but self-selecting internet polls are not, even if they are on FR. Any random 'net poll that has been spammed by Paul supporters shows why.
Members choose to participate or not on a variety of reasons. By the way the polls here on FR have been worded lately, they are little different from "push polls" and are not really indicative of FR as a whole. They are indicative of who the management supports, and members hold contrary views at their own peril. The frequent call to ban anyone who doesn't support Fred on this very thread show why.
As far as fear and such, no one has been banned unless they were obnoxious in the extreme or are trolls, and that included the massive Rudy “purge’. Proof in the putting, there are still Rudy supporters in these very forums.
So that is a weak argument against the validity of the poll last week.