I have not been a member as long as you, though I lurked for 2 years before joing. One of the many things that impressed me about the freerepublic members was their ability to track down information whether for or against a theory. How many times has information been known here before the media outlets. It harms nobody and is usually very intresting to watch. One thing it isn't is a waste of time, some people would consider it a mental exersise.
You have tremendous will power. I lurked for about a month before joining! LOL - I'm a FRaddict, and proud of it.