Posted on 11/28/2001 7:31:29 PM PST by Jim Robinson
Free Republic has had one helluva run over the last five years or so. We helped impeach one president and helped get another into office. We've been active in demonstrations and protests in nearly every city across the nation. We've participated in conventions, petition drives, activism campaigns and projects for dozens of conservative causes.
We've grown from a tiny web site with a few hundred posters and readers from the time of inception in 1996, to one with tens of thousands of participants today. Along the way we've made lots of great friends and, unfortunately, also made lots of bitter enemies.
We've grown from a small web site that I could manage myself on a part-time basis to a huge monster that has totally consumed all of my time and resources plus nearly all of John's time, plus the time and resources of many dedicated FReepers who volunteer or contribute large amounts of their own time and money.
The site is now consuming all of a 10 mbps dedicated line with two servers and we're still growing, and it consumes large amounts of money to keep all this running. In the early years, it only took a few thousand dollars per month to keep Free Republic on the air, but it is now costing over $20,000 per month to cover all expenses.
The major costs include approximately $8,000 per month for bandwidth, 3,000 for systems management and programming services, 7,000 for management, operating and administrative services, plus two or three thousand per month for miscellaneous office expenses, telephone, communications, repairs & maintenance, travel & lodging, postage, rentals, insurance, legal fees, accounting fees, etc., etc.
We anticipate a reduction in bandwidth costs next year as we renegotiate our contract (the market price for bandwidth has fallen recently), however, that will be more than offset by an expected increase in costs of our legal expenses. As most of you know, our pro bono attorney has left us and we've hired a new attorney to continue with our case, plus we have the suit against eschoir to pay for. My projections are that our regular monthly expenses for next year will be running in the neighborhood of $22,000 per month, or approximately $264,000 total for the year. This means we will need to raise approximately $66,000 per quarter.
Talking about making enemies, we've got several ex-FReepers and other detractors who are claiming on their anti-freeper web sites that I am ripping off the donors and that Free Republic is a fraud. Now, Free Republic is what it is, and it is definitely not a fraud. It is a conservative news discussion forum that encourages participation in politics and activism projects. It is not being billed as anything else. We are not selling or promising anything. And I am being up front about our operating costs. The costs of running Free Republic are what I've stated above and they are necessary to keep FR on the air. I do not have the financial wherewithal to operate this site without your help. If the majority of the FReepers feel that these costs are out of line or too much to bear or that Free Republic is no longer wanted or needed, then we will either cut it back or shut it down or do something altogether different.
I've also been criticized about not making our financials public. Well, the reason I do not want to do this is that I have been sued, both personally and as Free Republic, LLC. The people suing us want to bankrupt us and shut us down. They subpoenaed our financial records, but we refused to turn them over. The judge agreed that the plaintiffs have no right to the information, thus I have no intention of making any more of it public than I absolutely have to, until this lawsuit is resolved. You all know the amounts of money we raise if you follow the fundraising threads. It is all above board and out in the open. The totals posted by BadJoe are usually pretty close to the actual cash received and the amounts expended are pretty close to the amounts projected. No one is getting rich here and no one is being ripped off. The funds raised are being used for the purposes stated, and that is keeping this website on the air and that's it. Nothing fraudulent about it. Those who want to help fund us freely do so with nothing expected in return. Those who do not want to contribute do not have to.
There was a thread running this morning where people were making all kinds of accusations about Free Republic "hiding the truth" or whatever. These accusations are being made by Chuck Allan and others and fall along the same line with the accusations being made by some of the earlier banees or AFers including Mojo, Inspector Harry Callahan, Arator, keep U.S. Sovereign, TKEman and others. Some of these people are existing FReepers and some are banned. I am going to reinstate Mojo, Inspector Harry Callahan and Arator's accounts so they can join Chuck Allan, TKEman, K.U.S.S. and whomever else wants to get involved, and I invite them to come onto this thread and make their accusations public. As long as they do not go onto other threads and make a nuisance of themselves, I will let them have their say.
Like I said above, if it is time for Free Republic to go away so be it. Those who want to keep it going speak up. Those who want it to go away, tell us why. But if those who want it to be gone lose out in the debate, then I'd say they should just go away themselves, or, in the very least, shut up and quit whining about it.
Thanks,
Jim
Thank you for the kind words.
In response to your offer to reinstate those who wish to ask questions, Lindam would like to request posting permission.
Thank you in advance.
Paging BadJoe!
Screw the detractors.
I'll pay what I have to to help you all preserve and maintain this forum.
Don't take any crap from the 'loosers', Jim. LOL!
This thread and the official start Saturday morning "aint" gonna die till we hit 80 big ones.
Perhaps "Free Republic" ought to be renamed "Sado-masochistic Republic" since its a place where people who LIKE to be abused gladly pay for it.
Who ya gonna tell,Mojo? Arator?
FreeRepublic is a brick in the foundation of a conservative fortress that needs to be erected to protect our Constitution and our liberty, does it matter if there are personality conflicts? Do you think the Founders agreed on everything or there wasn't animosity on many issues? Imagine if Jefferson had refused to have anything to do with the Declaration of Independance because so many involved were friends with Hamilton. He was involved in something bigger than himself and his circle of friends. I view FreeRepublic that way. If you desire to have an impact on the direction that FreeRepublic is taking, then engage. Follow the rules of the site, but engage. If you do not view FreeRepublic as important, then walk away, but walk away with no animosity. If FreeRepublic is not a site of importance to the conservative movement, then it should not be important enough to feel bitter about and wronged by. I ask that you stay and help steer this ship, or at worst wish us Bon Voyage and don't try to hinder us.
LOL a confused welcome back.
Want some cheese?
Then come on back and get it, but quit whinning, and don't go laying back down on that nail again.
Yeah, I miss you too. I know your bigger than this. Forgive and forget./end subliminal
Should I bring that post over? SURE WHY NOT!
TLBSHOW SAYS! All of you if given a chance would be back on FR. I know harry would.
Callahan Banned (CALLAHAN_FR) Oct-27 8:44 pm
To: TLBSHOW007 (23 of 41) "I know harry would." BZZZZZ! So sorry. Jim Robinson misrepresented the reason I was banned (see post #692). Bryan came along in #880 and told the TRUTH about what happened. Robinson also said I was "damn near as caustic as Arator". Why would I go back there? Jim posted a bunch of crap that I couldn't rebut because HE, HIMSELF had banned me. And you think I want to go BACK????
Follow the story here.
I also agree with this statement, respectfully. As this can be a very dangerous trend for this forum in several different ways.
At one time, I was banned under another name, for what I believe was completely unjust. It may have been a simple misinterpretation of my position. I don't know and probably will never discover what actually triggered the action against me. However I must say that after privately corresponding with Jim Robinson via email and explaining my position, I was reinstated. And I sincerely appreciate that fairness.
That being stated, I feel the Free Republic *is* the premier news and talk forum on the entire internet if not the entire planet.
After being a regular visitor and subscriber on the Free Republic for approximately four years now, (two of those years were under another name) I have found that newspapers and television and other main stream media fall far behind this forum in regards to breaking news stories, follow-ups, creative people, and the debates. And, all of this with some degree of humor. I am very confident that we have some of the funniest damn people in the nation posting on this forum. And in this stressful environment we all live in, the humor is a nice ice breaker.
Long live the Free Republic. Good luck to all my fellow American patriots and freedom fighters against big government. And finally, I would like to see the support for the Free Republic remain voluntary and I will contribute when I possibly can.
Joe Hadenuf
Egomaniacal and ill-mannered guest.
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