Actual, that 'problem' as a reason for costs makes no sense, none at all. Freerepublic is on top of copywrited material, so in no way could it be shown that there is a pattern of allowing copyrighted material to be displayed.
I wonder about the annual costs of $288,000 with virtually no regulatory related costs involved.
I visit another site that runs advertisements and if one wants that to stop, a fee in charged. I'm thinking that that is a fair solution. I'm sure the advertisement would cover 'conservative' leaning stuff, so no big deal.
I’m not asking you to support the forum if you don’t think it’s a good idea. Please, if you don’t want to chip in, find another thread that interests you. I have no problem with you opting out.
Even though certain media outlets have requested (in a couple of cases via lawsuits) not to have full articles from their sites posted here, FR does allow a huge amount of copyrighted material to be displayed, and without that we wouldn’t have much of a forum. BUT the right to use copyrighted material under the legal exceptions for study and research purposes is tied to NOT using it to make money. That’s why FR can’t have paid advertising or charge a membership fee for posting rights.