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
I also happen to read people very, very well. I'm trained to do it, I make a living doing it, and I get daily practice at it. It's not normal for someone to write an "epic" poem..............about themselves. Tongue-in-cheek, serious, half-kidding........no matter, Arator. The very tenor of your response, automatically assuming that this was about "you", is further evidence of what I'm saying. Yes, Arator, you're into yourself whether you choose to admit it or not. No skin off my nose if you don't want to face that fact. It's the truth.
Now, I'll also add that there's not a thing wrong with having a healthy ego. An ego out of control is a whole other issue.
BTW.......news flash for ya: I'm a SERIOUS "paleo-con". Big time. Always have been............and you don't speak for me in that sense.
Lose the persecution complex and contribute, 'cause like I said, I think you can do just that.
Regards,
Callahan
You really need to send this to Readers Digest. They pay for jokes.
Collision. Two posts were made at the same time to the same thread; one post made it into the thread, the other made it into the postlog (self-search).
As threads are growing larger, this is happening more frequently. It's a fault of the old structure still under the hood which was not designed for the load we see today.
That is indeed an awesome responsibility and I am assuming that the responsibilities of said leader somehow entitled them to not only question the administration of FR, but criticize it fully and roundly, and once said comments were made, there seemed to be little else to converse about.
One of the perks of being a titular leader, no doubt.
That's great to hear, Torie.
Giving the number so neocons on this site, it may well be that calling me the least articulate neocon has the same meaning as calling me the most articulate.
No, Harry's right. You are definitely the most articulate neo-con on FR. Of course, I might think that because you are one of the few neo-cons who don't begin every post to me with ad hominem attacks, unfounded accusations of dishonesty, fraud, etc. You stick to the issues, and I like that very very much. LOL.
Yeah, the MANTRA. I know it well. One size fits all threads.
Your site, however, deals exclusively with ISSUES AND ANSWERS!
LOL! You guys!
You remember everything, and learn nothing.
1) What happened to his pro bono lawyer? Was that Clarity? I heard that Clarity doesn't post here any more (and I haven't seen Clinton's A Liar either - she leave too?), why was that?
2) What are some of these "rival sites" that banned members have been starting?
For the record, I've been a member of this site since 1998, and was lurking for several months prior to registering. It's far and away the best source for news and information, especially for our point of view. I find nothing wrong with most of the vanities, and find some truly entertaining. The flaming could be toned down, but hey, as long as I see an argument mixed in between the slams, I've got no problem. It's too bad that some of the longtime members have gotten into the problems they have with Jim Robinson and left or were banned, but it's Jim's site and his vision, and that needs to be respected as well.
don't let party partisan and federal agents and other special interests intimidate or talk into banning people and pulling threads for exposing corruption this is one of the most important site on the internet
this is one of the most important activist movements for promoting freedom , defending our Bill Of Rights and Constitution,
and fighting governement corruption this site must remain and contioue to grow if we want to keep this nation a Free Republic
you have know choice Jim Robinson , because i know you love this country
That Arator! He's such a kidder!!!
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