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
Lemme know if there is anything above and beyond I could do to help.
You know where to find me.
So, no, FR is not a fraud and *can't* go away.
If you don't like the culture threads, exclude them by selections on your preferences page.
I can think of myself and probably 10,000 other users who wouldn't be here today if you had to pay to use this site, and even if you charge to post and keep lurking free, think classmates.com for the probability of success there. Freerepublic has gained alot of fame, mentioned often on Brian Wilson's show, among others. What good would that do if one had to pay before using the site?
This site can raise all the money it needs with quarterly fundraising, without a single ad. Who else can say that?
Now more than ever, we need this wonderful forum you have created and others have contributed to over the years. I can't imagine life without Free Republic, as the Republic is becoming less free every minute now.
I will contribute what I can (and continue to) as soon as I am able. Keep on Truckin'!
The "other side" is acutely aware of that fact IMO, and I suspect that's one reason they are so vehemently opposed to FR.
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If I were in your shoes and I started this website and it had grown to what it is today, I would feel completely justified to make my living from it. And if I had to pay others to keep it growing and profitable I would do so.
As far as a subscriber price goes, if $24.00 per year is enough for you, I think that would be a good price to start at and if anyone wanted to donate above that then they could do so. I think a free 3 month introductory period would be good for people like me that are new and more than likely wouldn't pay for something if they didn't know what is was exactly.
Thanks for this site!
BIG BUMP
If everyone gave just 20.00 a month. You get the point. Come on everyone lets show the anti-fr girly boys why they are out numbered and out foxed. Their site is a hate site plain and simple. The Harry and Arator and tekman spew featuring bigNut! Attack the attack dogs. LOLROF
RadioFR DEC 6TH with Jeff Head interview and call in.
TLBSHOW
BUT, MOSTLY, Jim, I THINK YOU ARE JUST TIRED AND NEED A VACATION.
HMMMMMMM....maybe THE SOLUTION is to shut FR down a couple days a week and a couple weeks a year. TAKE DAYS OFF, Jim! And then people would wake up to how much they love and need this site, and the contribution problem would be solved.
He remains a wasted orgasm!
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